Nigerian singer Okafor Uchenna Victor, popularly known as Mr Real, has raised concerns about what he described as rampant intellectual property theft within the country’s music industry.
The Legbegbe hitmaker claimed that Afrobeats as a genre currently lacks originality, alleging that many songs and creative ideas in the scene are copied or stolen.
He noted that upcoming artists are often the biggest victims of this trend, yet they rarely get justice because they lack the fan base or influence to call attention to their situations.
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Speaking in a recent interview with Hip TV, posted on X on Sunday, Mr Real said even some established acts who often complain about their songs being stolen have also taken ideas from others without permission.
“Blackface dey always complain say dem steal him song. Afrobeats no get original songs, even Rema fit steal Omah Lay song. You see idea wey bad if you no sharp, omo boys go run am. No time,” he said in Pidgin.
According to him, song theft happens more frequently between rising stars and established acts, but because the upcoming artists have fewer supporters, their voices often go unheard.
“Stealing of songs happens more between upcoming artists and top artistes but the upcoming no get fans to speak for them. There’s no original song in Afrobeats. Even the one shouting ‘they stole my song’ don still copy person own,” he added.
Mr Real’s comments add to the growing debate over originality and intellectual property rights in Nigeria’s music industry, where accusations of song theft have become increasingly common.
