VGMA Board Cancels Jay Bahd’s Nomination

The organizers of the annual Vodafone Ghana Music Awards (VGMA), have canceled Jay Bahd’s nomination in the New Artiste of the Year category of the 24th edition of the scheme.

Jay Bahd together with Yaw Tog was nominated for the Best Collaboration of the Year in 2021 with their song ‘Sore’.

A petition raised by one VGMA Academy member and a broadcaster Austine Woode led to the calling off of Jay Bahd’s nomination for the 2023 award contest.

In a press release, the VGMA Board announced that after deliberating on Austine’s petition, they have reviewed Jay Bahd’s nomination in the category.

The press release reads; “One of the submissions made, which has generated high public interest, is Jay Bahd’s inclusion in the Best New Artiste category. After deliberations, the Board agrees that Jay Bahd is not new to the scheme, because of his shared nomination on Yaw Tog’s ‘Sore’ for Collaboration of the Year in 2021. This means he’s not eligible as a nominee for the Best New Artiste category of the 24th Vodafone Ghana Music Awards. The error has been corrected, and Jay Bahd and his team have been informed accordingly. The inconvenience is deeply regretted.”

The statement also indicates that “Jay Bahd’s decision was one out of a number of others that were presented by artists, their managers, and other industry stakeholders.”

This issue was raised after the organizers of the VGMA gave the opportunity to the public to express their concerns on the nominations of the 2023 VGMA scheduled for Saturday, May 13, 2023, at the Grand Arena of the Accra International Conference Centre.

Jay Bahd was nominated in the New Artiste of the Year category with artists such as Ewura Abena, Lasmid, Chief One, DJ Azonto, Malcolm Nuna, and DJay.