Posted by 
Nigerian comedian Brain Jotter has addressed rumours surrounding his alleged windfall of over N400 million from the viral success of his use of ‘Ka Esi Le Onye Isi Oche,’ a classic hit by legendary musician Mike ‘Gentleman’ Ejeagha.
The song started trending again earlier this month because of a viral TikTok challenge inspired by Brainjotter’s hilarious dance moves. The routine features participants walking towards each other, performing a funny leg dance, and then one person chasing the other to the catchy chorus of “Gwo Gwo Gwo Ngwo.”
With over 20,000 recreations on TikTok, including many from celebrities, the #KaEsiLeChallenge has taken Nigeria by storm.
Brain Jotter’s gift to Gentleman and the intricacies of music monetisation
On Sunday, Brain Jotter met the highlife legend and gifted him N2 million. The comedian revealed how his father used to play Ejeagha’s songs during trips to their hometown.
Amidst the viral trend, a man named Radiogad claimed Jotter made over N400 million from streaming the song and should pay Ejeagha N100 million. Jotter, however, clarified that no financial gain has been made from the viral dance craze.
“The real win here,” Brain Jotter said “is that streaming of Ejeagha’s song has skyrocketed, and all that cash flows straight to him. The N2 million I gave? Purely from my hard-earned money, not for profit—just for humanity.”
Netng had earlier reported that Brain Jotter did not have to make any payments to the musician for the use of the song. The ultimate question for Premier Records, who owned his music catalogue is: “Has the song been optimized for social media use?”
These record labels usually have licensing and royalty agreements with Facebook, IG, TikTok and other social media platforms. If this has been done, Brain Jotter and everyone else is within their rights to use the song on any social media platform without asking for permission or making payments.
In the same vein, Brain Jotter explained the intricacies of music monetization: “You can’t monetize someone else’s song because platforms like YouTube will strike you for copyright. Any revenue from streams goes directly to the rightful owner, Mike Ejeagha.”
“Listen up, folks! No moneybags here,” Jotter quipped in an Instagram video. “The N2 million gift was from my pocket. For those worried we’re exploiting the legend, rest assured, all revenues from the song go to Ejeagha’s music label.”
