Date of Interview: 01st March 2010
Time: 10:00PM (Trini Time)
On Sunday 28th February, 2010 the Entertainment Macco published an interview with
This is what Problem Child had to say.....
Entertainment Macco:Who is Problem Child?
Problem Child:“Is just a humble...Vincentian entertainer who loves music..."
Entertainment Macco: Why did you contact the Entertainment Macco?
Problem Child: “Because I read the interview and I felt as though I should voice my side of the story…."
Entertainment Macco: We appreciate the fact that you contacted us…
Entertainment Macco: Is it true that you recorded and released the “Party Hard” remix without Donaeo's authorization?
Problem Child: “Yes I recorded it without authorization but I never released it….
Entertainment Macco: Why?
Problem Child: “I figured the two personalities would make a great collaboration…I did it with the hopes of impressing them. It was recorded just for them to hear and to lead to some sort of agreement with them….Someone was supposed to contact them for me and we had some difficulties getting to them…. Somewhere along the line someone leaked it and I cannot pinpoint who did it because I sent it to about 4 – 5 people just for them to listen to not for them to put out…”
Entertainment Macco: Did you attempt to contact Donae'o or his management before or after the release of the remix? If so how many times?
Problem Child: “Numerous attempts…emails….a link in UK who was trying to get a hold of them…. By the time we got a hold of them the song had already been leaked…”
Entertainment Macco: Did Donae’o say YES or No when you contacted him concerning the remix?
Problem Child: “We never got an absolute no….they wanted to know how it would benefit them….I told him that I wanted to introduce him to this side of the world…to our culture..it was my intention to help us both…We told them all we had to offer is bookings and any financial gain after the clearance of the record”
Entertainment Macco: How and when did you come across the original version of "Party Hard"?
Problem Child: “Summer of 2009 the same guy that was supposed to contact them (Donae’o and his team) for me…he introduced me to the funk style of music and I fell in love with it…I came across party hard and I remember receiving the song by email…cannot remember who sent it to me….around November time we recorded the demo version of what could have been the remix to send to them…”
Entertainment Macco: Did you perform Party Hard in Trinidad and Tobago for carnival 2010?
Problem Child: “Yea I performed it…I did my verses and the chorus”
Entertainment Macco: Were you hired or got paid to perform “Party Hard” at all for the carnival season?
Problem Child: “No Maam…Not a dime….I started singing "Party Animal" in the first couple of parties and patrons met me and continued to ask me to do it (Perform "Party Hard")…I decided to do it as a cover song…Other bands were singing other peoples’ songs like Vybz Kartel etc and since I wasn’t getting paid I thought it was not a big deal to perform it because I was not gaining financially”
Entertainment Macco: So all your appearances with Asylum were free?
Problem Child: “Yes..I went with the intention to perform “Madhouse” but it was not well received or as popular as I wanted it to be…I had no expenses there because of who I was staying with..it was more like a promotional venture for me”
Entertainment Macco: Alright…Got it!
Entertainment Macco: Did you or have you ever or tried to pass of “Party Hard” as your own? Lots of people are under the impression that you own it somewhat...
Problem Child: “Absolutely not….any interview I ever did….from Synergy to the radio stations I tried to clear up the error and told them it was not my song…I told them it is unofficial…..I do remember saying “unofficial remix” on the actual track…...at the end of it…I always said it was not my song…and I did always state it was a leak..That’s crazy!!!”
Entertainment Macco: What do you hope to achieve by doing this interview?
Problem Child: “To show that I am sorry for the situation at hand.. I humbly apologize to Donae’o and his team..my main thing is that the intention was not malicious at all…my motives were not driven by anything negative….I did not intend to exploit and I did not obtain any monies”
Entertainment Macco: We saw your apology video on youtube, why did you wait until Doneao’s interview to post that video?
Problem Child:“Because I had already apologized to them..I thought that the fact I said the song wasn’t mine would be sufficient…I did not want to put it out there because I did not know how big of a deal it was….A record company called me concerning a compilation and I told them I could not authorize them to put it on….I did not know it was so huge of an issue. The same gentleman from the record label notified me that negotiations were being made and talks were in the works so I thought something would have worked out…he received permission for the original version but not permission for MY VERSION”
Entertainment Macco: Are you familiar with the organization Riddim Stream?
Problem Child: “Yes I am”
Entertainment Macco: Did you authorize Riddim Stream to distribute the song “Party Hard” with your name only and no mention of Donae’o?
Problem Child: “That was done during the end of Trini Carnival….because many people were asking for the record and I did give them authorization to go ahead and do it…I never saw the content of the email..I never received the email blast from them and I suggest you contact them and they can confirm that I did not see the content…it was done as a favour for something I did for them”
Entertainment Macco: What was it about the song that made you want to do a remix?
Problem Child: “I like it..it is great work…..I just generally like the song the whole Party theme”
Entertainment Macco: Is it true that you contacted him (Donae’o) long after the song was released/leaked?
Problem Child: "We did contact them, way before...when we eventually heard from them it turned out the reason we could not get in contact with them was because they were away…that is probably why they did not receive the initial set of emails.. I also tried myspace…facebook...as soon as I realized the song was released/leaked..I contacted them again…I called him 3 times within the last 24hrs and left him 3 messages but to no avail….Each time the song seemed to have grown we contacted them very apologetic and that is how it went on for the whole duration of the situation"
Entertainment Macco: Nowww….it is very easy for people to believe that you did this maliciously….because of your song on the Kassav riddim…“Party Animal”, we were told that you did not get authorization for that riddim and you confirmed that in your YouTube apology.?
Problem Child: “When a producer sends you a riddim as an artiste…sometimes you just go with the flow and ask no questions…so I recorded the song and sent my vocals….this riddim was sent to me…The song was done so late in the season for St. Vincent Carnival, and it would have been too late for the person who the song was intended for to record and have it ready in time. It was basically a demo people were listening too…The song was not for me….I did not produce that beat…I took the responsibility because I did not want to involve the producer….in actuality I never asked for that beat..the producer should have cleared it….my song was not the only song on that beat that year but only I alone received the blunt because it was the “Big song”…..no one made mention of the 2 other songs on that beat….”
Entertainment Macco: Do you want to tell me the names of the other songs on the riddim?
Problem Child: "No! I rather not because it is not about them it is about me."
Entertainment Macco: When you found out that the riddim was "bootleg" what did you do?
Problem Child:“We tried to find out who had the publishing rights for that song….we were 90% close to authorizing the song…we had the paper work etc re: fees etc….. but up to this date we have not received any further correspondence from the people who own the publishing….”
Entertainment Macco: Do you think that your version of "Party Hard" is responsible for the song being a Smash hit?
Problem Child: “I don’t think so…In my opinion the song would have been big anyway….I don’t think so…I have been asked that before and I give the same answer”
Entertainment Macco: You won road march in SVG with another song…why did you not push that song instead of party hard….because I saw you perform at numerous events and you did not perform that Road March song…
Problem Child:“The intention was to perform it….to push and promote the song “Madhouse” however the song just did not connect the way that I thought it would…hence the first couple of shows I only did “Party Animal”…it was only after when I noticed a trend of other people doing other peoples’ music I decided to do “Party Hard” as well…”
Entertainment Macco: Do you think Donae'o or his management are over reacting to the matter at hand?
Problem Child: “No I would be very upset myself. I do not think they are overacting…Somebody has to be pretty stupid to take someone’s song and pass it off as their own…. I do not want them to think it was malicious or it was intentional…I am responsible for what happened if I did not send it to anyone it would not have been leaked…..I admit that I handled the situation wrong…I don’t want royalties or anything…they can clear that version and I can sign the paper work to say they own it….I did not do it for money….”
Entertainment Macco: So Donae'o will be in NYC soon and I heard you are also carded to perform on the same show. How do you plan on dealing with him in person or are you going to avoid him?
Problem Child: “This is news to me….I am not sure which show it is…the only show I am booked for is on March 13th…I am not sure if I will be performing, for business reasons..if it does happen..I will remain very apologetic..he has all right to be upset..I will not avoid him. I would like to speak with him…I am always willing to talk and make the situation better…I do not know if he will be willing to hear what I have to say because he seems highly upset”
Entertainment Macco: Do you regret doing the remix?
Problem Child: “I regret that I did not get in contact with them in time and that they did not get to hear it. I did not get a yes or no answer before it was leaked…my beef is with whoever leaked it. If I had to do it all over again… It would be done differently…
Entertainment Macco: How long ago was Party Hard released? Or maybe the better question to ask is how long ago was the Party Hard Remix recorded?
Problem Child: “Mid to late November it was recorded”
Entertainment Macco: What do you plan to do when this blows over?
Problem Child: “Continue to apologize..make sure they know I am sincere…keep trying to get them to understand that it was no act to disrespect them…I am determined to get them to understand…GOD looking down on me knows it was not my intention. Other than that SVG Carnival is coming up and I have a couple of releases to send out…I fell in love with the genre that he (Donae’o) is involved in and I have some of those beats that I have been authorize to use so I am looking forward to that…”
Entertainment Macco: Have you thought about what you are going to do if Donaeo’s team decides to take legal action?
Problem Child: “There is nothing I can do….The only thing that I would say is that it was not maliciously done….however if they do take legal action then that is something that I would have to accept…..”
Entertainment Macco: Is there anything you would like to let Donae’o and his management team know?
Problem Child: “Basically that I have a lot of respect for him as an artiste and as a man….we are all trying to achieve something and feed our families off of this profession and would never intentionally take food out of another artistes’ mouth. If there is anything I can do to appease the situation I would be more than willing to do it…at any cost….. My dream is for the song to become a reality, but it is quite clear that he does not want to do the song with me…. And a general apology to anyone who I may have disappointed….”
Category:
Asylum,
Donae'o,
Kassav,
Madhouse,
Party Animal,
Party Hard,
Problem Child,
Vincentian
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17 Responses
Problem Child need a lawyer yes! a good one
Problem Child needs a good lawyer yes!
Fayeann and Bunji have so much money and exploiting poor Problem Child and have him singing for FREE! No wonder he stealing people song. LOL!
But seriously, good job EM. Now that know Doneo's version and Problem Child tell his version of the story we could finally get the truth.
I applaud Problem Child for voicing his opinion. But this may be a little to late. I don't believe that him and his team tried their best effort to contact Donae'o and for this is where the problems lies. Donae'o potentially lost alot of money because his song was a hit and was widely received by the people and he would've definitely obtained bookings for the carnival season. The fact that many people thought Problem Child sang the song is a major problem. Soca artists/industry needs to do business in a higher regard and have a more business mind frame. Singing for FREE in countless shows alongside Asylum is insane, I'm almost positive Busy Signal and all the other Reggae artist that came to Trinidad to perform got paid. Soca artists, promoters, dj's, business need to know their worth and conduct themselves and their talent in the highest regards.
Donae'o should be happy someone from the caribbean pick up him rass klat tune and give him a chance/bly to earn some good publicity & royalities (So What even if he got paid for a little appearance, he has HITTSS of his own as well). In musical law nothing can be done to problem child for the remake of a non profit track. People sing covers and do their own remixes all the time, the key thing is to credit & acknowledge the publishers and writers of the track (Royalities). Problem hold strong fadda and dont be too hard on your self, Dem foolish to fight a movement that did nothing but big dem up, your fans will remain to have faith in you and know you will remain to be consistant. Its not hard to see that Donae'o and his team dont seem to like soca music so tell dem on behalf of trinidad and the rest of the whole caribbean they will not be welcomed around here and also they could HOLD DEHH MUDDA CUNT!!!!!! Soca music to de worlddd.........BE SAFE AND IGNORE THE HATERS............THEY USE NIGGER!!!!!TIVITY AS AN EXCUSE FOR THEIR FAILIER!!!!!! BLESSSSSSSSSSSS
Clearly #5 is Problem Child friend because I cannot understand how you can support this Liar...his explanation makes no sense and I think now is a good time for Donae'o and his management team to get a hold of footage of trini carnival and PC performing and see if any mention of Donae'o was made on stage during these performances....
I FEEL PC EXPLAINED HIMSELF WELL AS A DJ WHO KNOWS THE SCENE PARTY HARD IS A COOL SONG HANDS DOWN THE FACT PC DID THE REMIX IS THE ONLY REASON I HYPA BAJE EVEN PLAY THE SONG NO DIS-CREDIT TO DONAE'O.END OF THE DAY IF THIS WAS MACHEL NONE OF YALL WOULD EVEN BEEN ON THIS TRYING TO BAD TALK HIM. 1 HE ADMITTED TO REMIX BUT HE DIDNT PUSH IT #2 AND I AGREE WITH HIM FULL 100 HE ISNT THE ONLY SONG WITH THE KASSAV SAMPLE YET SINCE HE IS THE 1 IN THE SPOT LIGHT. WE NEED TO BE FAIR, WHEN JAY-Z FREESTYLE OVER MAVADO SOLID AS A ROCK YOU DIDNT HEAR THEM CARRYING ON OR WHEN MACHEL DID AH HIS REMIX WITH ON THE STRESS FREE WITH DEMARCO.I KNOW & EVERY OTHER MAINSTREAM DJ KNOWS THIS SONGS THAT PLAY IN THE STATES USUALLY DONT PLAY IN TNT & VISE-VERSA. THE MAN CAME ON HERE SO HIS VOICE CAN BE HEARD. IM NOT TALKIN SIDES IM JUST STATING FACTS & VOICING MY OPINION.END OF THE DAY LEGAL ACTION ISNT NEEDED BUT IF IT HAPPENS I HOPE PC WINS CAUSE THIS IS UNFAIR THAT MIS-COMMUNICATION CAN LEAD TO THIS
stupd guy...stop singing people songs
Actually those remixes of Jay Z & Mavado; and Machel & Demarco are OFFICIAL REMIXES; there was no freestyle or unofficial business there. Nevertheless, in this music industry especially as a "professional," one should get his/her copyright/legal issues sorted out before sending it to Tom, Dick, Harry, Mary & Jane. Too many artistes/artists operate way too slip-shot & hap-hazzard.
As far as the not getting paid for his stint with the Asylum band, I highly doubt that's true especially since during the T&T Carnival season it seemed as if he was promoting/pushing Party Hard over his other songs.
In addition it makes one wonder if the other "Remix(es)" of this same song- Party Hard by other artistes such as a particular Bajan Artiste (to name one) is also an "Unofficial Remix(es)."
Problem Child...once @ Party Animal is a mistake....fine...
Twice @ Party Hard....is a habit...get ure act in order....yuh say is an error...but it shoulda never happen in the first place... u need proper guidance and u need to be educated more abt the industry all i can say is good luck to you...and make sure the other songs u release is not anybody else own because yuh see EM on yuh trail they go hang yuh tail to dry.... all the best and keep pushing thru...
Blessings
PROBELM CHILD TALENTED STILL... YA'LL SHOULD GIVE THE BROTHER SOME SUPPORT AS AN UPCOMING INTERNATIONAL ARTISTE...NOTE: INTERNATIONAL!!! THE GUY IS TAKING SOCA ON A DIFFERENT LEVE WITH THE LIKES OF BUNJI, FAYE AND MACHEL.
PC DON'T BE DISCOURAGED BY THIS KEEP PUSHING POSITIVE VIBES AND MAKING BIG HITS. ANYBODY NOTICE YEAR AFTER YEAR HE BRINGS SOME OF THE BIGGEST HITS OUT THERE, WHETHER REMIX OR NOT.... THAT'S TALENT!!!!
I now reach to comment.....I have read all the posts before and have listened to alot of things thru the grapevine and this is what I have to say:
1-The remix is as good as the Original
2-Problem Child could have gotten in contact with Donae'o just like Entertainment Macco and them..so that is a poor excuse
3 - By now he supposed to be smart enough not to let these things happen
4 - Donae'o them should take his ass to court because I sure Problem Child get paid to perform that song
5 - Entertainment Macco should do a follow up interview with Donae'o and hear what he has to say abt PC responses to the questions ask
6 - PC i will pray for you...you need a better team so these things wont happen to you
The fact of the matter is this is a common practice among Hip Hop artists. 50 Cent Jay-z Rick Ross and others they "take" songs freestyle on it and put it on a mix tape. This is the way it is and that's what many artists are doing. Problem Child is doing the same thing that other artists are doing(with a lot more money and lawyers) Frankly I think he did a great job and Donea'o should thank Problem for introducing his song to millions of other people who would of NEVER heard of him nor his song. Put that in your pipe and smoke it.
All the people supporting Problem Child and his bullshit excuses are silly and simple minded......
I really do not wanna hear shit about it is a popular trend in HIP HOP...this is not hip hop we are referring too....THIS IS SOCA @ BIG KIDZ.....
What he did was still wrong... I do not hate the dude @ Problem Child but I have lost alot of respect for him as an artiste because he does not understand protocol and proper procedures...
Big Kids musik u hadda be a big c.u.n.t de people did rate de song before problem chile voice on it throw ya frame
problem did not perform all dem shows for free please him ah lie & dats di 2nd time dis happen to him wit no clearance plus he should of booked a flight to the uk & get at donaeo obviously he didn't try hard enuff good for him hopefully he gets sued & learn how to do biz di proper way
Given the 'tiefin' PC did on "Party Animal" which has some strong similarities to Kaysha's "Shake Your Money Maker" on the same Kassav riddim + this BS excuse shows a lack of respect for other's work. Since people are less willing to shell out money on lawsuits for small artists that aren't likely to make big money, I suppose this game will continue. Perhaps if PC paid less time studying other people's music and concentrated on hiring proper producers who are original, he could have a decent tune. Does PC work otherwise? How can one not get paid from gigs and afford to travel? I presume he surrounds himself with naive people who are willing to listen to his lies.