Somethign Smells Fishy!
The 16th edition of the Metro FM Music Awards saw local rapper Nasty C bag four awards while Amanda Black walked away with two gongs. Held at the Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre (ICC) in Durban on Saturday, the event also sparked controversy with some artists and politicians questioning the authenticity of the winners.
The awards were dominated by artists signed to Mabala Noise, a record label owned by ANC Youth League national treasurer Reggie Nkabinde and DJ Bongz. Metro FM, in turn, is owned by state broadcaster the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) and there is speculation that political ties are behind Mabala Noise’s success at the awards. Nkabinde is also on record throwing his weight behind former SABC chief operating officer Hlaudi Motsoeneng’s 90% local music quota.
SA media is reporting rumours that the record label also paid 10 million rand ($770 000) to Metro FM so its artists could dominate the awards. Besides Nasty C, other artists signed to Mabala who won awards on Saturday include Riky Rick (Best Hit Single), L’vovo (Best Kwaito Single), Kelly Khumalo (Best Female Album), Du Boiz (Best Music Video) and Musa Sukwene (Best African Pop Album)
Nasty C won in the Best Hit Single, Best Male, Best Hip Hop and Song of the Year categories. Afro-soul songstress Amanda Black, who led the list of nominees with five nominations, won the Listener’s Choice Award and Best R&B Single. Babes Wodumo, who together with Nasty C was in second place with four nominations each, left the ceremony without a statuette.
Riky Rick sparked the controversy when he used his acceptance speech as a platform to criticise the awards, saying viewers were aware that the awards were rigged.
“I thought I would be more excited to get this. If you know my raps, you know what I’m talking about,” he said on stage. “Shout out to all the kids that never get on radio, that can’t get their song played on radio because they don’t have enough money. Shout out to all the kids who put out music videos that never get their music videos played on TV because they don’t have the money.”
And as if to directly contradict Nkabinde’s praise for Motsoeneng’s local music quota, Rick said, “Ninety percent of the sh*t I hear on radio is garbage.” He then implored young musicians to bypass radio stations and make their songs popular on the internet.
Other well-known artists added their voices with Black Coffee writing on Twitter, “I guess we’ve been quiet for too long, respects to @rikyrickworld for speaking the truth. This is definitely not helping the culture. Most artists before us died poor, we are trying to fix our industry. Help us instead.”
Khuli Chana also showed support for Rick’s sentiments. “Thank you 2 the fans 4 SH*TT*N on the industry 4 what happened at the MMA’s, I’ll keep raising the BAR until u Put Flowers on me,” he wrote on Twitter. The rapper was nominated in the Best Music Video category for his single ‘One Source’ but lost to Mabala Noise artist Du Boiz.
Controversial politician and Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema added his voice on Twitter saying that the Metros were not the right platform to honour legendary musicians.
“We love Caiphus Semenya & Letta Mbulu, we need a proper event to honor them. Not this Mom Rubby’s shebben called #MMA16 [sic] corrupted by Mabala noise,” he wrote.
EFF spokesperson Mbuyiseni Ndlozi also condemned the Metros. “So in short Riky Rick is saying he got the award because Mabala Noise’s money gave to him,” he wrote on Twitter.
In what appears to be a response to the EFF, South African Minister of Sport Fikile Mbalula wrote on Twitter, “I hate it when people play politics over music industry awards. We ANC we don’t own record labels our members own record labels.”
