Copycat; Is it Legal to Translate & Sing Someone's Music into Another Language Without Their Permission ?.

    By BarefootLawyers.

DERIVATIVE WORKS

 

Kaboyi has never been a very good musician. Even when he was in school, his teachers told him that he was only a good copycat but was not good at making his own music. Years later, after struggling to break into the Ugandan music industry, he got a ‘brilliant idea’ and it was this: what if he got an old song “walumbe zaya” and translated it into English. Would he still be a copycat or will he have created a new ‘walumbe zaya” song.

WHAT DOES THE LAW SAY?

Recently , we told you about copyright (your right of ownership over your creations such as poems, songs and pieces of writing). We also told you that whoever creates these pieces of work now has rights (the copyright) over them and can decide how the work is used and by whom.

Today, we want to tell you about the difference between a copyright and what Kaboyi wants to do. When a person creates a new work such as art, a publication a song or even a movie, but the ideas and the inspiration came from an existing work then we say that person has created a derivative work. 

For example if you write a story that's based on a movie you watched, that story would be a derivative work.

Just because it is legal to do this, does not mean you can just wake up and do it. First you have to ask for permission from the owner of the work that you want to copy. For example Kaboyi would need to ask for permission from the owner of the song ‘Walumbe zaya’ before translating it to another language.

Once the permission is given, and the work starts then Kaboyi’s new creation also gets protection during his life and for 50 years after his death.

 

📷:Unsplash