2008 article on YFm magazine
DJ Cleo is untouchable at the moment, and he knows it. He is still making big waves in the charts, clubs and newspapers. This is also the man who not long Arthur Mafokate of stealing his number-one i Nawe from his latest album E'skhaleni Extension on its way to reaching double platinum status,
The stealing of ideas and beats is rather ramp entertainment industry. It seems pretty easy whe artists give their demos to big names in the hope o: get their "big break" into the music biz. A radio presenter, who wanted to remain anonymous, suggested the possibility of this happening and insinuated that a young, budding producer probably gave the same track to both Mafokate and Cleo, Cleo decided to add his hit-making formula to the sample, and N'gihamba Nawe was the final product. On hearing it, Arthur supposedly dug into his archives to find the same sample to
mix. With all the speculation, it was time to get the story from the horse's mouth. The thing everybody wants to understand is how Arthur could possibly have gotten his hands on Cleo's work? He simply says, "I don"t know. Ask Arthur."
So we decided to approach D-rex, a well-known producer supposedly dug into his archives to find the same sample to mix.
With all the speculation, it was time to get the story from the horse's mouth. The thing everybody wants to understand is how Arthur could possibly have gotten his hands on Cleo's work? He simply says, "I don"t know. Ask Arthur."
So we decided to approach D-rex, a well-known producer and Kabelo's partner at Faith records, to find out more about the production process, and how artists can claim ownership of other artist's tracks. D-rex gave
a general explanation of how songs can sound similar, explaining: "Before computers, before beat makers/ producers and sampling, if two songs sounded the same it was ***** umed that there was plagiarism involved. In the old days, the odds of two composers composing exactly the same song were astronomically slim. However, in modern cases it's not as clear-cut. The methods of composing music have drastically changed"
He went on to explain how library samples are often the cause of similar-sounding songs. "When a producer samples a track, the new song sounds a lot like the original it was sampled from, but usually has been reworked to include modern beats and new vocals. The new song is now a hybrid. This is not only common but normal these days. Another
possibility is that both producers have used the same sample in a new composition." As logical as all these reasons are, the timing of both tracks was surely not a coincidence. "Its unlikely, but possible," says D- Rex. "The more likely scenario is that one of the two producers heard the other producer's version and copied his idea."
DJ Cleo is still furious over the matter and seems annoyed by the media who, he claims, "tried to nail [him]". He adds: "You could swear that they're on Arthur's payroll. The public's not stupid; they know what's real, hence they bought my album. Like Zuma, I came out tops. I have been vindicated!" Okaaay.
Moving on... Does Cleo think that the music scene has become a battle field, featuring 999 versus Will of Steel? Let's not forget that Arthur's artist Pantsula attacked Cleo's Brickz in one of his songs, which sparked a new round.of label bashing. He says, "WOS versus 999? Please, it's like having the national football team of Brazil play against Garankuwa United. Come on lets get real here."
Page 26 YMAG | MAR | 2008
DJ Cleo is untouchable at the moment, and he knows it. He is still making big waves in the charts, clubs and newspapers. This is also the man who not long Arthur Mafokate of stealing his number-one i Nawe from his latest album E'skhaleni Extension on its way to reaching double platinum status,
The stealing of ideas and beats is rather ramp entertainment industry. It seems pretty easy whe artists give their demos to big names in the hope o: get their "big break" into the music biz. A radio presenter, who wanted to remain anonymous, suggested the possibility of this happening and insinuated that a young, budding producer probably gave the same track to both Mafokate and Cleo, Cleo decided to add his hit-making formula to the sample, and N'gihamba Nawe was the final product. On hearing it, Arthur supposedly dug into his archives to find the same sample to
mix. With all the speculation, it was time to get the story from the horse's mouth. The thing everybody wants to understand is how Arthur could possibly have gotten his hands on Cleo's work? He simply says, "I don"t know. Ask Arthur."
So we decided to approach D-rex, a well-known producer supposedly dug into his archives to find the same sample to mix.
With all the speculation, it was time to get the story from the horse's mouth. The thing everybody wants to understand is how Arthur could possibly have gotten his hands on Cleo's work? He simply says, "I don"t know. Ask Arthur."
So we decided to approach D-rex, a well-known producer and Kabelo's partner at Faith records, to find out more about the production process, and how artists can claim ownership of other artist's tracks. D-rex gave
a general explanation of how songs can sound similar, explaining: "Before computers, before beat makers/ producers and sampling, if two songs sounded the same it was ***** umed that there was plagiarism involved. In the old days, the odds of two composers composing exactly the same song were astronomically slim. However, in modern cases it's not as clear-cut. The methods of composing music have drastically changed"
He went on to explain how library samples are often the cause of similar-sounding songs. "When a producer samples a track, the new song sounds a lot like the original it was sampled from, but usually has been reworked to include modern beats and new vocals. The new song is now a hybrid. This is not only common but normal these days. Another
possibility is that both producers have used the same sample in a new composition." As logical as all these reasons are, the timing of both tracks was surely not a coincidence. "Its unlikely, but possible," says D- Rex. "The more likely scenario is that one of the two producers heard the other producer's version and copied his idea."
DJ Cleo is still furious over the matter and seems annoyed by the media who, he claims, "tried to nail [him]". He adds: "You could swear that they're on Arthur's payroll. The public's not stupid; they know what's real, hence they bought my album. Like Zuma, I came out tops. I have been vindicated!" Okaaay.
Moving on... Does Cleo think that the music scene has become a battle field, featuring 999 versus Will of Steel? Let's not forget that Arthur's artist Pantsula attacked Cleo's Brickz in one of his songs, which sparked a new round.of label bashing. He says, "WOS versus 999? Please, it's like having the national football team of Brazil play against Garankuwa United. Come on lets get real here."
Page 26 YMAG | MAR | 2008
11 months ago
(E)
