Nollywood actress and filmmaker Bimbo Ademoye has offered a N1 million reward for information that could help locate a man she accused of unlawfully claiming copyright ownership of the soundtrack to her latest movie, My 30th Wedding.
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The actress raised the alarm in a series of social media posts, alleging that an individual identified as Enemuo attempted to claim ownership of a song specially produced for the movie by former Nigerian Idol winner, Progress.
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Ademoye expressed frustration over the development, accusing the individual of attempting to benefit financially from a project she had invested considerable resources in producing.
She also urged her followers to report Enemuo’s social media accounts and called on YouTube and its African division to intervene in the matter.
According to the actress, the individual uploaded the soundtrack about three weeks before allegedly making a copyright claim, a development she described as a deliberate attempt to target her work.
“I’m sick and tired of this. I have 1 million naira for anyone who can locate this person for me. I will not rest until I catch this one. A movie I spent my blood on. You’re claiming copyright for a song that was done for me by Progress that I fully own,” she wrote.
However, in a subsequent update, Ademoye announced that the movie’s monetisation rights had been restored, expressing gratitude to those who intervened to resolve the dispute.
She specifically acknowledged the support of her mother, Uduak Isong, comedian Sir Fela and Progress, whom she credited with taking swift action.
Despite the restoration of the monetisation rights, the actress maintained that her N1 million reward remained available for anyone who could provide information leading to Enemuo’s physical location.
She claimed the individual was believed to be around Colchester or the University of Essex in the United Kingdom.
In response to the controversy, Enemuo issued an apology, explaining that his intention was to promote the soundtrack and expose it to a wider audience rather than violate Ademoye’s copyright.
He also said the YouTube Content ID claim was triggered through the distribution platform and insisted that he had taken responsibility by removing the song from streaming platforms.
Enemuo further promised to contact the distributor to ensure that all copyright-related claims associated with the soundtrack were withdrawn.
However, Ademoye rejected the explanation, questioning how someone with about 250 subscribers could claim to be promoting her work to a wider audience when her YouTube channel had nearly two million subscribers.
She also accused him of deliberately selecting a particular soundtrack from the movie that she had not properly registered for copyright protection, rather than another song she said had gained more popularity.
The actress further questioned why the individual allegedly attempted to claim revenue from the movie, resulting in the temporary loss of her monetisation rights.
Ademoye vowed to pursue the matter, insisting that she would not allow anyone to benefit from her creative efforts without authorisation.
She also shared screenshots of apologies from other content creators whose channels she said had previously faced copyright-related actions after allegedly using her intellectual property without permission.
Responding to critics who accused her of using the controversy to seek publicity or failing to protect her creative works, the actress maintained that she had taken steps to safeguard her projects.
My 30th Wedding, which premiered on October 1, has reportedly attracted 29 million views on YouTube.