Music Awards failed the nation

I WOULD like to comment on the Sanlam-NBC music awards.I would like to register my gratitude to the organisers of the event, which I can describe as the most dazzling, glamorous and stupendous night on the Namibian music calendar for 2005.

There are, however, some things that they need to work on for future events. The lighting was perfect but the stage was not the best they could get.The podium looked fabulous in design but it was so short that even the shortest presenter had to bend down to reach the microphone.One commendable thing was the choice of presenters who handed over the awards.I think they were all a good choice, as they were all people of stature and high calibre, not to forget that they were all local.It was really pleasing to see our local people presenting awards as opposed to a popular bad habit of importing mainly questionable South African celebrities at the expense of our own locals.Coming to the real McCoy, I would like to contest the credibility of the last award, the Namibian artist of the year, which was “given” to The Dogg without earning it.Like the majority of the Namibians, I think Gazza deserved it.I equally like both The Dogg and Gazza but the fact of the matter is that this was really Gazza’s year.I am sure the judges were ashamed when the audience screamed “Gazza” the entire duration of the event.Even when the ever-funny Lazarus (not Kandara) jokingly announced ” the lifetime achievement award goes to President…”, people still screamed “Gazza”, giving him a new title of president.The final results of the night were so catastrophic that even Frankie Fredericks got a shock when he got a glimpse of what was enclosed in the fateful envelope, amidst fans chanting “Gazza”.What I don’t understand, is how can the best-selling artist not be the artist of the year? The more famous the artist is, the more he sells and this would automatically make him/her the artist of the year.I think the judges were mostly professionals who spend most of the time in their offices instead of attending local music shows or listening to local radio stations.I have attended most shows where The Dogg or Gazza performed.In most cases, if not all, I was more satisfied with Gazza’s performance.Mind you, I am also The Dogg’s fan.I doubt the authenticity of the voting results for the Namibian artists of the year.Because it is a big award, it is prone to manipulation.I think the voting process and results must be supervised and audited by an accredited auditing firm such as the PricewaterhouseCoopers or KPMG to avoid errors, favouritism, manipulation of results and any other type of corruption.These are some of the reasons why I think Gazza, who really looked like a ‘stoflap chikapute’ with the sloppy way he dressed on the night amongst glamorous-looking artists and fans, should have walked away with the Namibian artist of the year award.I would agree with one caller on Radio Energy who said: “The Dogg is good but Gazza is the best”.This statement is especially true for the year 2005, which saw Gazza release another hot album, which left The Dogg trailing.I was made to understand that there is another Namibian music award in March next year, which is master-minded by Downtown Advertising.I hope this one will not be another fiasco and I think it will be Gazza’s turn.Aquil-Nash WindhoekThe lighting was perfect but the stage was not the best they could get.The podium looked fabulous in design but it was so short that even the shortest presenter had to bend down to reach the microphone.One commendable thing was the choice of presenters who handed over the awards.I think they were all a good choice, as they were all people of stature and high calibre, not to forget that they were all local.It was really pleasing to see our local people presenting awards as opposed to a popular bad habit of importing mainly questionable South African celebrities at the expense of our own locals.Coming to the real McCoy, I would like to contest the credibility of the last award, the Namibian artist of the year, which was “given” to The Dogg without earning it.Like the majority of the Namibians, I think Gazza deserved it.I equally like both The Dogg and Gazza but the fact of the matter is that this was really Gazza’s year.I am sure the judges were ashamed when the audience screamed “Gazza” the entire duration of the event.Even when the ever-funny Lazarus (not Kandara) jokingly announced ” the lifetime achievement award goes to President…”, people still screamed “Gazza”, giving him a new title of president.The final results of the night were so catastrophic that even Frankie Fredericks got a shock when he got a glimpse of what was enclosed in the fateful envelope, amidst fans chanting “Gazza”.What I don’t understand, is how can the best-selling artist not be the artist of the year? The more famous the artist is, the more he sells and this would automatically make him/her the artist of the year.I think the judges were mostly professionals who spend most of the time in their offices instead of attending local music shows or listening to local radio stations.I have attended most shows where The Dogg or Gazza performed.In most cases, if not all, I was more satisfied with Gazza’s performance.Mind you, I am also The Dogg’s fan.I doubt the authenticity of the voting results for the Namibian artists of the year.Because it is a big award, it is prone to manipulation.I think the voting process and results must be supervised and audited by an accredited auditing firm such as the PricewaterhouseCoopers or KPMG to avoid errors, favouritism, manipulation of results and any other type of corruption.These are some of the reasons why I think Gazza, who really looked like a ‘stoflap chikapute’ with the sloppy way he dressed on the night amongst glamorous-looking artists and fans, should have walked away with the Namibian artist of the year award.I would agree with one caller on Radio Energy who said: “The Dogg is good but Gazza is the best”.This statement is especially true for the year 2005, which saw Gazza release another hot album, which left The Dogg trailing.I was made to understand that there is another Namibian music award in March next year, which is master-minded by Downtown Advertising.I hope this one will not be another fiasco and I think it will be Gazza’s turn.Aquil-Nash Windhoek