Malie Donn Says Not Owning ‘V6’ Master Has Hindered Label Deal

Dancehall artist Malie Donn has disclosed that his lack of ownership over the master for his hit single V6 impeded him from clinching a deal with a major record label.

The 21-year-old told the Perspectives podcast on Sunday (October 29) that he did not foresee the track’s popularity after recording it as a favor—without signing a contract—for a discounted “family price.”

The song, released in April 2023 and produced by Ireland Boss, has become Donn’s most successful track, boasting over 9 million streams on Spotify and more than 19 million views on YouTube since his industry debut two years ago. According to him, V6‘s popularity caught the attention of several record labels who were eager to acquire it and sign him, but there was a catch — he didn’t have the required rights to the song.

“We could’ve been signed to a major label even before V6. But we waiting on a song like V6 before we sign. We got V6, but unfortunately, the person who owns V6, like the master, they wish not to sell V6 to a label. And the labels want me but the labels are invested in V6,” Malie said. 

“They are interested and invested, their main focus is V6 because dem see the numbers weh it a do naturally. Naturally, the numbers sparking so automatically labels ah go want the song. So they’re still trying to find a way to go around that.”

Malie, who hails from Waterford, St. Catherine, insisted that it didn’t seem like a bad deal at the time, as he was simply helping out.

Drawing from his experience, he spoke on the intricacies of music rights. “So hear how it go, me the artist voice the song, my own percentage, mi get my rightful percentage, which is 50%. I’m the songwriter and the artist but the person who own the riddim; the instrumental, the whole production of the song, who is the producer, they own the whole song, the whole master of the song you understand, the publishing, … the song is their song. The producer[’s] song. I’m just the artist.”

“So if I never make a [deal] in writing pon paper say [for example] ‘okay mi want 40% of the masters’, if we never sign off pon dat, automatically it’s the producer’s song,” he continued.

Donn’s situation is not unique in the industry. In a similar vein, Teejay faced an ownership dispute over the song Drift with producer Jason ‘DJ Mac’ McDowell, which, unlike Donn’s case, resulted in lucrative record and publishing deals with Warner Music.

Despite the setback, Malie Donn said he has no ill feelings about the matter as he’s focused on creating more hits like V6. “Me as a person have a hundred more a dem song deh in a my brain, in my meds, can bring forth to the table, mi nuh need fi dwell pon a song. Mi nuh like the idea of dwelling pon one song, mi like the idea of finding more bigger, better song[s] and advancing,” he said.

Added Malie Donn: “So if I was ah ignorant person, mi wouldn’t a pree suh, mi would a pree corrupt and say ‘Oh, [the] producer get hit song and dis and dat’. The song itself do a lot for me naturally.”

Malie Donn shared that V6 unlocked opportunities for live performances across various Caribbean locales and in the United States. Looking to the future, he’s confident that his talent will pave the way for recognition and eventually, a record deal.

“Mi nah try stress the situation. Is a situation weh mi done make up my mind say alright mi a go find some bigger song dan this. So is like the direction my mind deh, mi nuh up fi war fi a song. Mi nuh up fi it right now because mi know mi capability so mi just a humble you know. And if a label really want sign, then dem see the potential in ah yuh, dem a go sign you regardless ah one song. So we naa kill up we self cause greatness deh deh fi come.”

He also noted that the experience with the V6 hasn’t deterred him from working with others in the music business, but he knows now the importance of executing the proper paperwork.

“Of course we a go do more type business, like on paper, because pen to paper is important in music. When you do pen to paper no f*ckery can’t go on,” he said. “It’s all about educating yourself about the music and [when] you see other people make mistakes you have to just learn and if you don’t learn, any loss/misfortune is on you so its a matter of accepting your losses and move forward.”

Watch the full interview of Malie Donn on Perspectives Podcast here: