An Accra High Court has thrown out the copyright lawsuit brought against producer Hammer and rapper Obrafour by Mantse Aryeequaye, the founder of the Chalewote Street Art Festival.
Mantse had accused rapper Obrafour and producer Hammer of wrongfully claiming exclusive rights to the well-known phrase “killer cut blood” used in the popular song “Oye Ohene.”
However, on Thursday, February 15, the case was dismissed by an Accra High Court, presided over by Justice John Eugene Nyanteh Nyadu, citing procedural errors.
The court noted that Mantse had filed separate claims against the producer and rapper, leading to the dismissal of the case.
Speaking to Joy Entertainment, Obrafour’s lawyer, Bobby Banson, explained that he identified technical flaws in the case. He clarified that the defendants had to be treated as distinct individuals in two separate lawsuits.
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According to him, “he should not have sued Obrafour and Hammer for different cause of actions (claims) but he did and the law is the law. So, I asked the case to be struck out and the court agreed.”
Lawyer Bobby Banson confirmed that Mantse has been ordered to pay an amount of GH₵10,000.
Despite this setback, a spokesperson for the Chalewote Street Art Festival founder stated that they remain undeterred by the court’s ruling.
Anny Osabutey emphasized that despite similarities in the cases, the court ruled that Obrafour and Hammer had to be sued separately.
He reiterated their determination to pursue the matter, stating, “I have been informed that a cost of GHS10,000 was awarded against us, but Mantse will continue with the legal action.”
Background
In January 2024, it was revealed that Mantse Aryeequaye had sued rapper Obrafour and producer Hammer for allegedly claiming sole ownership of the famous ‘killer cut blood’ phrase.
The ownership of the phrase, used in the popular Obrafour track Oye Ohene, came under scrutiny after the rapper sued Canadian artiste Drake for using it in his track without the former’s permission.
In the suit, Mantse accused Obrafour of claiming ownership of the phrase and copyrighting it in the US in September 2022.
He noted that Obrafour had registered the track, Oye Ohene, with the phrase inclusive in the US “robbing him (Mantse) of his intellectual property and seeking to receive payment for plaintiff’s work exclusively.”
The Chalewote founder called the rapper’s actions malicious with “clear nefarious intent” to divert and use royalties belonging to him. He insists that he owns the intellectual property of ‘killer cut’ and thus, he is praying on the court to declare so.
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In addition, he is calling on the court to restrain Obrafour from demanding and receiving payment for ‘killer cut’.
Mantse is also praying to the court to order Hammer to not only relinquish all his works to him but, also submit a record of all his works (with Hammer), including ones that have been used in other tracks.
Among other things, he is also demanding “general damages against 1st defendant for misappropriating Plaintiff’s work and actively seeking to profit from it whilst evading all calls and efforts to rectify his duplicitous conduct” and “costs including full indemnity for legal costs which could have been avoided.”
