In December 2011, after persistent requests from her associates, I signed Cynthia Morgan to my record label, Jton Records.
In the early stages of her signing, I personally shot a freestyle and viral video for the artiste titled One Blood and Kuchi Kuchi respectively. Also, there were several tracks which were recorded and produced but never released during that time frame.
The summer of 2013, I successfully secured a US work permit visa for Cynthia Morgan and flew her down to New York with me in pursuit of an independent record deal that was unsuccessful due to conflicts with the contract that was presented to us. Determined to secure a bigger platform for the artiste, I then flew her down to Atlanta a few months later for a formal meeting with Jude Okoye. The intent was to introduce Cynthia Morgan to him with the hope that he would be impressed with her sound and sign her to Northside Label. Unfortunately, he was reluctant to sign any artiste at that time so a deal could not be established.
We both returned to Nigeria and I immediately began working on the video production of her track Kuchi Kuchi, upon completion of the video I sent the audio to Jude, hopeful that he would have a change of heart. The strategy eventually worked and after a year of persistent negotiations; Jude eventually signed her to Northside, and I remained in the capacity of management only.
The 360 contract and terms for it was drafted by me and not Jude Okoye. After finalizing the drafts, it was reviewed and approved by Cynthia Morgan, then sent to Jude via email. Jude simply put the contract on his letterhead and signed it. Nothing in that contract stated that Jude Okoye or Northside Music Ltd has ownership to her legal name, royalties or social media handles. That was how the Northside Record Deal was structured.
Cynthia Morgan has also made frivolous claims in an interview that her image and brand were undesirable and forced upon her by management and record label. At no point did Cynthia ever express discomfort with her styling and branding. There was never a given time that she was forced, or demands were made by label and management to portray her unfavourably. We played our role and hired image consultants to plan and structure how we can creatively portray her authentically as an artiste. We determined that her branding would mirror her personality – a sexy tomboy. Once that image was combined with her music, it gave birth to a massive brand ‘The Cynthia Morgan Brand’. She was very comfortable and as she became more commercial, we tweaked her image even further.
When we initially presented Cynthia Morgan to the world up until the ‘Don’t Break My Heart’ video, which was her first video under Northside Music, people had heard her songs, but could not place a face to the artiste. We knew something, which was when I came up with the concept of red hair to really make her stand out. The red hair was a huge success and complimented her music and sound. The ‘I’m Taken’ video introduced her fans and the world to a unique and attractive red hair. She later adjusted to it when she realised how recognisable it made her. The signature style further established her brand and Cynthia took it further by deciding to have a nose ring on her own.
Cynthia Morgan has also claimed that her songs were never promoted. Promotion does not only require a payola. Promotion entails presenting your music directly to influential OAPs, DJs, Promoters, TV and radio executives. I and Jude’s contacts from years in the business enabled us to submit her songs to everyone.
Though one can pay to get their music played, it still does not guarantee that the music or video will get the major push it deserves. The industry is not an easy one or particularly favourable to female artistes. We fought tirelessly just to get Cynthia Morgan’s music on rotation. It was not simply because her music was good; it took a lot of strategizing and negotiating for her music to become mainstream. ‘I’m Taken’ was when we finally broke the ice and successfully secured consistent airplay on Radio and TV.
Cynthia Morgan never paid any form of house rent while working with Jton. She stayed at my residence for over 3 years until the latter part of 2015 when Jude Okoye paid for her to secure her own apartment as her popularity increased after the commercial success of I’m Taken and German Juice, Jude presented her with a Range Rover and money to purchase land for her mother in Benin upon Cynthia’s request. I have in my possession records and details of every expense spent on Cynthia Morgan by Jude Okoye until I departed from her in June 2016. These expenses include but are not limited to music video shoots, upkeep allowances, promotional payments, a car, rent payments and other expenses from the years 2013 up until 2016.
‘I’m Taken’ was the breakthrough record for Cynthia Morgan and changed everything. With the success of ‘I’m Taken’ and ‘German Juice’, Cynthia Morgan got bigger than her team [label and management] and out of control she began performing on countless shows. She began performing outside mine and Jude Okoye’s awareness or approval.
We clashed frequently because she wanted to depart from Northside and I repeatedly advised her against it. She also tried to convince me to prepare for the exit from the label because she wanted to form her own imprint which she wanted my help in running. I empathetically told her I could not be a party to such an arrangement especially after going over and beyond to getting her signed to Northside Music Ltd.
In June 2016, I parted ways with Cynthia Morgan after realising that she was no longer manageable. Less than a year later Cynthia also parted ways with Jude Okoye and released herself from her contract before it ended without penalty or any legal proceedings from Northside. To this day, she maintains the rights to her legal/stage name, brand and everything that we created for her. After departing from Jude Okoye in 2017, she released 2 songs under her imprint label without any resistance from him.
Neither Jude nor I have ever demanded or even contacted her for the outstanding balance owed to the label. I have never uttered a word about the slander she has made online and on-air about my credibility as a professional. After all these years, Cynthia Morgan is persistent in her effort to tarnish our names just to seek sympathy from her fans and the world without ever taking any accountability for her actions. We do not wish ill will against her, but rather that we should be honest when relaying her accounts of all that was done for her during her rise to fame. The fabrications and accusations will no longer be tolerated or met with silence and indifference.
