Pia Mia vs Phyno: According to collaborator DeCarlo, Phyno has no rights to “I’m A Fan”

In an interesting turn of events....

In what seems like an upturned conclusion to a story that ripped through the Nigerian media nearly two weeks ago, American singer Pia Mia seems to have been cleared of accusations that she appropriated Phyno’s track, “I’m A Fan”. Last month, Native tweeted an audio mash-up of “I’m A Fan” by rapper Phyno, off his 2016 Playmaker album and American singer, Pia Mia’s similarly titled and composed version.

After the news made rounds with some media outlets implying Phyno may have released his version without full permission from the original creators, the rapper was quick to come online to rebuff the claims. He further indicated that his team would release a statement detailing their side of the story. Though the continued silence from Pia Mia’s camp allowed the Nigerian internet to run wild with speculations, it was apparent from the start that songwriter, DeCarlo, who is featured on Phyno’s version, held the key to solving the puzzle of how these two similar songs came to be.

True to that initial conclude, songwriter, DeCarlo has come out to affirm that Pia Mia’s version of “I’m A Fan”. A press statement made by DeCarlo via PR Agency, Bobby Taylor reads: “I wrote the original demo of “I’m A Fan” and pitched it to various artists. I worked with Pia Mia and Jeremih on the track, and their song is the only version authorized”. The songwriter also took to his twitter account to repeat excerpts of the statement.

This means, for starters, that Nigerian blogs that immediately took to attacking Pia Mia, would have to start rolling back those headlines to prevent a defamation suit. It also means, Phyno may be looking at trouble ahead, except DeCarlo doesn’t press forward with charges. However, to truly put this to a heel, a statement from Phyno’s team is still required. It’s hard to tell if the fact that he released his version of “I’m A Fan” earlier means Phyno was one of the artists DeCarlo initially pitched to, but it no doubt confirms earlier reports that Phyno’s process of acquiring rights for the release may have been dodgy.

While we await Phyno’s statement, we must remind you that this is still a developing story.

Here are four possible explanations for the existence of Pia Mia’s “I’m a fan”

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