Music company Ground Up Chale and its founder, Glen Boateng have filed a writ of summons at the High Court in Accra against Ghanaian musician Kwesi Arthur.
Kwesi is accused of libel, and as a result, Glen and his company are seeking more than 10 million cedis in damages over comments he made in a social media post about a week ago.
The plaintiffs want the court to declare a series of statements by Kwesi Arthur as defamatory and libelous, demand the removal of the posts, restrain further defamatory comments, and require a public apology and retraction with the same prominence as the original posts.
In addition, the lawsuit requests five million Ghanaian cedis (GH₵ 5,000,000) in general damages, two million Ghanaian cedis (GH₵ 2,000,000) in special damages for lost business prospects and economic injury, three million Ghanaian cedis (GH₵ 3,000,000) in aggravated and exemplary damages, and legal fees.
Five major claims made by the rapper in his tweet from January 21, 2026, are at the heart of the controversy. Kwesi Arthur said in those posts that Ground Up Chale “claims to own me, my image, my music, and everything attached to it from 2016 to this day” and that he was being asked to pay USD 150,000 for putting his photos in an independent project.
Additionally, he claimed that he had “not made a dime from any of my music” throughout his time with the label and accused the management of manipulation, threats, and attempts to prevent the publication of his current songs. “If anything happens to me, Glen Boateng and all team members of Ground Up Chale are responsible and should be held responsible,” stated the most grave allegation.
Kwesi Arthur’s allegations triggered widespread reaction across social media and from industry observers who raised concerns about artist rights and contract fairness in Ghana’s music business. Supporters quickly rallied behind the rapper using hashtags such as #FreeKwesiArthur. The lawsuit requests that the rapper remove all relevant content from his social media accounts, including his Instagram and X postings from January 21, 2026, immediately and permanently. Additionally, it orders the publication of a verified apology and requests an injunction to stop him and his representatives from putting out defamatory remarks in the future.
Ground Up Chale’s lawyer, Jonathan K. Amable, has publicly rejected key aspects of Kwesi Arthur’s claims. During X Spaces discussion, he said the company did not stop the rapper from using his images broadly but only restricted use of footage and visuals produced by the label during their contractual relationship.
The legal representative further said the dispute is rooted in contractual rights over past works and that Ground Up Chale is prepared to defend its interests.
Kwesi Arthur rose to national fame under the Ground Up Chale collective after he was signed in 2017, and his music has influenced Ghana’s hip-hop scene, giving voice to younger audiences through hits such as Grind Day and Winning.
As of publication, Kwesi Arthur had not responded to the legal action.
