By Simon Asare
Accra, March 29, GNA – The nominations for the 25th Telecel Ghana Music Awards (TGMA) were announced yesterday, with multiple-award-winning artiste Stonebwoy receiving eleven nominations.
Stonebwoy’s nominations, the highest on the night, are the coveted Artiste of the Year, Songwriter of the Year, Best Reggae/Dancehall Artiste, Record of the Year (Manodzi), and Album/EP of the Year (5th Dimension).
The rest are the Most Popular Song (Into the Future), International Collaboration of the Year (Manodzi ft. Angelique Kidjo), Best Reggae Song (Non-Stop), Best Music Video (Manodzi), Best Afropop Song (Into the Future), and Best Highlife Song (Manodzi).
Award-winning rapper Sarkodie also secured a ninth nomination for the Artiste of the Year, which he has won two times (2010 and 2012) and hoping to win it for a record three times.
Other nominations received by arguably the most decorated Ghanaian artiste of all time include International Collaboration of the Year (Till We Die ft. Ruger), Best Rap Performance (Otan), and Most Popular Song (Otan).
King Promise, who had a stellar 2023, also received five nominations – Artiste of the Year, Most Popular Song, Best Afrobeat/Afropop Artiste, Best Afropop Song, and International Collaboration of the Year.
The “Terminator” hitmaker looks like a firm favourite to win the Artiste of the Year category but faces stiff competition from Stonebwoy, Sarkodie, Kuami Eugene, Black Sherif, Nacee, and Kuami Eugene.
Another category that will be keenly contested will be the New Artiste of the Year, which will have the likes of King Paluta, Maya Blu, DSL, Banzy Banero, Olivetheboy, and Oseikrom Sikanii.
The year 2023 seems to be a year for new artists as they dominated the music scene with some timeless hits, but King Paluta appears as a firm favourite to win the coveted prize.
In the field of gospel, the likes of Nacee, Diana Hamilton, Joyce Blessing, Mabel Okyere, Perez Musik, Piesie Esther, Joe Mettle, and Scott Evans are in contention for Best Gospel Artiste of the Year.
The nominee announcement and 25th-anniversary launch witnessed some musical performances from the legendary Nat Brew, Piesie Esther, Celestine Donkor, Olivetheboy, Banzy Banero, Boasiako, and Fra.
The main TGMA awards gala is slated for Saturday, June 1, 2024, at the Grand Arena of the Accra International Conference Centre.
GNA