Feature: The Ghana Music Awards and the despondency syndrome

I should as well touch on the Vodafone Ghana Music Awards (VGMAs) this week. They say you strike the iron while it is hot. As hot as emotions are, with hiplife artiste Guru, reportedly withdrawing from the awards a day after being nominated, others are livid over one issue or the other.

These are not new; and they won’t be the last, so far as the awards remain, and competition is involved. For me, I may have my own issues, but having read and heard a lot after the nominations were released last Friday, I thought I better shelve my concern, lest it becomes a “much ado about nothing,” however, a post I made gave me a lot of feedback with mixed concerns.

I had made a case for gospel artiste Joe mettle winning the topmost award, Artiste of the Year this year. I had previously written about why the artiste needed to be appreciated for his hard work, and I had stated that what Joe Mettle does, is no less than some of the previous winners of the award. I am however mindful of the fact that in competitions, only one person can win, and rightly so.

Joe Mettle hasn’t been new to the awards. Last year, he was touted the best performer at the events. He was lauded, though some said for a gospel artiste to perform so well, was normal, because it was something they always did in the churches. But these same people have always had problems with gospel artistes on the VGMAs stage: that they never put up anything sterling worth remembering.

I am not of the school of thought that believes that a gospel artiste must be compensated with the Artiste of the Year because in the eighteen year history of the awards, a gospel artiste is yet to win. In the year in consideration, I believe Joe Mettle had done more than enough to win the coveted award. When I posted it on my Facebook page, I was surprised many secular people agreed with me. I am not sure of their reason. I sense for some of them, they see Joe Mettle as a “compromised candidate” because they couldn’t pinpoint a secular artiste who had done anything extraordinary in the year. Others said the artiste lack had been underestimated for far too long.

For some Christians and gospel music lovers, they believed Joe Mettle more than deserved, but were certain he wouldn’t win. Reason? They say the award scheme is not fair, and hasn’t been fair to truly hardworking artistes and gospel musicians as a whole. One fan admonished the Christian folk not to waste their money to vote for Joe Mettle, but should send those monies to him directly to help strengthen his ministry. That is the level of despondency among the lovers of gospel music who follow the VGMAs. I am not too sure it is ripple from the alleged bribery allegations against gospel artistes, one that caused the withdrawal of gospel artiste OJ from the awards.

I also don’t believe that the allegation that VGMA is schemed to “kill” gospel music, especially when the Gospel Album of the Year category was scrapped last year, has any truth in it. Neither do I believe that certain public utterances by some industry stalwarts and certain board members that there is no genre called “gospel,” hold true, nor does it reflect the thinking of the VGMA Board.

Whether we like it or not, gospel music is big in this country. There are very popular gospel artistes in this country that we have refused to pay attention to. I was sad when presumed followers of gospel music claimed they didn’t know Gospel Artiste of the Year nominee Jeshurun Okyere, nor had heard of his “Healing Stream” song, which features Nigerian worship singer and VGMA African Artiste of the Year nominee, Nathaniel Bassey.

It is gratifying Nathaniel Bassey was nominated in that category. He more than deserves it. And I can say on authority that none of the other nominees has performed more than he has in Ghana and in the year under consideration and with that much audience appeal. I am hopeful there is a bright future for gospel music as far as the awards are concerned, despite the despondency. Joe Mettle will make history this year. As we know, it takes more than popular votes to win a category. If the Board and the Academy truly believes an artiste deserves to win, c’est tout!

The scheme has become part of us, and awards help inspire people to do more. The greater reward for the gospel music ministry is in heaven, granted, but the ministers are on earth to win souls, so those who choose to do it with their talents must be supported.

The day is coming when gospel music will flood the nominations because “the world” would have recognized the talents in there. By that time, our selective exposure syndrome would have swayed beyond what we call traditional gospel, into the urban/contemporary setting, where the likes of AkesseBrempong, Trinity Cross, Kingzkid, Becky Bonney, Stevein Oil, EugeneZuta, Malonzy, Preachers, Nii John, Perez Musik, among others would be leading the pack of what we call good music.