I just got a document sent to me by a client who is a popular Nigerian entertainer. The document is a partnership agreement proposal from a massive international brand that is into fintech. They want to endorse my client to partner with them as an influencer/brand Ambassador in Nigeria to promote the brand in Nigeria for the brand to penetrate the Nigerian market.
After I finished going through the partnership agreement proposal I was livid. The contractual terms were well engrossed with the phrase “rip off”. The clauses were couched in a way to have the entertainer work for the brand as a slave for a meager sum. It was nothing less than total slavery.
Unfortunately, this is not far from the majority of the deals most Nigerian entertainers get from these “big companies” and the entertainers will grab it and welcome it with both hands. I have been privy to most of the partnership agreements and I have worked and drafted some, so this is first-hand information and not some hearsay.
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Some of the notable clauses that caught my attention in this partnership agreement proposal that my client forwarded to me was the one that states that the partnership deal between my client and the company is to last for just six months and after the expiration of the six months term my client is not allowed to take a deal from any other brand that is in a similar line of trade with this company for the period of twelve months. Another clause states that my client is bound by confidentiality for the period of seven years after the expiration of the contract term. Another clause in the contract agreement states that my client should assign his intellectual property rights that emanate from the cause of this partnership to the company for life.
Some of these international brands are big bullies and extortionists who are prying on the desperation of some Nigerian creatives to land deals in order to make money and escape poverty due to the economic situation of the country. The fee they are proposing to pay my client after all these strict and stringent clauses they inputted into the contract is just a meager sum.
Nigerian creatives should stop being desperate and stop selling themselves cheap. Any brand that discovers that you are very desperate will never value you and will always throw insults at you disguising them as deals and expecting you to grab them with both hands.
I have always tried to advise clients in the entertainment space to turn down some offers or we can amend the offer and send back our proposal to the company offering the deal but most of the entertainers always say no and that they will accept the offer the way it came because they have no idea when next offer will come and some that listened to me about making adjustment on the offer and sending it back to the brand end up getting a better deal.
International brands are really ripping Nigerian creatives off because they are paid a little and expected to deliver a high target. Creatives should stop selling themselves short, you all deserve better.