SONGSTRESS Pauline Gundidza has claimed she is yet to get any payment for her contribution to her ex-husband Roki’s song Shine Like a Star (Nyeredzi).
Shine like a star was recorded under Passion Java Records, and is one of the many songs that has re-ignited Roki’s career which looked like it had faded.
The song which brings out the nostalgic feeling of the urban grooves era, was released together with a video in September last year.
Speaking in an interview on Star FM, Pauline said she has done collaborations where she would not get financial benefits for her efforts.
“I didn’t really get paid for my efforts on Shine Like a Star. I am not happy with what happened when we made Shine Like a Star. Things didn’t go the way we had planned,” she said.
Roki’s manager Tobias Matavikwa directed The Standard Style to Passion Java Records whom he said owned the song.
“The song belongs to Passion Java Records, they are the ones who brought the two artists (Roki and Pauline) together. They are the best people to talk to,” he said.
Efforts to get a comment from Passion Java Records Boss Lashan were fruitless as he did not respond to questions sent on his mobile phone.
Pauline went on to reveal that she was also allegedly duped by artists such as Stunner and Maskiri during their urban grooves era.
Pauline said she did not get anything for her contributions on Maskiri’s NaMwari remix and also on a song with Stunner.
“When we started music, there was no framework and we were duped a lot.
“We were made to work for free in the name of exposure and it would bring a lot of infighting within the group (Mafriq). We were used by many promoters and producers who would not give us royalties and rights to our music,” she said.
“Myself and my friends Tererai and Buhle have a problem that we need to address as we have a lot of our male counterparts who used us on choruses and never gave us anything, for us it was the love of music.
“For example Stunner on the song Song Yangu, he never gave me anything. He brought the concept but I have never received any royalties from the song. Even when the song was still a hit, he would go and perform the song alone. He went on to sell the song to a corporate and I did not get a cent.
“Also on NaMwari by Maskiri, I didn’t get a cent, I also wrote part of the concept of Aiyaho by Roki and I didn’t get a cent. Back then the industry was not formal, and had no structure and the clever ones saw business opportunities and made money from our talents. Now that I know I have recently declared all my works to Zimura so that I get royalties.”
Pauline also revealed that she is in a stable relationship and was planning on getting married, dismissing rumours that she is back with her ex-husband Roki after they had worked on Shine Like a Star.
Pauline and Roki were a teen celebrity couple during the early days of urban grooves.
They married at the age of 19 and their union gave birth to two kids, Sky and Minana.–Standard