Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Media Excel and executive Music Producer, Kweku Ernest, has said that Piesie Esther emerging as the Artiste of the Year at the 24th Vodafone Ghana Music Awards (VGMA) is non-negotiable.
He has indicated that the W’ay3 Meyie hitmaker will “break the 3” for the gospel fraternity.
“Piesie Esther’s winning of the overall Artiste of the Year is non-negotiable because we’re breaking the three.
“Out of the 24 years of the organisation of the Ghana Music Awards, gospel artistes have won two of the top most award,” he said on Accra-based TV3.
He said that gospel singers should not be sidelined for the top award because they put in as much effort and toil into making and promoting their works as the ‘circular’ artistes.
To him, the Artiste of the Year award should be given to the most hardworking person in the industry which for him is Piesie Esther.
“Every energy and capacity you see every circular artiste pushing into the space of winning overall artiste of the Year. Every effort that this circular community people imply in the promotion and activation of their music and their winning for Artiste of the Year is the same energy that we also apply in the gospel fraternity,” he stated.
He continued that: “This award just like every industry award is very much for anybody who works hard in the industry. And I want us to situate the argument on that to a hardworking performer of the industry instead of tagging people that because they are gospel singers they do not deserve the prestigious Artiste of the Year award.”
Joe Mettle was the first gospel musician to have won the Artiste of the Year category at the awards ceremony in 2017 with his ‘Bo Noo Ni’ hit. Diana Antwi Hamilton became the first female gospel singer but the second from the fraternity to grasp the prestigious award in 2021 with ‘Adom’.
Out of eight nominees for the topmost award of the 24th edition of the Award Ceremony, Piesie Esther and Joe Mettle are representing the gospel fraternity.
Considering that both singers have worked really hard in the past year, some gospel musicians have tipped Piesie Esther as the chosen one.
The Empare Me crooner has seven nominations and is the only female nominee battling for the ultimate title of the night.
Piesie Esther has high hopes of sweeping all the awards including the big one.
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