Singer Peter Okoye of the defunct music group P-Square has admitted receiving more than $800,000 in royalties from French music rights organisation, SACEM, for songs recorded by the group.
Okoye made the admission before Justice Alexander Owoeye of the Federal High Court in Lagos while being cross-examined by Clement Onwuewunor, SAN, counsel to his brother, Jude Okoye.
SACEM is a French organisation responsible for collecting and distributing royalties to songwriters, composers and music publishers.
Jude Okoye and his company, Northside Music Limited, are facing a seven-count charge filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) involving alleged N1.3 billion and $1 million fraud. Jude has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
At the resumed hearing, Peter, who testified virtually, was questioned about his earlier claim that Jude took more than three months to provide P-Square’s backend royalty records after he requested them in 2022.
Counsel told the court that the request was made on October 16, 2022, and that Jude obtained and forwarded the records six days later, on October 22.
Peter disagreed, insisting that he had made the request earlier in 2022.
However, when asked to produce a text message, email or other document showing that he had made the request before October 16, Peter admitted that he could not.
“No. I don’t have any and I can’t recall,” he said.
Peter also confirmed receiving the royalty report sent by Jude, saying it covered royalties from 2016 to 2022, including records relating to Lex Records.
He told the court that he requested the report because some people were interested in acquiring the P-Square music catalogue.
The singer further acknowledged that Jude had forwarded the account information to him in 2022 and that the EFCC was aware that the report had been sent to him.
However, Peter disputed Jude’s entitlement to royalties paid through SACEM, maintaining that the payments belonged to him and his twin brother, Paul.
When counsel pointed out that the SACEM contract was signed by Jude rather than Peter or Paul, Peter maintained that it had been signed by “the team”, insisting that Jude was not part of the team.
Peter also confirmed that the 10 songs for which SACEM paid royalties were P-Square songs.
He acknowledged that he had previously paid Jude a quarter of his SACEM share but denied that Jude demanded quarterly payments after the royalties were reconciled in 2022.
When confronted with the claim that he received approximately $800,000 from SACEM between 2016 and 2026, Peter admitted receiving the money.
However, he maintained that the funds belonged to the artists and that nothing was paid to Jude.
Asked whether he informed Jude about the payments, Peter replied: “No, the money was for the artists.”
Peter denies Jude was part of P-Square
On Jude’s role as P-Square’s manager, Peter said he had no employment contract with his brother, explaining that their arrangement was through Northside Entertainment Limited.
When asked whether Jude was part of P-Square, Peter replied: “Jude is not part of P-Square.”
Asked whether this meant Jude had no involvement in the music produced by the group, Peter maintained that all P-Square songs were composed, written and produced by him and Paul.
He, however, acknowledged that Jude directed some of the group’s music videos.
The court adjourned further hearing in the matter to December 8 and 9, 2026.
