Phyno reacts to song theft controversy
After several speculations, Phyno has finally addressed allegations that ‘I am a Fan’, a song on his ‘Playmaker’ album, was doubtfully obtained. There are two versions of the song one done by Phyno and another by US singer, Pia Mia.
Phyno’s version of the said song was released in 2016 while Pia Mia released a related version featuring R&B singer, Jeremih, in May 2017.
Amazingly, songwriter cum music producer, Decarlo, had recently stated that he wrote the original demo of the song and that he only approved the version released by the American singer.
In his words: “I wrote the original demo of “I’m A Fan” and pitched it to various artists. I worked with Pia Mia and Jeremih on the track, and their song is the only version authorized” .
Phyno dumbfounded many of his fans when he posted, screenshots of a WhatsApp conversation between himself and Decarlo on Twitter.
From the chat posted on social media by Phyno, it appeared that Decarlo reached out to the Nigerian rapper.Phyno made it known that it would be the last time he’d react to the controversy.
Afropop singer, Mr Eazi, has confirmed that Decarlo indeed offered the song, among others, to Phyno.
LISTEN TO PHYNO’S VERSION OF THE SONG HERE:
LISTEN TO PIA MIA’S VERSION HERE:
Phyno started recording his debut studio album, No Guts No Glory, in 2012. The album features guest appearances from Stormrex, Omawumi, Olamide, Efa, P-Square, Timaya, Flavour N’abania, Mr. Raw, M.I, Ice Prince and Runtown. It was primarily recorded in Igbo and Nigerian Pidgin. On 25th September 2012, he released “Ghost Mode” as the album’s lead single. The song features Olamide and was released to critical acclaim. It won Best Collabo at both the 2012 The Headies Awards and 2013 Nigeria Entertainment Awards.
The music video for “Ghost Mode” was released on 7 December 2012. It was shot and directed in Lagos by Clarence Peters.[8] Sputnet Records released the album’s second single, “Man of the Year (Obago)”, on 23 March 2013. The song, which was produced by Phyno, won the Best Rap Single category at the 2012 The Headies Awards. The music video for “Man of the Year (Obago)” was uploaded onto YouTube on 20 August 2013. It was also shot and directed by Clarence Peters in Abakpa Nike, and features a cameo appearance from Illbliss.
In September 2013, the Nigerian Broadcasting Corporation banned the music video from being broadcast.