At Blue Boy launch, D’Masel wants YouTube to pay more for streaming

UP-AND-COMING music artiste, Marcel Obute, with the stage name, D’Masel, has officially unveiled the Blue Boy brand in a live concert at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, (UNN).

The launch witnessed thrilling Afrobeat performances by Bastille Records (Columbia Family) and D’Masel Music Entertainment (DME). On the sidelines of the event, the final year Music student of UNN told The Guardian that music could be the new oil, if good attention is given to it.

He said: “Music is capable of generating more employment than oil and gas because of the waves that it is making around the world. It is getting global attraction, especially Afrobeats by young Nigerian artistes.”

According to him, the major setback young artistes without strong financial backing face is funding to promote their music. So, he urged the new government to look into it to grow the industry.

“Young artistes face a lot of issues in music promotion. I urge the government to implement policies that would make our job easier. President Bola Tinubu needs to look into higher rates for streaming and YouTube views, creation of an active network/association dedicated to promoting different genres of music and talents at large.

“Many of these platforms have built their businesses with music as their main commodity, yet they do not want to pay for the music that is the central product of their business model.”

Music, he added, has a powerful ability to evoke emotions and trigger unexpected feelings and reduce violence in the society.

“Music has the ability to break down complex issues into things we can all relate to, such as love, friendship, fear and loss. In this way, music expands our horizons and opens our minds to new ideas.

“As a student of Music, I believe music can build a strong foundation of comprehension and problem-solving ability, add great value to individual development and encourage learning about other cultures,” he asserted. He, however, appealed to seasoned artistes to give necessary counsel and guidance to the young talents to enhance their growth.