Piracy frustrates Billy Kaunda

He might have been forgotten because of law making duties in the august House, but for the first time the celebrated Kuyenda ndi Lupanga and Mwapindulanji hit-maker Billy Kaunda has voiced out his frustration over piracy, which he claims has affected his music career.

Kaunda says the damage piracy has caused is too huge to forget since he no longer benefits from the sales.

“Our albums always end up being pirated. And the people who pirate our music benefit more than we [musicians] do. It’s frustrating,” he said.

In May last year, during the commemoration of World Intellectual Property Day in Lilongwe, the Copyright Society of Malawi (Cosoma) burned pirated materials. But Cosoma senior licensing officer Rosario Kamanga blamed the increase of piracy on weak legislation enacted in 1989.

“There is need to change some of the laws. For instance, fines are too low to deter infringement, and in addition, the Copyright Act does not tackle the effect of new technologies [on copyright] due to rapid technological development,” said Kamanga.

However, Kaunda, who is also member of Parliament for Mzimba West, said amending such laws requires a lot of processes and players, which he said cannot be achieved instantly.

 Kaunda, who was voted best musician of the year during the defunct MBC’s Entertainers of the Year, said despite piracy challenges, he will start working on his new album next week.

He will be recording new songs this week at his BK studio in Blantyre.

“I have been busy with family affairs and other things. That’s why it has taken me time to release another album,” said Kaunda.

Kaunda started his music career while in school and church before joining Zembani Band. He quit the band to form his own group Armageddon.