Entertainment Law in Kenya: Contracts and Rights for Artists and Creators

Your Work Is an Asset - If You Own It

Entertainment law is the business of turning creative work into an asset that can be owned, licensed and enforced. Musicians, filmmakers, actors, authors, designers and content creators all face the same question: who owns the rights in the work, and on what terms is it being exploited? Getting that right is worth more than any single deal. Our entertainment lawyers in Nairobi draft and negotiate the contracts that govern creative work, and enforce rights when a deal goes wrong.

Copyright: Automatic Rights, With Limits

• Copyright arises automatically when a protected work is created and fixed in a material form - you do not have to register it in order to own it.
• Protected works include music and lyrics, sound recordings, audiovisual works, scripts and literary works, choreography, photographs and artistic works.
• The rights include reproduction, distribution, communication to the public, adaptation and commercial exploitation - and they can be split by territory, format, medium and time.
• Moral rights (attribution and integrity) remain with the author in important respects even after the work is licensed or assigned.
• Registration with the Kenya Copyright Board (KECOBO) is not a precondition to protection, but it creates a public record that strengthens your position in a dispute.

The practical trap: an artist who records someone else's composition, or who records without written assignments from the producer and session musicians, may not own the results of their own work.

Whose Song Is It? Splits and Contributors

• Two copyrights, often two owners: the composition (music and lyrics) and the sound recording are separate works, and are frequently owned by different people.
• Contributors: producers, session musicians, featured artists and engineers can each hold rights, unless they have assigned them in writing.
• Commissioned and employed work: ownership of works created for a commissioner or in the course of employment can default to the commissioner or employer, so put ownership in writing rather than relying on assumptions.
• Split sheets: agree percentages in the studio, for the composition and separately for any producer share, and sign them.
• Samples and interpolations: clear them before release - unlicensed sampling is a straightforward infringement claim.

The Core Contracts

• Recording agreements: term, exclusivity, the number of recordings or albums, advances (usually recoupable), royalty rates, cross-collateralisation, approval rights, and who controls the masters and whether they ever revert.
• Publishing and administration: the difference between assigning your copyright to a publisher and appointing an administrator to collect royalties for you - the second leaves ownership with you.
• Management agreements: the scope of authority, commission on gross or net income, the term, and a sunset clause covering commissions after the deal ends.
• Distribution and label services: who collects, when statements are issued, what is deducted, and the right to audit the account.
• Live performance: fees and deposits, technical riders, cancellation and force majeure, and who carries the risk of a cancelled show.
• Licensing and sync: term, territory, media, fee and approval rights over how the work is used alongside brands or footage.
• Band and collaboration agreements: who owns the name, how income is shared, what happens when a member leaves, and who may license the catalogue.

Collective Management: Getting Paid

Performance and broadcast royalties are usually collected through collective management organisations licensed by KECOBO - for example the Music Copyright Society of Kenya (MCSK) for composers, lyricists and publishers, and the Performers' Rights Society of Kenya (PRISK) for performers, with separate bodies representing producers of sound recordings. Joining means handing over the collection of certain rights, so read the terms before you sign, keep your registrations and catalogue data accurate, and license other uses directly where that earns more.

Names, Logos and Image Rights

Your stage name, band name, logo, artwork and channel branding are trademarks in waiting - and a name that is not registered can be taken by someone else (read our guide on registering a trademark in Kenya). Where a brand, sponsor or platform wants to use your image, voice or likeness, that use should be licensed in writing, with limits on territory, duration and context. As income grows, run your career through a company rather than your personal name (see our guide on company registration costs in Kenya), so that contracts, taxes and liability are kept separate.

When Deals Go Wrong

• Infringement: unauthorised reproduction, distribution, communication to the public or adaptation of your work.
• Passing off: someone trading on your name or goodwill without permission.
• Breach of contract: unpaid or under-declared royalties, refusal to release your masters, or a label treating a licence as an outright assignment.
• Enforcement: demand letters, takedown requests for online content, civil claims for damages, injunctions and an account of profits, and criminal enforcement under the copyright legislation.
• Piracy and counterfeits: where physical goods are being sold, the Anti-Counterfeit Authority can seize them.
• Settlement: most entertainment disputes settle through negotiation or mediation or arbitration, which protects both reputation and future working relationships.

Practical Checklist for Creators

• Put every relationship in writing before the work is released.
• Keep split sheets, session files, invoices, statements and payment records - they are what prove your entitlement.
• Register the marks you trade under, and record your copyrights with KECOBO.
• Never sign an exclusive, all-rights, perpetual assignment without advice; those are the deals artists regret.
• Check who collects what: streams, syncs, live performances, merchandise and brand deals are separate income streams.
• Keep business records and pay your taxes - success attracts scrutiny.

Our entertainment and intellectual property lawyers in Nairobi draft and negotiate recording, publishing, management and licensing agreements, and enforce rights when deals go wrong. Book a consultation before you sign the next one.