The management of Ghanaian musician AratheJay has formally petitioned the Board of the Telecel Ghana Music Awards (TGMA), seeking clarification over the exclusion of three of his works from the 27th edition nominations.

In a letter addressed to Charterhouse Ghana, organisers of the awards scheme, the team questioned why some of the artiste’s submissions were left out of key categories despite being duly filed through the official nominations process.

According to the petition, AratheJay’s debut album, The Odyssey, was notably excluded from the “Album/EP of the Year” category. Additionally, his song 'Put Am on God' did not make the shortlist for “Best Rap Performance,” while 'Cover Me' was also overlooked in the “Best Male Vocal Performance” category.

The management pointed out that all three works met the eligibility criteria outlined by the TGMA and were officially submitted for consideration.

In the letter, the team highlighted the performance of The Odyssey, noting that the project consistently ranked among the Top 5 albums on Apple Music Ghana since October 2025. It also reportedly secured a place among Spotify’s Top 10 most-streamed albums in Ghana for the year.

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Despite the concerns raised, the team acknowledged the nominations AratheJay received in the 27th edition. These include “Best Music Video” for Put Am on God, directed by David Duncan; “Best Reggae/Dancehall Song” for Talisman featuring Stonebwoy and “Best Hiplife Song” as a featured artiste on Ko-Jo Cue’s Tontonte.

The petition, however, emphasised that the request for clarification is limited to the categories where the team believes the artiste’s work meets both the eligibility and excellence standards set by the scheme.

“We are proud of what AratheJay built, particularly with The Odyssey in 2025. The numbers are not ours, but they belong to the public platforms that publish them independently. The criteria are not ours, but those of the TGMA and are available on their own website.

“We are simply asking the Board to explain how both sets of information were reconciled in arriving at the nominations list,” the statement read.

The management further stressed that their appeal is not driven by entitlement but by a desire for transparency, which they believe will benefit the entire music industry.



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