Blacko: A hot pick for VGMA Artiste of the Year

THE music world holds its breath in anticipation as the rising star of Ghana music looks set for his crowning moment on Saturday night as the favourite for the most coveted prize in Ghanaian music— Vodafone Ghana Music Awards (VGMA) Artiste of the Year.

All eyes will be on Black Sherif aka Blacko, the youngest nominee for the most highly sought-after award at the upcoming VGMA, as he competes with seven other heavyweights such as Piesie Esther, Stonebwoy, Sarkodie, Camidoh, KiDi, Joe Mettle and King Promise.

For the second year running, the 21-year-old rapper is vying for the topmost award at the VGMA, earning a place in the pantheon of Ghanaian music giants.

Despite being relatively new on the scene, Blacko has developed a distinctive style and versatility that has paved way for him to work with music heavyweights such as Burna Boy, Popcaan and Sarkodie and continues to break barriers on a global scale.

Blacko’s meteoric rise is rooted in his signature sound and powerful delivery which has made him one of the most exciting artistes to emerge in the last three years.

His music blends elements of Hip Hop, Afrobeats and Highlife, creating a distinct fusion that has captivated global audiences to his hit song ‘Kweku the Traveller’ being featured during the 2022 NBA All-Star game in Dallas, USA.

 Best bets

Although there are a number of nominees who could subtly make progress, buzz suggests that Black Sherif and possibly Gospel artiste Piesie Esther will be the front-runners for the category.

Both nominees made significant progress with the songs submitted for nomination, without a doubt and fall within the spelt-out criteria for winning the ultimate prize.

The Artiste of the Year award is the highest and most prestigious of the awards given to artiste(s) adjudged by CharterHouse, the VGMA board and the general public as having the highest audience appeal, radio play, online streaming and popularity.

Piesie Esther's Waye Me Yie created unimaginable excitement, racked up a staggering 3.4 million YouTube views and made entry on Boomplay Top 100 Africa chart.

To heighten the hype surrounding the release of her song, she appeared on a number of shows and staged her own concert, which became the talk of the town.

On the other side, Blacko’s Kwaku the Traveler outperformed the number of views with a whopping 18 million views on YouTube.

While both competitors had impressive streaming numbers, Blacko had the advantage due to his international success, which led to numerous international collaborations.

It appeared as though the ‘Blacko effect’ was so prevalent that even his ‘seniors’ in the game seized the opportunity to do collabos with him.

He was the first musician from Ghana to join Boomplay's Golden Club for the year under review and he also received a BET nomination.

Black Sherif similarly pounced on the opportunity to release mega tunes such as Soja and Oh Paradise, which became favourite tunes around the world.

His album, The Villain I Never Was surpassed over 72 million streams on Audiomack barely 24 hours after release, making him the only Ghanaian artiste to record such a high number within the stated time on an online streaming platform.

Hot pick

Some established acts believe that given the effort he put forth for the year under review, it is safe to say he is the best and most popular choice for the Artiste of the Year.

In a recent interview with Graphic Showbiz, Highlife singer Kofina Kinaata, expressed his optimism that Blacko will win the Artiste of the Year award.

Despite competing against industry heavyweights who had given their all for the year under review, he observed Blacko had ultimately exceeded expectations in the short time he had been a part of the music industry.

"All of the nominees have done their part and met expectations but Blacko has clearly exceeded expectations, so it would not be out of place for him to win the Artiste of Year award."

Reggae/Dancehall musician, Ras Kuuku also endorsed Blacko for the most coveted prize. In a recent interview on TV3’s New Day, he said, “Let me tell you that Black Sherif is winning the VGMA Artiste of the Year because he worked hard.”