Azerbaijan’s Copyright Agency to protest Googoosh

Azerbaijan’s Copyright Agency commented on introducing Azerbaijani song “Gedek uzu kuleye” by Iranian singer Googoosh as an Armenian song. Head of the agency’s legal department Khudayat Hasanli told APA the Iranian singer of Azerbaijani ancestry Googoosh sang the song “Gedek uzu kuleye” in Armenian language.

The song was posted on YouTube. “This song was composed by Azerbaijani composer Elza Ibrahimova and lyrics were written by Azerbaijani poet Aliagha Kurchayli. It was a popular song from Azerbaijani popular singer Shovkat Alekperova’s repertoire. It was performed by another popular singer of Azerbaijan Gulagha Mammadov too. The question is that if you sing this song in another language, you have to show its authors and which culture it belongs. Unfortunately, while performing this song, Googoosh didn’t inform that this song was composed by Azerbaijanis. This is a violation of copyright law”.

Hasanli said if the work is translated, it should be authorized by its authors. “In this case, this principle was also violated. Googoosh doesn’t live in Iran. All countries, except Iran, joined the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works. The convention should be seriously observed in the territory of these countries. Now we are specifying the singer’s contacts. While performing this song, Googoosh violated this principle of the international convention too. We, as the governmental organization, are strongly condemning this action. Copyright of the two authors were violated. We will send letters of protest to administrations of YouTube and other sites spreading this song, which was performed in 2010 and spread only now. We are identifying now where Googoosh performed this song for the first time. When we identify her address we will send a letter of protest to her too.


/APA/