By Rorisang Modiba
- The court ruled that Nomcebo must honour her deal with Open Mic and release two albums.
- She accused the label of hiding earnings, but the judge said they gave her access to the records.
Grammy-winning singer Nomcebo Zikode has lost her legal battle with Open Mic Productions — and must now produce two new albums for the label before she can walk away.
The Gauteng High Court ruled against her on Thursday and dismissed her claims against the label. The judge said she must stick to the previous agreement she signed.
Nomcebo and Open Mic have been fighting since 2022 after a fallout over their global hit song “Jerusalema”.
But this latest court battle was about another hit — “Bayethe”, the song that helped her win a Grammy.
She claimed the label didn’t give her full access to financial records, including income from bookings, licensing, endorsements and “Jerusalema” sales.
She also wanted to see how much her co-star Master KG had earned.
The court found that Open Mic had given her a link to their financial records and had stuck to their side of the deal.
It ruled that Nomcebo could not walk away from the 50/50 joint venture deal she signed between her company, Emazulwini Productions, and Open Mic.
That deal also stated that all new music would be released through a neutral platform, Africori.
The judge made it clear — Nomcebo must deliver two commercially viable albums before she can exit the contract.
Open Mic boss Lionel Jamela didn’t hold back after the ruling. He said: “I made Nomcebo. She’s a millionaire today because of me. But she tried to steal ‘Jerusalema’ and failed.”
He warned her to focus on the work ahead.
“She must stop. We’ve got work to do,” he said, adding that she must release the albums in 2026 and 2027 or face contempt of court.
Pictured above: Nomcebo Zikode.
Image source: @nomcebo_zikode
