Season 9
The Metro FM Awards (MMAs) is an annual South African music awards ceremony hosted by radio station Metro FM which honours local artists who've contributed significantly to the local music industry in the preceding year.
The awards were established in 2000 and are broadcast annually as a TV special on SABC1.
The 9th Annual Metro FM Awards were held at the Heartfelt Arena in Tshwane on 29 November, 2008. They were hosted by Metro FM DJ Tbo Touch and Live presenter Bonang Matheba.
The 9th Annual Metro FM Awards aired on SABC1 on Friday 5 December 2008, at 22h00. The special was an hour long.
2008 MMAs
2 by 2, the killer track by Rhythmic Elements that has been burning up dancefloors nationwide, was crowned Song of the Year at the 9th annual Metro FM Music Awards (MMAs) on Saturday 29 November, 2008.
The who's who of the entertainment industry turned out in full force on the black carpet – a nod to Metro FM's corporate colours – at the Heartfelt Arena in Tshwane on 29 November 2008, for an event that celebrated fresh new talent while paying homage to South African music icons.
Rhythmic Elements ruled the roost on the night, nailing down the top award as well as winning the Best Dance Album category for My Rhythm. However, they were the only outfit to clinch two trophies, with the remainder of the evening's spoils being dished out evenly among the other nominees.
While Rhythmic Elements beat Jaziel Brothers to Song of the Year bragging rights, the soulful siblings turned the tables by securing Best Newcomer honours over Rhythmic Elements and Mimi. The sublime songstress, in turn, walked away with the prize for Best Jazz Album, for Essence of My Soul.
Honours in the newly-introduced Hit Single of the Year category went to Umsindo by Slikour, who was among the performers at the awards. Zuluboy, who also set the stage alight, triumphed in the closely contested Best Hip-Hop category, while Big Nuz's 2nd Round Knockout delivered the winning punch to be named Best Kwaito Album.
Teargas fumigated their way to the Best Group of the Year title, while Bantu Soul and Unathi Nkayi were adjudged Best Male and Best Female artists respectively.
BJ Benjamin's Swimming in the Soul of Music was voted Best R&B Album, with AfroSoul's UmAfrica taking home the laurels for Best African Pop. Winnie Mashaba was victorious in the Best Gospel category.
DJ Terrance's Music Box came up trumps in the Best Compilation Album category, with King Kwela by Kwela Tebza and MXO walking the Best Collaboration category. Nikki's Evolution was named Best Produced Album.
As usual, speculation was rife as to who would be named the year's most fashionable musician, and it was chic KB who crushed competition from Stoan and Unathi Nkayi to be voted Best Styled Artist of 2008.
While honouring the hottest music acts of the moment, the MMAs were also an occasion for nostalgia and reflection. Chicco Twala caused a sensation by performing live for the first time in 14 years, and TKZee and KB's former band Crowded Crew also wowed the crowd with knockout reunion performances.
Judith Sephuma, Mimi and Kelly Khumalo brought the house down by performing a moving tribute to the late Miriam Makeba.
Mama Africa's fellow music legends Letta Mbulu and Caiphus Semenya were honoured on the night with special awards, in recognition of their sterling contribution to the country's music heritage.
2008 Winners
Song Of The Year
Rhythmic Elements
Artist: 2 by 2
Hit Single of the Year
Slikour
Artist: Umsindo
Best Styled Artist
KB for My Rhythm
Best R&B Album
BJ Benjamin for Swimming in the Soul of Music
Best Produced Album
Nikki for Evolution
Best Newcomer
Jaziel Brothers for The Beginnings
Best Male Vocalist
Bantu Soul for Bantu Soul
Best Kwaito Album
Big Nuz for 2nd Round Knockout
Best Jazz Album
Mimi for Essence of My Soul
Best Hip-Hop Album
Zuluboy for Inqolobane
Best Group Album
Teargas for Wafa wafa
Best Gospel Album
Winnie Mashaba for Ke rata wena
Best Female Vocalist
Unathi Nkayi for In Honour
Best Dance Album
Rhythmic Elements for My Rhythm
Best Compilation Album
DJ Terrance for Music Box
Best Collaboration Album
Kwela Tebza & MXO for King Kwela
Best African Pop Album
AfroSoul for Umafrica
About the MMAs
The Metro FM Music Awards are a special honour given to local artists who've contributed significantly to the local music industry. The artists recognised in 2008 had to have released their albums between September 23, 2007 and September 22, 2008.
Recording companies and artists are requested to send in release dates for their artists' albums and those dates must fall within the window period specified, to qualify for the MMA. An independent panel of judges then places these submissions within the 17 categories.
It is after this process that each panel members casts his/her vote, which they then hand over to an SABC Group Internal Audit representative at the voting session.
There is only one person from Metro FM who sits on the panel of 7 judges. The other panelists comprise of music industry experts and credible journalists.
It is after this process that a nomination list of five artists per category is released to the public, to vote for their favourite artists via sms. The top three artists with the most votes are then announced as finalists.
The public is again informed of this and they then vote for the top artists who will walk away with the coveted MMA in each category.
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