'It's like throwing money away': Don Jazzy addresses claims that Mavin sidelines some of its artists

• Don Jazzy has dismissed claims that Mavin Records intentionally sidelines some of its artists.

• He argued that limiting an artist’s success would make no business sense for the label.

• The music executive also said artists who release less music are often dealing with personal struggles like imposter syndrome.

Speaking in a wide-ranging YouTube session with Crea8torium, the label founder and music executive pushed back on the narrative that major labels deliberately suppress artists on their roster, describing the logic as fundamentally flawed from a business standpoint.

"The idea that we'll have people and not want to prioritise them is not a real thing," he said. "When we sign artists, we want to make money from those artists and want those artists to make money for themselves." 

To leave a signed artist dormant, he argued, would be the equivalent of financial self-sabotage. "It would seem like taking money and locking it away or throwing it because it doesn't make sense."

On the specific question of artists who appear less visible or prolific than their labelmates, Don Jazzy placed the responsibility squarely on the artists themselves. "If you see an artist in Mavin and the artist only releases one or two songs in a year, just know that it is the artist that decided that." 

He attributed the pattern to a psychological barrier rather than institutional neglect. "Most of the time, they actually have imposter syndrome. It's normal, we're all human beings."

The comments arrive in a climate where the label neglect conversation has become a recurring fixture on Nigerian music Twitter, resurfacing reliably whenever an artist departs a major label or publicly expresses frustration with their situation. 

The conversation reached a peak earlier this year, around March, when the former Mavin artist Crayon made a series of allegations against the label following his exit. 

There were claims of unpaid royalties and creative disputes, and among those claims were allegations that the label had taken his “star” and given it to another artist, further fueling the narrative.

These posts were subsequently deleted, with the artist later suggesting his account had been compromised.

Don Jazzy did not reference any specific artist or incident during the session, maintaining the measured, institutional tone that has characterised most of his public appearances. 

But the timing of his comments, and the precision with which they address the exact accusations that have circulated online for months, suggests he is paying close attention to the conversation even if he is not naming names.

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