The media should give attention to all nominees in the Artiste of the Year category instead of narrowing it down to just two – Stonebwoy
Stonebwoy has decried the behaviour of mainstream media to relegate the VGMA Artiste of the Year nomination to just two contenders every year when the list is announced.
The ‘Apoktheke’ singer called upon the media to expand its coverage of the Artiste of the Year category in order to foster a more inclusive environment.
“When Artiste of the Year comes most often the conversation is narrowed to two people but as the media I think we can leave the narrowing to the fans,” he said
The Artist of the Year category holds immense importance in Ghana’s music industry, representing the pinnacle of recognition for an artist’s exceptional contributions.
Stonebwoy in expressing his belief tasked the media to broaden its coverage and maintain its neutrality due to the important role it played in shaping public discourse and thoughts.
“This what I believe that media is a very powerful tool and powerful institution that they should actually spread some attention in reviewing everyone in the category not just tailoring it to two people in the category because they are not the only two nominated,” he explained
He further went on to explain that the spotlight on the nominees becomes crucial for media outlets to showcase the diverse talents and achievements of all artists vying for the esteemed title even after the awards.
“Guess what that does, the fact they’ve been nominated actually tells the masses that Person A or B also did this and it doesn’t stop there after the awards everyone will get to know by the medium the media shared and remember what the others did and it stays on in their minds,”
Stonebwoy’s message comes at a time when the advocacy for Artiste of The Year is narrowed down to just two of the frontrunners as was seen in the just-ended VGMA between Piesie Esther and Black Sherif leaving the likes of Sarkodie, King Promise, Kidi, Stonebwoy, Camidoh and Joe Mettle grappling with less or no media coverage.
