This is why Fameye owes VGMA organisers a big apology

NOTHING I Get, singer, Fameye, believes Ghanaian musicians, including himself, have not been fair to Charterhouse, organisers of Ghana Music Awards (GMA), over the years and must render an apology to them.

Fameye said some VGMA award recipients had not placed any value on the music honours just because it was not an international awards scheme like BET or the Grammys.

Undoubtedly, the biggest music awards scheme in the country, the Ghana Music Awards, popularly known as VGMAs, has for over two decades honoured musicians and players in the Ghanaian music industry annually.

In recent years, cravings for international recognition and, most importantly, the need to win international awards, particularly the Grammys, to perhaps validate their influence and prominence among competitors, has seen some musicians downplay the value of VGMAs.

However, speaking in a recent interview with Graphic Showbiz, the 2020 VGMA New Artiste of the Year called on his colleagues to apologise to Charterhouse for not placing much value on the awards.

“There’s always the tendency to favour foreign products over local ones and that has translated into the condemnation of the VGMAs in recent years.

“It’s as if it is not worth winning the VGMA anymore and that until you grab a BET or Grammy, you are not a big or talented artiste enough. I have been there before, there was a time I badly wanted to win a BET award but what’s the point, if you are not duly honoured in your home.

“While winning international awards would bring me joy, I'd be even happier to win accolades such as Songwriter of the Year, Record of the Year, or Artiste of the Year at the Ghana Music Awards. It's important for us to start supporting and valuing ours more. And that is why I apologise to my fans and to Charterhouse for not placing much significance on VGMAs.

“The Ghana Music Awards is undoubtedly the premier award scheme in our music industry. Despite almost overlooking their significance in my earlier years, I now hold them in higher esteem than any other awards scheme,” he said. (Related article: Fameye: I visited pastors for spiritual handkerchiefs and oil for music success)

The Ghana Music Awards, organised by Charterhouse, has faced lots of criticisms for many years with some musicians even rubbishing its impact.