I wish attention for AOTY was extended to the other nominees – Stonebwoy

Renowned Ghanaian Reggae/Dancehall Artiste and reigning TGMA Artiste of the Year (AOTY), Livingston Satekla, professionally known as Stonewbwoy has responded to the ongoing debate surrounding the prestigious award.

In an exclusive interview with Berla Mundi on TV3, Stonebwoy revealed that he was unaware of the debate on social media until a week before the just-ended event.

As a nine-time Reggae Dancehall Artiste of the Year, the celebrated musician expressed his desire for the attention to be evenly distributed among all the nominees in the category. He believes that focusing solely on himself and King Promise created the perception that the other nominees had not put in as much effort during the year.

“I felt that if the attention was extended to the other five or six nominees, then it would truly reflect the reality. By limiting it to just two artistes, it undermines the hard work of all the nominees,” he said

The ‘Monadzi’ hitmaker further emphasized that it should not be up to the fans to determine the top two contenders for the Artiste of the Year award. He believes that the fans should support and promote the works of the artistes during the year under review, but the final decision should be based on the criteria set by the Ghana Music Awards.

Stonewbwoy also expressed his concern that the fans’ actions could lead to resentment and unhealthy competition among the artistes. He then urged for a fair and unbiased selection process.

“Why I say that is that that is not for the fans to determine. The fans are only supposed to propel, propagate, project the works of the artiste under the year of review and then vote that is what I think they determine,” he added.

At the just-ended Telecel Ghana Music Awards, Stonebwoy received 13 nominations and won 6 awards, including the Reggae Dancehall Artiste, Album of the year and the Artiste of the Year awards.