A Johannesburg Court Dismissed Ami Faku’s Interdict Against Her Label Owner on 1 July 2026. Two Outlets Say the Costs Order Ran Against Him, Not Her

Deal sheet

Status

TWO SEPARATE COURT ACTIONS, ONE OF WHICH HAS A RULING. Ami Faku first sued Raphael Benza and his record label, named in that filing simply as "Vth Season," in a Johannesburg court in May 2025, over unpaid and allegedly incomplete royalty reports and over ownership of the masters to her 2019 album Imali. No ruling, settlement or further reported development on that specific suit has been found by this desk.

A second, separate and later action followed: an urgent application, filed around 17 June 2026, asking the court to stop Benza and his company, named by Daily Dispatch as "Benza Consulting CC (trading as The Vth Season)," from telling publishers, distributors and the public that Faku remained bound by 2018 "artist agreements" covering her album Ezikude and her single Ndisize. She said the agreement had expired in September 2023 and that the company's statements to distributors, including named references to LVRN, Platoon, Empire and Africori, were jeopardising the release of both works.

The High Court dismissed that urgent application on 1 July 2026. TshisaLIVE and Zalebs both report that the costs order was made against Benza, the respondent whose position the court otherwise upheld by refusing the interdict. Benza told TshisaLIVE he does not consider the outcome a win and that he remains open to an amicable settlement; he has previously said the company offered Faku a no-cost release from the relationship. Neither party is reported to have appealed as of 12 November 2026, and no outlet checked by this desk has reported any further development since 1 July 2026.

Type

Settlement

Parties

Vth Season

Amount

ZAR Not disclosed, and no settlement figure exists in any source obtained. The only sum that appears anywhere in this dispute is Faku's own claim, reported in May 2025, that she personally spent more than R400,000 producing Imali, which she cites as the basis for claiming ownership of its masters rather than as a sum anyone owes her. No royalty arrears figure, no damages figure, no costs amount and no settlement number has been disclosed by either party in any source this desk has read.

Rights covered

TWO DIFFERENT RIGHTS CLAIMS, ON TWO DIFFERENT WORKS, AND NEITHER HAS BEEN DECIDED BY A COURT ON THE EVIDENCE OBTAINED. The master recordings of Imali (2019) carry an unchanged phonogram credit of "℗ 2019 Vth Season" on Apple's South African storefront, checked by this desk on 12 November 2026. Faku's May 2025 claim, as reported, is that she is entitled to OWN those masters because she personally funded their production with more than R400,000 of her own money, under an agreement she says also entitled her to 50% of the label's net income and full accounting. No court filing, judgment or registry entry has been obtained that confirms, denies or alters that credit; it is recorded here only as an unchanged registry fact, not as evidence for either side's claim.

Separately, the 2018 "artist agreements" at issue in the 2026 interdict cover Ezikude, described in press accounts as an album, and Ndisize, described as a single. Faku's position, as reported, is that those agreements expired in September 2023 and no longer bind her; Benza's company's position, as reported, is that she remains bound. The court's 1 July 2026 ruling decided only whether an urgent interdict should issue against Benza telling third parties his company's version of that position. It did not rule on whose version is correct. This desk's own catalogue check, set out in the caveat, found no release by either title on Apple Music or Deezer as of 12 November 2026.

WHAT THIS RECORD DOES NOT ESTABLISH. No publishing administration, no distribution agreement and no management agreement has been read directly by this desk; everything above is drawn from press accounts of court papers, not from the papers themselves. No case number or judgment text has been located for either the May 2025 suit or the 2026 interdict.

Territory

South Africa. Both the May 2025 suit and the 2026 urgent application are reported as filed in the High Court; none of the four accounts read by this desk (Briefly, Front Page, Daily Dispatch, TimesLive) states a division or a seat, though BuzzLifeNews and Zalebs both describe the 1 July 2026 ruling as coming from "the Johannesburg High Court." No court file or case number has been obtained to confirm the division independently.

Announced

2026-07-01

Primary document

Trade press

Sources

TshisaLIVE, "Ami Faku loses case against her label owner, Raphael Benza," dated 1 July 2026. Fetched and read in full by this desk on 12 November 2026 (HTTP 200). Cited as the primary source because it is the most detailed independent account of the only court ruling in this dispute: it names the High Court's dismissal of Faku's urgent application, states that costs were awarded against Raphael Benza, names the works at issue (Ezikude, Ndisize) and the 2018 "artist agreements," and carries Benza's on-the-record reaction, including "We don't feel like we won against Ami because we never tried to fight against her," his statement that his position "still stands," and his account of a three-year effort to reach a settlement. · BuzzLifeNews, 1 July 2026. Fetched and read in full by this desk on 12 November 2026 (HTTP 200). Independent account of the same 1 July ruling, reporting the application "dismissed… with costs" without specifying which party the costs order fell against. Corroborates the four named distributors Faku's own application cites as discouraged: LVRN, Platoon, Empire and Africori. Corroborates that Faku says her agreement expired in September 2023 after the contract term and option periods ended, and that she had repeatedly demanded an accounting of royalties and revenue without receiving one. Reports that Benza "did not view the outcome as a victory" and that the company is "appealing [to] her to settle out of court," in wording the source itself renders awkwardly. · Zalebs, dated around 1-2 July 2026. Fetched and read by this desk on 12 November 2026 (HTTP 200). Second independent account stating explicitly that the costs order was made against Raphael Benza, not against Faku, despite her application being the one dismissed. Does not name his company as a party to the costs order. · Daily Dispatch, 17 June 2026. Fetched and read in full by this desk on 12 November 2026 (HTTP 200). Primary account of the filing of the urgent application itself, ahead of the ruling. Names the respondent company as "Benza Consulting CC (trading as The Vth Season)" and Raphael Benza as its director, described as "chief opportunity creator and culture architect." Carries direct quotes from Benza including "We are opposing it on the grounds that we've been trying to settle with Ami for a long time," "I've never called any distribution company," and "She just has to sign a settlement agreement that says that she is a free agent." A companion report carrying the same reporting, same date, ran at TimesLive (https://www.timeslive.co.za/tshisa-live/2026-06-17-ami-faku-takes-former-management-to-court-over-control-of-her-music/) and at The Herald (https://www.theherald.co.za/lifestyle/2026-06-17-ami-faku-takes-former-management-to-court-over-control-of-her-music/); both fetched and read 12 November 2026 (HTTP 200), both carrying identical substantive detail, which this desk treats as shared syndication rather than three independent confirmations. · Briefly.co.za, by Privie Kandi, dated 19 May 2025. Fetched and read in full by this desk on 12 November 2026 (HTTP 200). Primary account of the EARLIER, separate May 2025 suit, citing Sunday World as its own source for the court-papers detail. Names "Vth Season" as first respondent and "Raphael Benza," described there as a Liberian national, as second respondent (this detail appears nowhere else this desk has read and is recorded as single-source). States Faku's claim to 50% of the label's net income under the agreement, her demand for Benza's accounting books, and her allegation, from her own court papers as quoted by Sunday World, that he targets "potentially successful young black female music artists." · Front Page, 21 May 2025. Fetched and read in full by this desk on 12 November 2026 (HTTP 200). Independent corroboration of the May 2025 suit: unpaid royalties, incomplete and disorganised royalty reports, the R400,000 self-funding claim on Imali, and the demand to end the artist, management and publishing agreements. Confirms the Johannesburg High Court as the forum. Carries no quotes from either party and states neither had publicly responded at time of writing. · IOL, 21 May 2025. Third independent headline-level account of the May 2025 filing, located via search; its full body could not be fetched directly by this desk (HTTP 403 on direct request), so only its headline and the surrounding search context are relied upon here, for the fact that a suit was filed around that date. · Apple iTunes Lookup for Ami Faku (artist 1424323496), album entity, South African storefront, fetched by this desk 12 November 2026 (HTTP 200). 33 rows. Confirms Imali's unchanged credit "℗ 2019 Vth Season," released 27 September 2019, and shows her last Vth-Season-credited LEAD release is "Lala Ngoxolo (feat. Emtee)," 22 January 2021, distributed by Warner Music South Africa; every dated lead release after that carries a different named rights holder (Universal Music (Pty) Ltd South Africa, Gallo Record Company, Sony Music Entertainment Africa, emPawa Africa, EL World Music, Drumboss Musik, OuttaThisWorld, TheCAPMusic/Epic Records), through to "EXCITED" in August 2025. No "Ezikude" and no standalone Ami Faku "Ndisize" appears in this result set. · Apple Music search for "Ezikude Ami Faku," fetched 12 November 2026 (HTTP 200). Returns five rows, none titled Ezikude; all are existing Imali tracks or features. Negative evidence that no release by this title exists on Apple Music as of this date. · Apple Music search for "Ndisize Ami Faku," fetched 12 November 2026 (HTTP 200). Returns four rows, all crediting the lead artist as Caiiro, not Ami Faku, dated from 5 July 2024. No standalone Ami Faku "Ndisize" single exists on Apple Music under this search. · Deezer discography for Ami Faku (artist 50371262, confirmed by name match and by matching the Imali release date), fetched 12 November 2026 (HTTP 200). 28 albums, earliest 2018, latest "Fakazela" (5 June 2026). No "Ezikude" and no "Ndisize" album or single appears. Cited as the source for the "Fakazela" release discussed in the caveat. · Deezer album record for "Fakazela," fetched 12 November 2026 (HTTP 200). release_date 2026-06-05, label field "Platoon," featuring Thando Zide and Ami Faku as co-main artists on the track (confirmed via the track record below). Twelve days before the urgent application naming Platoon as one of the distributors allegedly discouraged was filed. · Deezer track record for "Fakazela," fetched 12 November 2026 (HTTP 200). Confirms Ami Faku (artist 50371262) and Thando Zide (artist 111252522) both carry the "Main" contributor role on this track, ISRC US23A8195187. · Apple iTunes Lookup for the album "Ku Ngawe," which carries the same "Fakazela" track, fetched 12 November 2026 (HTTP 200). Copyright line "℗ 2026 Thando Zide," collection release date 26 June 2026, naming neither Platoon nor Vth Season. The track-level credit on this storefront reads "Thando Zide & Ami Faku." This desk notes the three-week date gap between Deezer's 5 June single release date and Apple's 26 June album collection date for what registers as the same recording; it is recorded, not explained.

Read this before citing: WHAT WAS ACTUALLY DECIDED, AND WHAT WAS NOT. On 1 July 2026, a court dismissed Ami Faku's urgent application for an interdict stopping Raphael Benza and his company from telling third parties she remained bound by 2018 agreements. That is the only judicial ruling in this entire dispute that this desk has located. It did not decide whether those 2018 agreements are in fact still in force, whether Faku owns the masters to Imali, or whether she is owed any royalties. Any reader treating this record as proof that Faku "lost" the underlying rights dispute is reading more into it than the court decided.

A COSTS ORDER THAT RAN THE OPPOSITE WAY FROM THE RULING, REPORTED BY TWO INDEPENDENT OUTLETS. TshisaLIVE and Zalebs both state, in separate articles, that costs were awarded against Raphael Benza, the respondent whose position the court otherwise upheld by refusing Faku's interdict. Neither article explains why a successful respondent would be ordered to pay costs; no judgment text has been obtained that would supply the court's reasoning. BuzzLifeNews, reporting the same ruling, states only that the application was "dismissed… with costs," without naming either party. This desk treats the two explicit, independent accounts as the better-supported version and records it as a genuinely counter-intuitive but twice-corroborated fact, not as a contradiction requiring resolution, because the third account is silent rather than conflicting.

TWO SEPARATE LAWSUITS, SEPARATED BY MORE THAN A YEAR, AND ONLY THE LATER ONE HAS A RESULT. The May 2025 suit concerns unpaid royalties, incomplete accounting and ownership of the Imali masters. The June-July 2026 application concerns a narrower question: whether Benza's company could keep telling publishers and distributors that Faku remained contractually bound. No source read by this desk states that the 2025 suit was withdrawn, consolidated into, or resolved by the 2026 application, and no source reports any further development in the 2025 royalties claim at all after its initial filing. This desk has found nothing newer than 19-21 May 2025 on that specific claim.

THE RESPONDENT ENTITY IS NAMED DIFFERENTLY ACROSS THE TWO ACTIONS, AND THIS DESK CANNOT RECONCILE IT. The May 2025 filing, per Briefly's account of Sunday World's reporting, names the first respondent simply as "Vth Season." The June 2026 filing, per Daily Dispatch, names the respondent as "Benza Consulting CC (trading as The Vth Season)." Whether these are the same registered entity, a renamed entity, or a reporting simplification could not be established: South Africa's companies registry (CIPC) has no public search API, and no filing or registration number for either name has been obtained by this desk or by its own existing, separately verified record for Vth Season (afw_company 2682).

A SINGLE-SOURCE PERSONAL DETAIL IS FLAGGED, NOT REPEATED AS FACT. Briefly's account, citing Sunday World, describes Raphael Benza as "a Liberian national." No other source read by this desk, including three independent accounts of the later 2026 action, repeats or contradicts this detail. It is recorded here only so a reader does not mistake its absence elsewhere for a later correction; this desk has not independently verified his nationality and treats it as unconfirmed.

NEITHER DISPUTED WORK HAS BEEN RELEASED, ON THE EVIDENCE OF TWO PLATFORMS CHECKED TODAY. Faku's urgent application names Ezikude (described as an album) and Ndisize (described as a single) as the works whose release was being jeopardised. As of 12 November 2026, Apple Music and Deezer searches run by this desk return no release under either title credited to Ami Faku as lead artist. The only "Ndisize" either platform holds is a 2024 feature on a Caiiro single, not a solo Ami Faku release, which does not match the "her single Ndisize" framing in the press accounts read; this desk cannot explain the discrepancy and does not guess at it. Absence on two platforms is evidence that nothing has shipped under either title by the date checked. It is not evidence of why, and it does not corroborate either party's account of why.

A RELEASE NAMING ONE OF THE FOUR DISTRIBUTORS EXISTS INSIDE THE EXACT WINDOW OF THE DISPUTE, AND THIS DESK DOES NOT KNOW WHAT IT MEANS. Faku's urgent application names Platoon as one of four distributors (with LVRN, Empire and Africori) she says were discouraged from working with her. A duet titled "Fakazela," crediting Ami Faku alongside Thando Zide, carries a Deezer label field of "Platoon" with a release date of 5 June 2026, twelve days before the urgent application was filed on 17 June. The same recording's Apple collection, dated 26 June 2026, carries the copyright line "℗ 2026 Thando Zide," naming neither Platoon nor Vth Season. This desk does not assert that this release confirms, undermines or is even relevant to Faku's claim about Platoon's conduct; it is a dated, delivered recording crediting her that exists inside the stated window, found while checking the two disputed titles, and it is recorded because it is there and because a reader comparing dates would otherwise have to find it independently.

VTH SEASON HAS RESOLVED A SIMILAR DISPUTE WITH A DIFFERENT ARTIST BEFORE, WHICH IS CONTEXT, NOT PRECEDENT. This desk's own, separately verified company record for Vth Season (afw_company 2682) already documents that another signed artist, Tresor, bought back his own masters from the label in 2024 after a dispute over his catalogue, reported amicably resolved. That is not evidence of how this dispute will end, and no source connects the two artists' situations beyond both involving Vth Season; it is recorded only so a reader has the label's recent history available.

NO JUDGMENT, NO CASE NUMBER, NO SAFLII RECORD. No judgment text, case number or court record has been located for either the May 2025 suit or the July 2026 ruling. Everything in this record is drawn from press accounts of court papers and of the ruling, several of which cite each other or cite a common source (Sunday World, in the case of the 2025 reporting); it is not drawn from the papers themselves. No further reported development has been found by this desk after 1 July 2026, despite Benza's stated intention to keep seeking a settlement.