Odakky Andy of Mentor 1 fame, a Ghanaian artist, has confessed that signing an incorrect 10-year deal with a company was one of the worst blunders he made at the start of his music career.
He claimed that his desire to make it large in the early stages of his music career and establish a solid brand for himself drove him to sign the contract without thoroughly understanding it.
Odakky Andy publicly blamed himself for the hardship he experienced on Prime Morning on Thursday, since it was only after signing the contract that he realised he was legally obligated to the label for 10 years.
“From my side, it was tough and rough after releasing my first album. I also signed the wrong contract. The duration was too long. The contract was for ten years. I was supposed to take my time and read the contract, which I didn’t. So I blame myself for signing the contract without seeking legal counsel from a lawyer before signing it,” he said.
The singer went on to say that after signing with the label, the producer relocated out of the country, making it difficult for him to release new songs and albums. He also found it difficult to cancel the contract due to his concern of incurring legal fines.
Odakky Andy chose to be patient and wait for his producer to return to Ghana as promised so that they could continue making and releasing amazing songs.
However, things did not go as planned, and six years later, the producer eventually reached out to Odakky and urged him to leave and find another label since he had no intentions of returning to Ghana before the 10-year contract expired.
“After releasing my first album, the producer travelled outside the country, so we couldn’t work again. And because I had signed a contract, I couldn’t go behind him and release songs because we had an agreement. He later called after six years to tell me he’s not coming back anytime soon,” he narrated.
Andy also stated that after quitting the label, he was free to independently release new songs. Despite the fact that he was constantly releasing new music, he said that it wasn’t gaining the momentum he had hoped for.
This is because he self-financed the creation of his songs.
Again, by the time the recordings were out, raising funds to sell them had become tough.
“I was doing everything myself. I was managing, producing, financing, recording, writing, shooting videos, and promoting myself, so it wasn’t easy. That is why people weren’t hearing from me. I was releasing it, but people weren’t hearing it,” he explained.
The artist said that, despite facing several hurdles in the music industry, his determination to stay in the profession, work hard, and never give up on his aspirations paid off.
Owning a record company, he believes, will help his songs go far. He said that, thanks to the counsel and assistance of some famous names in the music industry, he has gained new skills that will allow him to manage a profitable company and stay relevant in the market.
He encouraged Ghanaians to keep an eye out for more content from him, as he wants to release three albums before the end of 2023.
