Amapiano producer and DJ, Zakhele “Sobzeen” Mbuyisa, has come forward with serious allegations against fellow artist DJ Stokie, claiming the hitmaker owes him R2.4 million in unpaid royalties for music they created together.
Sobzeen, 28, says he is the mastermind behind several of DJ Stokie’s chart-topping tracks, including the double-platinum singles Mali, Masithokoze, and Selimathunzi. According to Sobzeen, these songs were produced nearly three years ago during frequent studio sessions at Stokie’s place, where the two collaborated closely after being introduced by a manager.
“I would hang out at the studio and make beats,” Sobzeen told Sunday World. “At the time, I was just trying to show my skills. I never thought the music would be taken without credit.”
Despite contributing heavily to the production of the tracks, Sobzeen claims he was neither formally credited nor fairly compensated. He estimates his share of the royalties — based on streaming figures from platforms like Spotify — should be in the region of R2.4 million.
“When I worked on Masithokoze, I did it purely for the love of music, not for money. But 28 million streams on Spotify alone are worth close to R2.4 million,” he explained.
The absence of any formal contracts at the time has left Sobzeen without solid legal ground to enforce his claims. “They only offered me 15%, which works out to about R360,000 from Spotify alone, before deductions. That doesn’t even include Apple Music, YouTube, and other platforms, plus there are four more hits I never got paid for.”
The ordeal has left a lasting impact on Sobzeen, who says the experience taught him valuable lessons about ownership and recognition in the music industry. “His actions made me realise my career is in my hands. I learned not to invest too much in other people’s success.”
Now signed to Solid Sound, Sobzeen is focused on reclaiming his voice. He released his 11-track album iThemba Lam on August 8—a gospel-infused amapiano project born from his struggles and healing.
The album even features DJ Stokie on one track, Mang’Dakiwe. “I worked with him; I can’t throw those songs away. They’re still my creative right despite everything that happened,” he said.
