Singer and legislator Hon Hillary Kiyaga alias Hilderman has clarified that artists who previously signed away their music rights will not be able to reclaim them under the newly passed Copyright and Neighbouring Rights (Amendment) Bill, 2025.
Speaking on NTV Uganda, Hilderman emphasized that the law will not apply retroactively, meaning agreements signed before its implementation will remain legally binding.
According to him, artists who transferred ownership of their copyrights under earlier contracts cannot reverse those deals simply because of the new legislation.
He cited the example of rights acquired by Salim Saleh from producer Kasiwukira, noting that such agreements remain valid because they were concluded before the bill was introduced.
Hilderman added that even music from legendary artists like Paul Kafeero, whose rights were sold under earlier arrangements, will continue to be governed by those original contracts.
His remarks appear to contradict earlier comments by Eddy Kenzo, president of the Uganda National Musicians Federation (UNMF), who had suggested that veteran artists could regain ownership of their music once the bill is signed into law.
However, Hilderman clarified that the legislation will only take effect going forward, from the moment it is assented to by the president and its regulations are implemented.
He said artists affected by past agreements will instead need to focus on creating new music under better contractual terms.
“Those artists will need to create new music and start afresh,” he explained.
Artists who already signed contracts and transferred their copyrights cannot have those agreements reversed.
For example, the rights General Salim Saleh purchased from music producer Kasiwukira remain unchanged because the contract was signed before the Copyright Bill.… pic.twitter.com/nitytBTSJ7
— NTV UGANDA (@ntvuganda) March 18, 2026
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