All hail Shatta Wale! Saves MTN 4Syte Music Video Awards
Ghana’s self-proclaimed “King of Dancehall music”, Shatta Wale, once again proved why many of his fans have bought into his self-acclamation when he gave another sterling performance in the wee hours of last Sunday to climax the 5th MTN 4Syte Music Video Awards.
His performance was the one audience would take home as a good climax to a terribly- produced event with many hitches and glitches. It was a good thing that the organisers put his performance at the end.
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Almost everybody in the hall, it seemed, had been waiting to see Shatta Wale mount the stage. When at 2:23am emcees Bola Ray and Jocelyn Dumas finally announced that the hottest Ghanaian artiste at the moment was about to perform, the auditorium erupted with joy.
Young men and women were seen running around the auditorium in excitement, some making their way to the front and others trying to get past the hugely- built orderlies to mount the stage. It was a sight to behold.
At some point of the show, way before it would get to the turn of Shatta Wale to perform, Bola Ray asked the audience if they wanted to see Shatta Wale perform and almost everyone in the hall responded with a resounding “Yeeeeeeeees.”
On a night that had some of the best Ghanaian artistes such as Sarkodie, Kwabena Kwabena, Samini, VIP, Tic Tac, R2Bees and Eazzy on the bill, it seemed nobody cared about any other artiste and that the act most people wanted to see was Shatta Wale.
Kwabena Kwabena performed Adult Music, his current hit music which features Samini. They were greeted with little applause.
Immediately after they were done, some in the audience shouted “Wale” “Wale” “Wale” meaning they’d rather see a Shatta Wale performance than what they had just seen.
Even worse, whenever the MCs asked the audience about who would win an award in a particular category, most of them shouted “Shatta Wale” though there was no category in which he was nominated to receive an award on the night.
Thus the anticipation was building for his entry and when he did, it was in a grand manner. Usually at this point of the show, many people would have left, but not this time. The house was still full to the rafters with everyone waiting for Shatta Wale.
He finally arrived on stage high in a palanquin. When he got down, he took off his shirt and got into the groove. Everybody stood up while Shatta Wale delivered one song after another.
When he got to Enter The Net, the house exploded with excitement and by the time he performed his last song, Dancehall King, the excitement was even higher.
The anticipation to his appearance, his command performance and the response to his session proved that Shatta Wale is not just the hottest dancehall artiste but also the hottest Ghanaian artiste at the moment!
Sarkodie was the first act on the night and he had already performed when this reporter got into the auditorium of the Accra International Conference Centre where the show took place.
However, those I sat close to said he had a great performance too and that his and Shatta Wale’s were the best on the night.
Another decent performance was delivered by Castro the Destroyer with a wonderful choreography to back his new song featuring Asamoah Gyan and Kofi Kinaata.
Overall though, it was a night of terrible performances from some of the artistes. On most occasions, it looked as though the high-profile 4Syte Music Video Awards was a stage for artistes to test their shabby performance abilities.
A classic example was the performance by the Artistes of the Year at the Ghana Music Awards, R2Bees. As usual, their performance was way below par. It was just all over the place without any coordination or harmony and so were other performers on the night.
Regarding the organisation of the events itself, it left much to be desired. 4Syte has been organising this event for the past five years and it seems they are yet to perfect the act of producing a good quality seamless show on one night. The show started about three hours late.
There were so many technical challenges you’d think the show was produced by kindergarten kids on their Christmas vacation day.
Full list of winners
The Most Influential Artiste Award— Sarkodie
Best Directed Video Award of the Year:—Sarkodie: Illuminati
The Most Popular Video Award of the Video:—Sarkodie: Illuminati
Best Hiphop Video of the Year:—Sarkodie: Illuminati
Best Storyline Video of the Year— Jayso & Sarkodie ft Efya: I’m In Luv With Your Girlfriend
Best Male Video of the Year— Asem : Wasted
Best Female Video of the Year—Efya: Get Away
Best Hiplife Video of the Year—Ruff & Smooth: Dance For Me
Best High-life Video of the Year—Kwabena Kwabena Feat Samini: Adult Music
Best Gospel Music of the Year—Nii Okai: You Are Jesus
Best Reggae & Dancehall Video of the Year—Kaakie: Too Much
Best Group Video of the Year—R2Bees feat Wizkid: Slow Down
Best Photography Video of the Year—EL feat M’anifest: Hallelujah
Best Choreography Video of the Year—Tiffany: Dance (Neke Neke )
Best Edited Video of the Year—Okyeame Kwame feat Raquel: Woara
Best Special Effect of the Year—Edem: Over Again
Best Discovery Video of the Year—Jupita: Moneybox
Achievement Award—Hammer of Last Two
Living Legend Award—K.K.D