Bangsamoro pop singer Shaira Moro has given an update on her copyright issue with Australian singer-songwriter Lenka over the song Selos.
In a video posted on her Facebook page, Shaira said that the negotiations with Lenka ended on a positive note, and that no case was filed against her and her team over her viral hit, which had a melody taken from Lenka’s 2008 song, Trouble is a Friend.
“Wala pong kaso ang isinampa sa amin. Sa katunayan, naging mahinahon at mapayapa ang pag-uusap namin ng kampo ni Lenka at nauwi po ito sa pagkakaroon ng kasunduan,” Shaira said.
She revealed that her record label will now be able to re-release Selos on online streaming platforms, coinciding with the release of some of her other new songs.
“Sana po ngayon ay maging masaya na lamang po tayo dahil hindi lang naman po ito para sa akin, para rin po dito sa mga kapwa kong Bangsamoro artists at sa mga kapwa kong Pilipino,” Shaira said.
She added, “Nagpapasalamat po kami sa lahat ng nanatiling matibay ang paniniwala at suporta sa akin at sa aming production.”
Earlier in the video, the local artist opened up about being hurt at the negative responses hurled against her when her copyright issues first became known.
“Kung minsan ay nasasaktan ako sa mga nababasa kong comments sa Facebook kung saan parang nararamdaman ko na para akong hinihila pababa. Imbis na maramdaman ko ang kanilang suporta, may mga nagsabi pa na baka hindi na ako makabangon dahil sa kaso na isinampa ng original artist na si Lenka laban sa akin,” Shaira said.
“Sa tulad kong isang local artist na baguhan pa lamang, sa kalakaran ng musika, naging leksyon po sa amin ang mga naturang pangyayari,” she continued.
Despite this, she and her team chose to settle the issue quietly to not escalate tensions.
“Humihingi lang po kami ng kaunting pang-unawa, lahat po ng negatibong opinyon at komento niyo sa amin ay nagsisilbing paalala at gasolina upang mas lalo pa naming pag-igihan ang aming mga ginagawa,” Shaira said.
Selos earned massive views on streaming platforms and spawned funny content and dance covers on TikTok with millions of views.
While Selos and Trouble is a Friend share the same melody, the two songs differ when it comes to their lyrics and meaning. The former is about someone having feelings of jealousy after seeing the person they like with another, while the latter talks about how trouble is always around them.
