A seemingly straightforward dispute over a royalties claim by a former independent record label owner has turned into a sprawling, precedent-setting legal spat between the businessman and several music industry entities. On Wednesday, subpoenas were issued to three executives affiliated with the Recording Industry of South Africa

Listen to this article 6 min Listen to this article 6 min The senior public prosecutor in the Randburg Magistrates' Court, Zanda Mthimunye, has signed off on subpoenas to three music executives linked to the CEO of the Recording Industry of South Africa (RiSA), Nhlanhla Paul Sibisi. He has been accused of committing perjury in the course of an investigation into RiSA's administration of music video royalties by the Information Regulator South Africa.

Robert Cowling, a director of RiSA and the general manager of Gallo - the country's oldest independent music label and publisher - RiSA finance and operations director Nishal Lalla and music industry service provider Clive van der Mescht have been subpoenaed to appear in court.

The investigating officer, Captain Aaron Mamiala of the Linden Police Station, served the papers at RiSA's head office in Randburg on Wednesday afternoon. The three executives were identified by Nhlanhla Sibisi in May 2022 as being in a position to supply "significant material information regarding the alleged commission of the crime of perjury".

The allegation stems from a sworn statement Sibisi made, stating that RiSA's subsidiary, RiSA Audio Visual Licensing (RAV), had never paid royalties to Gallo that were lawfully owed to...