Rayvanny is on his way out of Diamond Platnumz’s Wasafi record, what happened to Rich Mavoko and Harmonize on their way out of the record label is the same thing that is now happening to Vanny Boy.
The first drama that happened when an artist was leaving Wasafi occurred in 2018 when Rich Mavoko wanted to leave Diamond’s WCB record label.
Mavoko ditched WCB in 2018, two years after he terminated his contract with King Kaka’s record label, Kaka Empire in 2016.
Rich Mavoko’s exit from WCB was a messy and noisy affair rather than a mutual one. This was after he expressed discontent with his contract, which he termed as “exploitative and malicious”.
Wasafi required Mavoko to pay the label Tsh500 million (Ksh23 million) to be allowed to terminate the contract with the label, but he stood his ground and declined.
Diamond’s label insisted that Mavoko was bound by the contract he signed with Wasafi and was required to pay the label compensation fee for leaving the label before his contract expired.
The tussle between Wasafi and Mavoko ended up at the Tanzania Music Regulatory Board, Basata, who helped both parties arrive at an amicable solution.
Rich Mavoko left without paying anything. What is not clear is if he still owns the rights to the songs he recorded under Wasafi.
Come 2019 when Harmonize wanted to leave before his contract with Wasafi expired, there was drama again that saw two friends (Harmonize and Diamond) become bitter enemies.
Harmonize officially quit Wasafi in August 2019 after complaining about his contract. He had signed a 15-year contract with Diamond’s label.
The singer decided to terminate the contract just four years after he felt he was no longer getting value for his output. He was forced to pay Wasafi Ksh24 million for ditching the label prematurely.
Harmonize was reportedly forced to sell his three houses and a piece of land to raise the Ksh24 million that Wasafi demanded for leaving the label before his contract expired.
The ‘Kwangwaru’ hit maker was forced to part with the full amount so that WCB could allow him full rights ownership to the songs he did under WCB (all of his songs at the time were recorded and produced by Wasafi).
Harmonize left Wasafi a bitter man and has been beefing with Diamond Platnumz to date, always antagonizing his former boss.
Another high octane drama is happening this year 2022. Rayvanny is on his way out of Wasafi but he has been held hostage by the exit clause on his contract with WCB.
It’s reported that Rayvanny ( real name Raymond Shaaban) opted to quit Wasafi after falling out with his boss Diamond Platnumz.
It has emerged that Rayvanny was slapped with a whooping Tsh1 billion (Ksh50 million) compensation fee for him to be released from Wasafi.
According to popular Bongo media personality Mwijaku, Rayvanny is experiencing rough time of his life at Wasafi after Diamond’s legal team triggered the Ksh50 million compensation fee on his exit clause after Vanny Boy demanded to leave WCB.
“Invoice aliyopelekewa ni kubwa mno hawezi toka tena kwa sababu alisema mwanzo ataondoka lakini atakuwa chini ya WCB lakini waliowekeza naye wakamuuliza mboona usijijitegemee baadae akarudi akawambia management anataka kuondoka kabisa basi siku hiyo akapewa invoice ya shilingi bilioni mbili au awache nyimbo zotee…. nakuambia Ray anaumia Sanaa,” said Mwijaku.
Translation:
“The invoice he was given was so shocking he can’t leave the way he had indicated earlier. He had been advised to quit Wasafi so he can be self reliant but when he approached the management to ask to leave the label he was given an invoice which showed that he need to pay Tsh1 billion or lose rights to his songs.”
Mwijaku added that;
“Leo kesho unatamani kutoka pale Ile millioni 600 unayo na hiyo 600 ni ya Harmonize wewe bilioni Moja unayo…?” (Today you want to quit but do you have that Tsh600 million… and that was for Harmonize. Yours is Tsh1 billion. Do you have it?)
However, Diamond’s manager Mkubwa Fella denied possible fallout but insisted that Rayvanny was at liberty to leave.
“Staki kuzungumzia ukaribu wa Rayvanny sijalijua mambo yake kamili bado, hatutaki kukupa wepesi ya aliyeondoka Sasa hivi tutawaambia muda kama huo ukiwadia (I don’t want to talk about Rayvanny’s issue because I don’t know what is happening exactly. We will tell you everything when the right time comes).
Related: Diamond speaks on possibility of Harmonize rejoining Wasafi record label
