“I don’t know why everyone is bad mouthing. Things can be done in private.”

Gustavo Guerra, the A&R accused by Kelela and AraabMuzik of leaking two-year-old collaboration ‘Final Hour’, has responded to claims from the pair he leaked the track without their consent.

Speaking to Pitchfork, Guerra – who works for Distrolord, the marketing and distribution team that represents AraabMuzik – said that the project was “well-documented” in management emails, texts, press releases, and bank statements.

According to Guerra, the collaboration came about after Guerra met Kelela at a CMJ showcase, though he claims the track was finished: “The song was done,” Guerra told Pitchfork in a statement made over the phone. “She asked me to send her Araab’s stems so she could mix it. I said, ‘I’m getting it done. We’re gonna get this song done.'”

‘Final Hour’ was sent out by Guerra on October 23 and uploaded to YouTube, claiming that the track was taken from AraabMuzik’s long-delayed second album Dream World. Kelela was quick to distance herself from the track, claiming it was an unfinished demo and was unaware it would ever feature on the album.

On October 25, AraabMuzik’s team issued a press release stating that he had nothing to do with the release of ‘Final Hour’, saying: “This song was released by someone affiliated with his previous management without our consent or knowledge. We would like to apologize for the confusion and set the record straight.”

According to the press release, AraabMuzik will be giving new music away to make up for the delay of Dream World, which “will now have a release date of January 29th under new management.” The first single, ‘King’, will be released on November 6 with two free EPs to follow on December 4. “We are working diligently on rectifying the problem and again apologize for any confusion this may have caused. AraabMuzik and staff wish Kelela nothing but chart topping success,” it concludes.

Guerra told Pitchfork that he was confused at AraabMuzik’s reaction, saying: “Maybe he woke up to see some angry tweets at him and he reacted. AraabMuzik’s my brother at the end of the day.”

Guerra also claimed that he hadn’t received any communication from Kelela or AraabMuzik on the matter, and wondered why Kelela hadn’t contacted him when the a press release announcing her involvement was sent out in April. “I don’t know why everyone is bad mouthing,” he said. “Things can be done in private.”

Not counting the unauthorised release of ‘Final Hour’, Kelela’s most recent record was Hallucinogen on Warp Records.