Bella Shmurda: How I paid N20m to exit my former label

Bella Shmurda says he paid N20 million to prematurely exit a contract with his former record label.

The Nigerian singer, in an interview, spoke of the early days of his breakout in the music industry.

The singer recalled his deal with a former record label where he had to opt out of an unfavourable deal.

Shmurda said he paid up to N20 million to quit a three-year contract after spending just a year with the music label.

“I was very self-conscious of people just using me, making me sign papers that won’t favour me,” he said.

“Today, I’m an independent artiste. I had this label but they weren’t doing well to my taste. I would want to shoot a video but they’d bring N500,000 and make me hustle N500,000. It’s not a label. It was a partnership.

“When sharing revenue, they still took the larger part of 70 percent while I get 30. At a point, I felt I couldn’t do that anymore. It can’t work. When it comes to promotion, I was the one hustling the money.

“I signed for three years and did just a year. I got a lawyer and cleared myself. I paid about N20 million.”

In October, Shmurda recounted how he spent money unwisely during the early stage of his career.

“I used to have money, like enough money but I rushed things. As I was getting the money, I was just buying a lot of things; things I wouldn’t eventually need,” he had said.

“So at this point, as I’m getting new money I have to think about every move I want to take. There were up to 10 friends staying with me then in a four bedrooms apartment and we would still carry women.

“Then I wanted to get a car, I bought three cars at once because if I want to go out I would want my boys to fill up another so we can be in a convoy. I went to the club one day, I spent N2 million in the club.

“Now, I can still spend N2 million in a day but it should be something I can account for.”