Entertainment of Sunday, 12 November 2023

Source: www.ghanaweb.com

$120,000, other reliefs that Shata Wale has been ordered to pay Wildland Festival organizers

Sadiq Abudulia Abu and Shatta Wale Sadiq Abudulia Abu and Shatta Wale

The ‘Wildaland Festival’ organizers have triumphed in a two-year-long legal tussle against Shatta Wale who breached their contract sometime in 2021.

Shatta Wale was hurled before the court for his failure to show up at the Wildaland Festival in 2021 after receiving a full performance fee of $120,000, among others.

This was after an organizing member, Sadiq Abudulia Abu had called out the musician on social media severally trumpeting his unprofessionalism and threatening legal action.

However, after years of back-and-forth, an Accra High Court has ordered the dancehall artiste to pay an amount of one hundred and twenty thousand Dollars ($120,000) to Maverick City Entertainment, organizers of the popular Wildaland Festival.

In an order of substituted service, the court led by her ladyship Afi Agbanu Kudomor J. granted other reliefs to the plaintiff.

Among other reliefs, judgment was entered on behalf of the plaintiff for interest on the sum of $120,000 from 14th December 2021 to the date of the final payment at a rate of 5.5% (New York federal interest rate) being a sum total of ten thousand eight hundred and ninety-two United States Dollars forty-seven cents ($10,892.47).

How Shatta earlier admitted to receiving $120,000 but refused to show up at Wildaland Festival

In October 2022, Shatta Wale during an interview with Giovani Caleb on TV3 confirmed receiving $120,000 as payment for the agreed performance.

He made these statements while disclosing the huge amount of money he had made from a list of events without showing up.

“I am the only artiste in Ghana that has been able to charge shows $100,000 three times in a row. And I won’t lie. The first Afro Nation show that they did in Ghana, the first time, they paid me $100,000 cash. Cardi B’s show that was held in Ghana, I was paid another $100,000.

"I took the money and didn’t go because they violated the contract. That’s what happened because it was a nice agreement. Sadiq’s Wildaland, I got paid $120,000. If the other artistes want to know, I want to tell them. So, if I tell somebody that I’ve been able to make $300,000 from shows in Ghana, they will think I’m bragging,” he retorted.

EB/OGB