VGMA: Who wins what?
IT is that time of the year again when I make predictions about who is likely to win what at the Vodafone Ghana Music Awards.
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It has been a tradition for a while now and although I hit the jackpot most often, there have been a few times when my predictions have been off base, but I keep trying.
I will touch on almost all awards categories and I will not separate the industry awards from the main awards this time around.
The topmost award at the VGMA is the Artiste of the Year and those vying for it this year are Castro, Kwabena Kwabena, Sonnie Badu, Shatta Wale, Sarkodie, Samini and Guru.
This is a very tough cast and naming one should be as difficult as it comes, but I will whittle it down to Shatta Wale, Castro, Sarkodie and Samini.
I have said on many other platforms even before the nominations were released that I think for the work he did last year, Shatta Wale deserves most to be the winner of this category. He was the most popular artiste at all the major shows and he excited the crowd the most.
However, should any of the other three win it, I won’t be surprised and not bothered at all.
Remember this category comes with 40per cent public vote weighting, 30per cent academy vote weighting and 30per cent Board vote weighting respectively.
Ten songs are vying for the Vodafone Song of the Year (which is the one 100per cent public voting category) and all of them come very strong and could win it. Adult Music (Kwabena Kwabena ft Samini), Odo Pa (Castro ft Kofi Kinaata & Baby Jet), Slow Down (R2bees ft Wizkid), Dancehall King (Shatta Wale), Metanfo (Bisa KDei), Tonga (Joey B ft Sarkodie), Ma Ye Se Mo Pen (OJ), Boys Abre (Guru), Down On One (Sarkodie ft Fuse ODG) and Million Pound Girl (Fuse ODG).
Obviously, the board had a hard time trying to cut this down to five and so they left the work to the public to do and I should say this is a helluva lot of work and as much as I have my favourite in Million Pound Girl and wish it to win I think the most likely contenders are Dancehall King, Odo Pa, Boys Abre and Tonga.
Again, I stick my neck out for Shatta Wale’s Dancehall King to win because he lived the song and brought it along with him to all the shows, both big and small, and the airwaves could not have enough of it.
Others can argue that so was Guru’s Boys Abre, but the differentiating factor was that Wale’s personality was stronger and it carried his song farther, in my arrogant opinion. So won’t be surprised if Guru bags it too.
With the two major ones gone, let’s look at the other categories starting with Highlife Song of the Year and the nominees are Adult Music (Kwabena Kwabena ft Samini), Odo Pa (Castro ft Kofi Kinaata & Baby Jet), Love (R2bees), Metanfo (Bisa K Dei) and Break Into 2 (Kumi Guitar).
This is a straight fight between Adult Music and Odo Pa and I thought both deserve to win. I will stick my neck out for Castro and his posse of Baby Jet and Kofi Kinaata to win this for the amazing work they did with this joint.
Hiplife Song of the Year nominees are Tonga (Joey B ft Sarkodie), Boys Abre (Guru), Down On One (Sarkodie ft Fuse ODG), 3 Points (Gasmilla), Anadwo Ye De (4x4).
First of all I don’t think Joey B’s Tonga is Hiplife and therefore shouldn’t be here. It’s Hiphop in all manifestations. Secondly, I don’t think Anadwo Ye De did enough to be nominated hence shouldn’t be here too.
That said, I think Guru with his Boys Abre did enough in the year being reviewed to carry home this award.
Although I can bet that as wrong as its nomination in this category is, Tonga might just beat it to the award and so could Down On One.
Gospel Song of the Year nominees are Osoree Nnwom (Cecilia Marfo), Mahar-Shalal-Hash-baz (Nicholas Omane-Acheampong), Wonder God (Sonnie Badu), Maye Se Mo Pen (OJ), Nyame Egwamaa (Joyce Blessing ft Jewel Ackah) and Menwu (Patience Nyarko).
Apart from coping with his weird haircut, we also have to keep up with pronouncing his terrible song titles every year and Nicholas Omane-Acheampong seems to have the joke on us all the time.
That said, I think Joyce Blessing’s Nyame Egwamaa, although not her strongest song and it brought her accusations of plagiarism, I think it will nick it ahead of Maye Se Mo Pen by Oware Junior.
Hiphop Song of the Year nominees are See Me Suffer (EL ft Little Shaker), Lies (Sarkodie ft Lil Shaker), Someway Bi (M.anifest), Marilyn Monroe (Dee Money ft Fuse ODG) and Me Wo Dollar (Kwaw Kesse ft EL). This is where Tonga should have been and I stick my neck out for M.anifest and his Someway Bi to bag this one.
Reggae/Dancehall Song of the Year last year saw some reggae artistes led by Blakk Rasta complain about the lumping of these two song types together into one category arguing, amongst others, that it stifles the growth of reggae.
Well, the Board brought it back and the nominees are Freaky Girl (Jupiter), Pull Up (Stonebwoy), Hot Cake (Pope Skinny ft Shatta Wale), Dancehall King (Shatta Wale), Fever (D2 ft Shatta Wale) and Scatter Badmind (Samini). Once again, this is Shatta Wale’s award and I will be surprised if he doesn’t win this one too.
Afro Pop Song of the Year has as nominees Latex (Edem ft Kaakie), Million Pound Girl (Fuse ODG), Dance (Tifanny), Slow Down (R2bees ft Wizkid), Dance for Me (Ruff and Smooth) and Scream (Eazzy).
This is a straight fight between Fuse ODG and R2bees and I wish that my favourite Million Pound Girl takes it home.
Best Collaboration of the Year is a very hot area with strong nominees like Adult Music (Kwabena Kwabena ft Samini), Odo Pa (Castro ft Kofi Kinaata & Baby Jet), Slow Down (R2bees ft Wizkid), Hot Cake (Poe Skinny ft Shatta Wale), Tonga (Joey B ft Sarkodie), Azonto Boys (Guru ft Lil Win), Down On One (Sarkodie ft Fuse ODG) and Nyame Egwamaa (Joyce Blessing ft Jewel Ackah).
Missing in this category is No Shortcut to Heaven (M.anifest ft Obrafuor), this is still a very tough one to predict but once again, I will stick my neck out for Odo Pa (Castro ft Kofi Kinaata & Baby Jet) to win this one ahead of Tonga, Adult Music and Slow Down.
Now let me turn my attention to the artiste categories. Hiplife/Hiphop Artiste of the Year has as nominees Sarkodie, Eazzy, R2bees, Guru, M.anifest, EL and Joey B and I won’t bat an eyelid or even think twice to say this is a Sarkodie award. I will be surprised, very surprised, if it goes to any of the other nominees.
Nominees for Highlife Artiste of the Year are Bisa KDei, Kwabena Kwabena and Castro. Obviously KDei, as they say in Akan, came along to see the other two nominees off. I will stick my neck out for Castro because as good as Kwabena Kwabena was, Castro has a tremendously successful year and it seems to me he deserves this more.
The nominees for the Gospel Artiste of the Year are Sonnie Badu, Nicholas Omane-Acheampong, OJ, Joyce Blessing and Patience Nyarko and I tip Sonnie Badu to take this award away to his home in the United Kingdom.
One of the most controversial categories this year has been the New Artiste of the Year with only three nominees in Kumi Guitar, Joey B and Akwaboah. I really don’t care which of these three ‘new artistes’ wins because the person who in my arrogant opinion should have won is Noella Wiyaala and she was not even nominated.
The nominees for Best Rapper of the Year are Sarkodie (Rap Attack), Trimatic (Wo Sika Nti), M.anifest (Someway Bi), EL (See ME Suffer) and Guru (Let Me Love You). I will limit it to a two horse race between Sarkodie and M.anifest but at the end give it to M.anifest for his great rap on that song. Amazing!
I will choose R2bees over 4x4, Ruff and Smooth and D2 for Best Group of the Year award.
The duo deserves it more than the others, in my view.
None of the Nigerian quintet of P-Square, Davido, KCee, Wizkid and Flavour can compare to Mafikizolo over the year being reviewed and I believe the former deserves the award for African Artiste of the Year. But stranger things have happened so I won’t be balled over if it goes otherwise.
Now let’s do those categories that we left solely to the Board and the Academy. Nominees for Album of the Year are Sarkology (Sarkodie), Heavy Price (Joyce Blessing), Aroma of Worship (Sonnie Badu), Thanks Giving (Bisa K Dei), Apae (M.anifest) and Boys Abre (Guru). Once again, a two horse race between Sarkology and Apae for me and I won’t be bothered about which of the two wins.
Gospel Album of the Year (the only individual genre album category) nominees are Heavy Price (Joyce Blessing), Aroma of Worship (Sonnie Badu), Nokwasem (OJ), Maher-Shalal-Hash-baz (Nicholas Omane-Acheampong) and Makasa Ama Awaurade (Patience Nyarko). Either Heavy Price or Aroma of Worship will carry this one.
I will give Male Vocal Performance of the Year to Knii Lante (Baby Take Good Care) ahead of OJ (Ma Ye Se Mo Pen), Sonnie Badu (Wonder God), Kwabena Kwabena (Engyame Ho) and Castro (Odo Pa).
I will also give Best Female Vocal Performance to Joyce Blessing (Nyame Egwamaa) ahead of Efya (Life), Miriam Afari (Ashesi Nyame) and Gena West (No Power Against Me).
Song Writer of the Year in my view should be OJ (Ma Ye Se Mo Pen) ahead of Trigmatic (Wo Sika Nti), Kwabena Kwabena (Engyame Ho), Knii Lante (Baby Take Good Care) and Bisa KDei (Baba).
Knii Lante’s Baby Take Good Care should win Record of the Year ahead of Trigmatic (Wo Sika Nti), Tse Ataa or Josh Laryea (Kane), Afriyie (Everlasting Love) and Akwaboah (I Do Love You).
Producer of the Year in my view should be Kill Beatz ahead of Kaywa, Shatta Wale, Nacy, Guru, DJ Breezy and Bisa K Dei.
Finally, I will strip naked on the streets of Accra if Knii Lante’s video to the song Baby Take Good Care doesn’t win the Best Music Video Award. I mean this video was done with all the best things you can do with a music video and it beats all others like Shatta Wale’s Like My Thing, Sarkodie ft Banky W’s Pon Da Thing, Trigmatic’s Wo Sika Nti and Castro’s Odo Pa. I mean all of the other videos are good but that of Knii Lante is an ace!
So there you have my own view of who should win what and after three months or so of bickering over nominations, calling for the head of some of the members of the Board, stating our views and opinions of what ought to be, here we are at the brink of another Ghana Music Awards events.
There will be winners, there will be losers, there will be post event effusions and there then there will be calm until the next nominations are out. See you around!