The Performing Musicians Employers Association of Nigeria (PMAN), led by its president Pretty Okafor, has urged musicians across the country to register for the Copy Levy beneficiary verification ahead of the disbursement of funds from the new copyright levy.
At a media briefing at the PMAN headquarters in Lagos, Okafor asked performers, particularly those at the grassroots, to take part in the exercise by signing up on the association’s national database.
Okafor thanked President Bola Tinubu for his role in activating the Copyright Levy under Section 89 of the Copyright Act 2022, saying it marked a new moment for the creative industry.
He said: “This moment aligns with the Renewed Hope agenda of the Tinubu administration – an agenda that seems to position the creative industry as a viable contributor to national productivity, employment, exports and sustainable prosperity. The implementation of the Levy framework represents more than a policy announcement; it is an institutional signal that Nigeria is prepared to move the creative economy from sentiment to structure – from applause to accountability.”
“The Copyright Levy is not a private arrangement and not a discretionary ‘gift.’ It is a statutory mechanism provided for under Section 89 of the Copyright Act of 2020, which contemplates a Levy on materials used or capable of being used to infringe copyright and the proper disbursement ecosystem through the NCC.”
Okafor noted that although the concept of the levy has been part of the law since 1988, it had not been implemented until the current administration took steps to activate it.
He explained that the fund from the copyright levy is intended to reach creators nationwide, regardless of where they live. He encouraged musicians to register with the Musical Copyright Society of Nigeria (MCSN) as their Collective Management Organization. PMAN plans to compile verified entries from its database and share them with the MCSN to support a credible and auditable process for distributing payments to eligible performers.
PMAN Vice President Olamuyiwa Aralola, popularly known as Ara, also urged musicians to register, while rapper Vector called on artistes to pay attention to developments in the industry.
The Copyright Levy is a statutory charge under the Nigerian Copyright Act intended to compensate rights holders for private copying of copyrighted works. It is separate from routine copyright royalties, which arise from uses such as public performance or broadcast.
