THE PPP/C continued to use a pirated version of Farmer Nappy’s song, even as the Trinidadian artiste threatened to take legal action against the party.

On Friday, internationally-acclaimed Trinidadian Soca artiste, Darryl “Farmer Nappy” Henry disclosed that his management team will be taking legal action against the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) for using his ‘Hookin meh’ song in a campaign promotion advertisement. In a radio interview on 98.1FM, ‘Farmer Nappy’ said that he was contacted by representatives of the Coalition to work along with them for their campaign promotion ahead of the March 2 Regional and General elections here.

His ‘promo’ song, a remix of his own “Hookin Meh”, was played at the launch of the elections campaign of the A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance for Change (APNU+ AFC) coalition at D’Urban Park. He also performed there after the formal programme was finished.
However, while in Guyana, he was made aware that his 2019 hit-song “Hookin meh”, sung on the Purple Heart Riddim, was remixed into an Opposition campaign ‘promo’ song, which is critical of the incumbent government. This remix, sung by a Guyanese artiste, was not sanctioned by ‘Nappy’ or his management team.

Even though the artiste made these comments on Friday, at the PPP/C’s campaign launch on Sunday, the song was still being played. Furthermore, another tune, also critical of the government, was remixed on the same Purple Heart Riddim, reminiscent of Nadia Batson’s “So Long”.
During the radio interview, “Farmer Nappy” said that felt that remixing his song was “disrespectful”, and alluded to copyright concerns. “You don’t just take somebody things and just do it so without permission,” Farmer Nappy said later, adding: “At the end of the day, it’s like I put my food in the fridge and you just take it.”

During that same radio interview, it was insinuated that the local artiste singing the remixed song was Bradon Harding, who is the reigning Soca Monarch of Guyana. On his Facebook page, however, Harding wrote: “Let me say categorically that I did not sing that jingle.” He also added that he supports both President David Granger and the APNU+AFC coalition government.