Kisima Music Awards

The Kisima Music Awards is an annual awards program that recognises musical talent in East Africa. Despite being Kenyan-based the scheme awards artists from a variety of countries, predominately Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, and incorporates a range of music genres.Yardflex: [http://www.yardflex.com/archives/000586.html Kisima Music Awards in Kenya] , written by Senabulya Frank 13/07/06]

History

Named after the Kiswahili word for "well" the Kisima Awards were founded by Tedd Josiah in 1994. The scheme initially aimed to recognise outstanding achievement in the performing arts and associated spheres such as education and business, and was held locally at Nairobi's Braeburn Theatre with clay tropheys being awarded. This process continued annually with the awards being held at the Carnivore Restaurant, however in 1997 the scheme was discontinued.

The awards were revitalised in 2003, with organisers arranging to coincide its events with the Fête de la Musique. With increased funding and support from both government and sponsors the new scheme featured updated nomination and voting processes, larger award ceremonies held at a customised Kisima Dome tent and targeted artists from across the nation. However rather than all performing arts the new awards now recognised only musical talent.

In 2004 the scheme was expanded to incorporate artists from all of East Africa, no longer restricting the talent to Kenya, and subsequently recognised musicians from Uganda and TanzaniaArt Matters: [http://www.artmatters.info/?articleid=198 Kisima Music Awards haunt organisers] ] . In 2005 Tedd Josiah stepped down as CEO of the awards amid controversy surrounding his winning of the Best Producer Award, appointing Victor Mayeya Odwori in his place. [Kisima Awards: [http://www.kisimaawards.co.ke/cont.asp?pcat=&cat=news&sid=29 Tedd Josiah Statement (13 th April 2005)] ]

The awards have since continued to expand, attracting international entrants and personalities, and have come to be an integral part of both Kenyan music and culture. [ [http://www.enterkenya.com/culture.html http://www.enterkenya.com/culture.html] ]

Awards process

Categories

The Kisima Music Awards aim to cover a diverse range of music genres and the variety of roles within production. The categories have changed regularly since 2003, however those frequently recognised within the scheme are [ [http://www.kisimaawards.co.ke/cont.asp?cat=awards Kisima Award Winners 2004-2006] ] :

* Best artist/group performing:
** Afro-fusion
** Asian Music
** Boomba Rap
** Boomba Pop
** Contemporary Gospel
** Eastern Benga
** Western Benga
** Hip hop
** R&B
** Rap
** Reggae/Ragga
** Traditional
* Best Artist/Group from Kenya/Tanzania/Uganda "nb: separate award for each country"
* Best Music Video Kenya/Tanzania/Uganda "nb: separate award for each country"
* Best Song
* Best Album
* Best Collaboration
* Best Male Performer
* Best Female Performer
* Most Promising Performer
* Best Group
* Producer of the Year
* Most Socially Aware Artist

Nomination and voting

Artists, groups and producers are able to nominate themselves for an award or be nominated, although they must approve the latter. In order to be eligible for nomination artists must have worked on a song or album that has been released in the year prior to the entry. A hard copy of the nominee's profile, photographs and a sample cd/cassette is required with the entry form [ [http://www.kisimaawards.co.ke/cont.asp?cat=4musician Kisima Nomination Process] ] .

After the cut off date for nomination all entries are screened for eligibility and categories are determined based on the field of contestants. A "nomination academy" made up of recognised members of the East African music scene then reduce each category to 4-5 finalists based on artistic flair and technical achievement, sales and chart positions are not taken into account during nomination.

The winners within each category are determined by a twofold voting system. The first is a percentage of the final score allocated to the nomination academy who individually vote for their preferred artist/group. The second is a larger percentage allocated to the general public who vote via SMS for their favourite artist after having access to various music samples on the official website. All the votes go to an independent auditing firm who determine the final winner [ [http://www.kisimaawards.co.ke/cont.asp?pcat=&cat=news&sid=54 Details of Kisima Voting Process] ] .

Ceremony

The pinnacle of the awards process is the gala night, in which winners are announced and receive their trophies. The contestants and audience, a crowd of thousands drawn from both influential media, political and cultural personalities and paying members of the general public, are also treated to a variety of acts including musical performances, comedy routines and acrobatics. The night itself can last for up to six hours [Only in Kenya: [http://uniquelykenyan.blogspot.com/2006/08/kisima-reward-kenyas-finest.html Kisima Reward Kenyas Finest] ] and is broadcast across Africa by satellite television Channel O.

After the gala night a winner's concert is held open to the public. Artists have also been called on to participate in tours in reflection of the social responsibility of the awards [Kisima Awards: [http://www.kisimaawards.co.ke/cont.asp?pcat=&cat=news&sid=49 Celebrity Charity Tour] ]

ocial responsibility

The awards aim to foster social responsibility with both artists and their audience. This is achieved through presentations and speeches at the gala night, the recognition of a category dedicated to social awareness and charity concerts and tours held after the event. Through this the organisers hope to use music to improve conditions and reduce poverty in Africa.

Kisima Music Trust

The governing body behind the awards is the Kisima Music Trust [ [http://www.kisimaawards.co.ke/cont.asp?cat=trust Kisima Music Trust] ] . It operates as a non-profit body and aims to bring stability to the Kenyan music scene and to encourage artists to perform both domestically and internationally. The organisation derives most of its funding from sponsorship, with the largest donors including [ [http://www.kisimaawards.co.ke/cont.asp?cat=sponsors Kisima Sponsors] ] :
* Kenya Government
* Capital FM
* 3 Mice
* Deloitte
* Baraka FM
* Nu-Metro Cinema
* TMX
* Phat buzz
* Init
* Mac & More Solutions
* Radar
* Numetro Media Store

Kisima Award winners

"Please see the respective page for the winners of that year"

*2003 Kisima Music Awards
*2004 Kisima Music Awards
*2005 Kisima Music Awards
*2006 Kisima Music Awards
*2007 Kisima Music Awards

Controversy

The Kisima Awards have experienced their share of controversy.

In 2004 the then CEO of the scheme Tedd Josiah received the award for Best Producer, and faced allegations of "swinging himself an award". He subsequently resigned citing a conflict of interest, and claimed he had pleaded with the judges not to allow him in the category [Pulse: [http://www.eastandard.net/archives/cl/mags/pulse/articles.php?articleid=12331&date=4/02/2005 Tedd resigns from Kisima committee] ] .

Musicians and producers such as Lydia Achieng Abura have also been critical of the voting system used to decide the awards, citing that SMS was predominately used by youth and that this combined with the ability to vote an indefinite number of times would produce a flawed representation of the popularity of an artist. They claim that voting should lie with a panel of judges..

In 2006 at least five artist refused to attend the winners concert, Beach Fusion, claiming they had not entered into a performance contract with the event organisers. These claims were refuted by the organisers, who alleged the concert was solely for charity and that contestants had been briefed prior to the events [Kenya Times Newspaper: [http://www.timesnews.co.ke/05sep06/spicy/spicy1.html BEACH FUSION AND MORE!] ]

The scheme does not award monetary prizes, although each trophey is worth Sh20,000 (about US$250).

ee also

*Music of Kenya

External links

* [http://www.kisimaawards.co.ke Kisima Music Awards]

References