Controversial social media critic, Martins Vincent Otse, popularly known as VeryDarkMan (VDM), has accused gospel singer Mercy Chinwo of being manipulative and deceitful in the ongoing dispute between the artist and her former manager Ezekiel ThankGod Onyedikachukwu, popularly called Eezee Tee.
VeryDarkMan, who had previously promised to investigate the matter, expressed his disappointment in Chinwo and her team in a recent video, accusing them of misleading the public on the real issues.
“To be honest, with what I’ve found so far, I am so disappointed in Mercy Chinwo and everything she represents, disappointed in her and her team,” VDM stated in the video posted on his social media hanles on Monday.
“All these things they are doing disguising under the name of gospel and Christianity, it’s just just so sad. I will not be using ‘allegedly’ in this video because I will be posting with proofs and a lot of evidence. And after this video, if Mercy Chinwo feels like VeryDarkMan is lying and they have more anything to counter my proof, they can take me to court,” he declared.
According to VeryDarkMan, Eeze Tee had seized Chinwo’s royalties because she went for concerts and programmes without the knowledge of his music label and refused to disclose the financial proceeds that were paid to her.
VeryDarkMan posted a picture of a letter addressed to Chinwo concerning the issue on March 21, 2023, titled “NOTICE OF BREACH OF CONTRACT AND INFRINGEMENT OF COPYRIGHT.”
The letter reads, “Kindly note herewith that we have raised the issue of no communication and non-remittance of money for various events which was intentionally boycotted to your personal account against the agreed provided organizational account. On our email to you on the 12 of April 2022. Consequently, all royalties due to you were paid to you in full. However, royalties for streams of content as distributed on virtual platforms were paid till the first quarter of 2022 (being received and paid quarterly as agreed and reported). Further to this, you were informed through our mutual pastor (Reverend Temple Odoko) of the fact that your royalties from virtual streams from the second quarter of 2022 will be retained until you take steps to repair this bridge and adequate reconciliation is done in the interests of all parties.”
The social media critic further stated that Chinwo reportedly declined to fulfil invitations that had already been paid for by churches worldwide, leading Eezee Conceptz Label to begin issuing refunds to various individuals and organisations.
VDM claimed that Chinwo’s complaint to the EFCC about the unlawful seizure of her royalties resulted in the freezing of all of Eezee Tee’s bank accounts and prompted an invitation for him to appear at the EFCC office.
However, Eezee Tee did not respond to the invitations, arguing that it was a civil matter.
The case moved to Ilorin on April 24, where he was promptly detained, “When they brought out the petition, it was Mercy Chinwo and Judikay that filed the petition,” VeryDarkMan alleged.
“The IPO’s Name is Stanley Ojilibo of EFCC in Ilorin, Stanley was forcing Eezee to write a statement of whatever he asked him to write.”
“That was how he was kept there for 9 days under the petition of Mercy Chinwo.”
According to VeryDarkMan, the record label boss reportedly grew tired and agreed to give Mercy her royalties and he was taken to the bank to unfreeze his accounts under the supervision of Stanley, to enable him to send $274,000 to the gospel singer.
Eezee Tee allegedly paid the money in splits.
He added that Mercy Chinwo allegedly paid the sum of $3,500 as money she realised from performing at shows behind the label’s back but that she refused an audit on her account.
VDM also claimed that the EFCC tried to force Eezee Tee to hand over Mercy’s catalogue but he vehemently refused, insisting that the case had to be transferred back to Lagos.
VeryDarkMan also claimed that Eezee Tee had known Chinwo since 2012 before she went for ‘Nigerian Idol’ and that he had contributed to sponsoring her.
He claimed that she squandered the money realised from the show and later returned to Eezee Tee when the money had finished in 2017.
“At that time Frank Edward was with Eezee Tee,” VeryDarkMan said.
On the issue of forgery raised by Mercy Chinwo, VeryDarkMan explained that while Chinwo initially joined EeZee Conceptz in 2017, no formal contract was signed at that time since the label was still a startup.
By 2019, when the label had gained recognition, a formal document was drafted, which updated the date to reflect the actual duration of the agreement.
Both parties had acknowledged and signed the corrected contract with witnesses around.
“Eezee said one day, Apostle Anslem Mabubuko of the Revival Assembly called him. When he came, he said ‘I want you to give Mercy Chinwo the catalogue’. All these she said she has God, you have bloggers.
“You have God and fathers actually,” VeryDarkMan said.
VeryDark Man concluded that he would fight on the side of Eezee Tee in the matter.
