It’s love over contracts - Managers say

CONTRACTS exist in any business venture to guide parties and ensure fairness but when it comes to the entertainment industry this written document is often ignored, particularly when the persons are romantically involved.

And its importance is really felt when the relationships turn sour. That is when one sees mud-slinging and accusations which play out in the public space. This has been the case for some female Ghanaian acts whose careers are taking a hit because of contract issues.

The stories of Joyce Blessing, eShun, whose parting from their managers was not amicable and have seen them losing their official social media pages, have also brought to attention the relevance of contracts in professional engagements.

While these incidents should be a caution to both parties, some managers Graphic Showbiz spoke with recently give the indication that they will choose love over a written contract.

Kofi Donkor is the husband and manager of Gospel artiste Celestine Donkor and told Graphic Showbiz that although he has always been able to draw the line between their professional and marital relationships, it will be hard to put out terms in a contract.

“This discussion has probably become necessary today because of recent happenings but I don’t know why people are concentrating on the harmful and not the helpful.”

“Yes, contracts are always important in any engagement but we should also ask ourselves if we will demand legal contracts from spouses trading in spare parts at Abossey Okai or other ventures.”

“It is unfortunate that when it comes to music or showbiz, the talk of contracts and professionalism is loud, meanwhile such engagements have more advantages than disadvantages if well handled,” he said.

Kofi Donkor is the husband of Gospel artiste Celestine Donkor

In his opinion, there is nothing wrong with spouses managing their significant others or artistes being romantically involved since the positives outweigh the negatives when cautiously handled.

Isaac Twum Ampofo also manages his wife, Gospel musician Ohemaa Mercy also has a similar view. According to him, contracts are unnecessary when the artiste is a spouse or partner since they will share the benefits together.

“However, if signing a contract will prevent one party from feeling cheated when things don’t go well, then it should be the way to go,” he added.

For Dave Joy, ex-husband and former manager of another Gospel musician, Joyce Blessing, his bitter experience has taught him a great lesson about having a legal document to guide him in the future.
 
“Trust me, it is difficult to want to sign a contract with your spouse all in the name of being professional but from what I have experienced recently, I think it is the best. It is tough, specifically for the reason that emotions and love are involved so you need to tread cautiously.”
 
“However, in most cases, your partner in whose interest you are working may not understand you and the decisions you take so signing a contract is the best so that everyone can enjoy the fair share of the cake,” he stated.

CEO of Media Excel, Kwesi Ernest who has been in the business for years said there was no justification for artistes and managers not signing a contract irrespective of their relationship.

He said people always jumped to the defense of artistes when things go wrong, ignoring the huge investments managers make. To avoid unwarranted attacks in the event of separation, he said he would always campaign for contracts.

“I can understand that love issues are complicated so one must be careful not to press the wrong buttons in such issues but repeatedly, the absence of contracts has caused damages to brands and if signing contracts will save the situation, it should always be considered in any business venture between two people,” he stated.