Musician wants his cash from Telemedia’s Digicell
Digicell’s tenth anniversary celebration came and went in December of last year and along with it was controversy and outrage over the use of the MCC Grounds, the only F.F.B.-approved football pitch in Belize City, for its mega concert. Headlining the event were notable acts, including dancehall superstar Beenie Man. While fences have been mended in the wake of the show, popular disc jockey Bobby Chin of Black Chiney is tonight threatening legal action against the company, as well as other promoters. Chin, who was on the concert ticket, says he came to the financial rescue of the promoters when they were unable to secure payment for the artists in U.S. dollars. That bill, he says, amounted to twenty-five thousand dollars. It’s been six months later and Chin says he’s yet to be refunded.
Bobby Chin, Entertainer, Black Chiney
“In the middle of a concert, around nine o’clock, the girl that was doing the promotion for Digicell, Tamara, came to me and said, Beenie Man and Baby Cham and other artists won’t perform unless they get their money in U.S. so I went ahead and made a couple calls and got the money in U.S. because she said she had the Belize money. Now she never had all the money that she wanted and then there was a conversion rate that she would have to pay to get the U.S. Now she said go ahead and do it and then she told me she would receive a check from B.T.L. the other Tuesday after the show—that was since December the fourteenth and I still haven’t received the money for that yet. So basically I didn’t get paid, Chandesi neva get paid cause I responsible for Chandesi and I had to pay him out of my pocket. But everybody else get paid, but she still owed that balance of a certain amount.”
Isani Cayetano
“What was the sum of money in question?”
Bobby Chin
Bobby Chin
“She has a balance totally everything of about seven thousand U.S.”
Isani Cayetano
“So you came up with twenty-five thousand dollars for Beenie Man and baby Cham to get paid?”
Bobby Chin
“Well that’s what she wanted to be converted and we did that. So whatever the balance was, she hasn’t paid it.”
Isani Cayetano
“What have you done to try to recover your money so far?”
Bobby Chin
“Well you know, Bobby Chin is a busy person—always in Europe or all over the word—so communicate with her and it is always I gwen pay yo this, I gwen give yo this, I’m going to do you this. I am very patient; it’s been since December, January, February, March, April, May and going into June now. And I just feel like it is time; she keep giving me stories. I contacted Digicell and they are saying that they will be doing their investigations into it.”
Isani Cayetano
“They are saying to you that all this money has been paid to this particular individual?”
Bobby Chin
“As far as Digicell is concerned, yes dem said they paid this person, but my contract with me and Chandesi is with Digicell. So I have a contract with Digicell.”
Isani Cayetano
“What are your lawyers saying?”
Bobby Chin
“My lawyers ready to deal with it. So whoever we have to go after for the money, we gonna have to go after them?”
Isani Cayetano
“Let me ask you a broader question. Does this affect business with you and this particular company going forward? If they were to have another event and they wanted you to perform for them, does this in anyway affect your business dealings with them or any other related companies going forward?”
Bobby Chin
“As you say it is business and if you doing business with somebody and you have a contract to pay the person, then…you know. I’ve never had a problem with Digicell; I mean I do shows here before. This is just an in between person right now. Then again, my contract is with Digicell. And Digicell said they paid the person Tamara all the money so I am the one stuck with no money. I mean Digicell needs to resolved this with me and then go after Tamara or something you understand. This is my money; I worked. Everybody saw Black Chiney on the stage and I do mi work. I just feel like say it is a big disrespect for them not to pay me.”
According to Tamara Maheia, alternative arrangements have been made for Chin to be compensated. He, however, has declined the offer to be paid second-party through someone else in Miami.
