A major legal dispute has emerged over the ownership of Burna Boy’s early music catalogue, with 960 Music Group filing a suit to nullify a multi-million dollar transaction involving the Afrobeats star’s former and current record labels.
The disagreement centres on a deal reportedly executed in mid-2024, in which Aristokrat Music — the label that first signed Burna Boy in 2011 — allegedly transferred the singer’s historical intellectual property and master recordings to Spaceship Music, his current imprint led by Burna Boy and his mother, Bose Ogulu.
However, 960 Music Group, which holds a 40 per cent stake in Aristokrat Music, insists the transaction was carried out without its knowledge, consent, or formal board approval.
The company has approached a court in Port Harcourt seeking to have the sale declared null and void, describing the assets as the company’s “crown jewel.”
The dispute has since expanded beyond civil litigation, with criminal allegations now part of the case.
The Force Criminal Investigation Department has filed charges against Aristokrat founder Piriye Isokrari following investigations into alleged financial misconduct and fraud linked to the transaction.
Isokrari is accused of diverting proceeds from the catalogue sale for personal use or routing them outside the company’s official accounts, as well as breaching fiduciary responsibilities.
960 Music claims he bypassed corporate governance procedures to strike what it described as a private arrangement with Spaceship Music, undermining the interests of other shareholders.
An executive of 960 Music said the company resorted to legal action after exhausting other options, alleging that the deal effectively transferred valuable intellectual property without proper authorisation from significant equity holders.
The unfolding case could have far-reaching implications for Burna Boy, the Grammy-winning artist whose early hits formed part of the disputed catalogue.
While the transfer was believed to be aimed at giving him greater control over his early masters, the legal challenge has placed those assets under scrutiny.
Should the Port Harcourt court rule in favour of 960 Music, Spaceship Music may be compelled to relinquish rights to some of Burna Boy’s breakout tracks, including Like to Party and Tonight, returning them to the original ownership structure pending further resolution.
