This archive report was first published on 8 June 2020.
Published on June 8, 2020, Sauti Sol's Bien-Aimé Baraza shared a harrowing tale of how the band was conned out of Sh1 million in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The incident occurred after a show the band performed in the country, where they were promised a payment of $10,000 (approximately Sh1 million) by an unscrupulous promoter.
However, the promoter failed to deliver the payment, leaving the band stranded in the country on December 24, just days before Christmas.
According to Bien, the promoter had organized a disappointing show in a small venue with a very small audience, but the band still gave their best performance.
“On the day of the show, we went to the venue at like 10 in the night. The venue was a ghost town, there were like 15 people in that place, and the sound was whack,” he narrated.
After the show, the band retired back to their hotel room, only to find that their hotel bill had not been paid, and the management was demanding payment before they could leave.
It took some back-and-forth between the hotel manager and the promoter to settle the matter, but the band eventually chose to cut their losses and return home without the cash.
“As an artiste, you need to be smart when it comes to these shows. Before you perform anywhere, secure a 90 percent deposit and the 10 percent should be in your account before you get on the stage because once you do, whether or not you get your dues is in God’s hands,” Bien cautioned.
