22/07/2025
Now That Jay Z Has Signed Ayra Starr to Roc Nation, Is She Bigger Than Tyla and No Longer a Mavin Artist?
A viral Facebook post recently claimed that Don Jazzy now owns only 20% of Ayra Starr due to the Universal Music acquisition of Mavin and her Roc Nation deal. That’s factually wrong and based on a deep misunderstanding of company ownership, artist rights, and label structure.
Let’s break it down in plain language with facts you can verify:
🔹 1. Was Don Jazzy the Sole Owner of Mavin?
No, he wasn’t & even before Universal came in.
In 2019, Mavin Records secured a major investment from Kupanda Holdings, a joint venture between U.S. firm TPG Growth and Kupanda Capital. This means foreign investors already held equity in Mavin long before Universal came onboard.
Also, Tega Oghenejobo, Mavin’s current CEO, is not just staff, he’s a known shareholder and executive. His ownership comes from leadership loyalty based shares for sticking to the label over the years.
In January 2024, Universal Music Group (UMG) acquired a majority stake in Mavin. That means they now own more than 50% of the company. But:
The exact percentage they acquired is not public.
“Majority” could mean 80%, 60%, or even 51%.
Don Jazzy’s current shareholding is also not public.
So anyone saying “Don Jazzy owns 20% of Ayra Starr” is confusing Mavin company shares with Ayra’s artist contract.
> Mavin’s deal with UMG is similar to how Atlantic is under Warner, or Columbia is under Sony.
Mavin still runs as an independent African label, now powered by Universal’s global infrastructure.
🔹 2. Does Don Jazzy Own Ayra Starr?
No, and that’s not how music contracts work.
Ayra Starr is signed to Mavin Records, the company.
Don Jazzy is the founder and a shareholder in Mavin, but he does not personally own any part of Ayra’s music or brand.
Unless there’s a rare side deal (which would be minor), Don Jazzy earns from Ayra Starr’s success through Mavin’s income, not direct ownership of her catalog.
In a nutshell, Don Jazzy owns part of the label.
The label owns part of the music.
🔹 3. Is Ayra Starr Still Signed to Mavin After the Roc Nation Deal?
Yes — Ayra Starr is still 100% a Mavin artist.
Her deal with Roc Nation is a management and publishing agreement, not a record deal. This was confirmed in Roc Nation’s official announcement.
Roc Nation handles:
International bookings & brand partnerships
Publishing administration (e.g. sync licensing)
Global strategy (especially in the U.S.)
This is similar to Tems, who is signed to RCA for records, but managed by LVRN and associated with Since '93 in publishing.
> Roc Nation is not replacing Mavin, they’re expanding her reach, especially in the U.S.
> Her Roc Nation deal is a power move to get bigger in the US, but she’s not bigger than Tyla yet at least in U.S. mainstream metrics.
However, with the infrastructure now behind her (Roc Nation + Universal + Mavin), Ayra is positioned to catch up or even overtake, depending on consistency and audience connection.
🔹 4. Did Universal Buy the Artists Too?
No. Universal bought into the label (Mavin) not the artists.
When UMG acquired Mavin, they gained ownership of the company, not personal rights to Ayra Starr, Rema, Crayon, etc.
And even if Mavin has the rights to their music:
There are usually clauses in artist contracts that prevent automatic transfer of those rights to a third party
So even if Mavin sold shares, they can’t sell Ayra’s rights without her permission
🔹 5. What’s the Difference Between Company Shares and Artist Rights?
This is where many people get confused and it’s important to break it down.
When you hear that someone owns shares in a company like Mavin, it means they have a stake in the business itself. That includes the office, staff, brand name, partnerships, and any profit the company makes. It’s like being a part-owner of a restaurant, you share in the income and decisions, but you don’t personally own the chefs or every dish they cook.
Now, artist rights are completely different. These rights are tied to the music contract and it has different layers,
For example, Ayra Starr’s rights involve things like:
Who owns her master recordings (the actual audio files of her songs)
Who controls her publishing (the lyrics and composition)
Who manages her live shows, branding, and endorsements
All of this is controlled by contracts between her and her label (Mavin), her publisher, and now Roc Nation for international management. These rights are not something investors or shareholders automatically get by investing in a label, they’re defined by legal agreements, and artists must agree to them.
So, owning shares in Mavin (like Don Jazzy, Tega, or Universal) gives you a piece of the company and not a piece of the artist herself.
Even if Don Jazzy owns 10% or 30% of Mavin today, that doesn’t mean he owns that same percentage of Ayra Starr. He earns from the company’s profits, which may include her success, but he doesn’t personally own her music or her career.
In short:
Company shares are about owning part of the label.
Artist rights are about owning or managing part of the music and brand.
And one does not automatically equal the other.
✅ Final Word: Read Beyond the Headline
Don Jazzy, Tega and others are shareholders in Mavin, now partly owned by Universal.
Mavin still runs independently, just like Atlantic under Warner.
Ayra Starr is still signed to Mavin, and her Roc Nation deal is for international growth and not a label switch.
Universal owns part of the label, not the artist.
Owning a Record Label company ≠ owning an artist's rights.
> 🎯 In music, structure matters just as much as sound.
Don’t fall for viral headlines that ignore how contracts, publishing, and rights actually work.
💬 What Do You Think?
Is Ayra Starr about to overtake Tyla as Africa’s biggest female music export?
Or is Tyla still ahead in the global game?
Drop your thoughts in the comments👇🏽
