“I React To Music Without The Mindset Of Monetizing It”- Kwadwo Sheldon

Kwadwo Sheldon, a social media influencer and content creator, has always been backlashed by some individuals for his YouTube song reviews.

In a recent interview on 3Music TV’s Culture Daily, Kwadwo Sheldon disclosed that, contrary to what some people may believe, he is not paid by YouTube for his song reviews. He explained that because the songs he reviews are copyrighted, all proceeds go to the distributors of those songs and that he acknowledges the intellectual properties of people.  

Quoting him, he said, “Most of these musicians are signed to distribution channels. So before posting on the platform they have sent you a copyright message through your email. I react to music with the mindset that I’m not going to make a penny out of this from YouTube. I understand these are artistes' intellectual properties. The majority of the artistes that I react to copyright the content so I do not get money as to the monetized content. With regards to the platform, everything goes to the distribution company that the artiste is signed to.”

He claims that artistes gain more benefits than he does because more people become aware of the song, which increases streaming, whereas the only time he makes money is when he reads LPM for brands during the reviews.

“There are instances where I place an AD in the video. Like an LPM from my side. That’s how I can make money from that particular music. At the end of the day, this is an ecosystem where everybody benefits. At the end of the day, I feel like the artiste has an upper hand because I am telling people to go download your songs. It is through my platform that people have discovered artistes. It reflects in their downloads. And most of the artistes come to me with feedback.”

Sheldon has previously argued with some musicians over reviewing their songs without their permission; Yaa Pono being the most recent.

The YouTuber claims that music will be analyzed as long as it is produced for the general public. Currently, YouTube has become a major source of income for some Ghanaian content creators.