THE HIP HOP AWARDS THAT GIVE RECOGNITION TO THE BEST!!

The sponsors have been drawn, the nominees have been notified, voting is now open and the countdown has begun-It is the second annual HYPE AWARDS, hosted by HYPE Magazine and powered by MTN. MTN is South Africa’s biggest music lover. I mean it is pushing artists and signing amazing deals with SA’s biggest talents. HYPE magazine on the other hand has for a couple of years now, been in the forefront of SA hip hop, whether it be rapping, dancing, beat boxing or graffiti; HYPE magazine has definitely brought a meaningful contribution to the success of Mzansi hip hop. We caught up with Mizi Mtshali, editor of HYPE magazine, to tell us more about the event.

Note: The awards are to be referred to as HYPE Awards powered by MTN, not MTN HYPE Awards, as they were last year.

1) HYPE Magazine already gives South African hip hop dancers, producers and artists’ exposure and a platform to showcase their talents. What is the mission and vision of the MTN HYPE Awards?

HYPE Magazine is the only media platform that is 100% dedicated to hip hop. It is, therefore, our duty to represent all aspects of hip hop culture. These include the dance elements, production, rap, graffiti, DJing and beat boxing. The aim of the HYPE Awards is to give recognition to excellence in these fields. Hip hop is such a complex sub culture, with so many elements… Other awards are unable to focus on hip hop to the extent that we are able to. Hip hop is often represented in categories such as best rap, which creates the impression that rap is the only hip hop element. There is no problem with this, as these other awards are music awards, which automatically eliminates elements such as dance and graffiti, which are more visual. HYPE Awards are not restricted to music. These are hip hop culture awards, and focus hip hop as a whole.

2) With the upcoming event, how many categories are there in total? And why does each category have so many nominees? Isn’t five nominees per category just enough?

We have 14 categories in total. Of these, three categories are closed to public vote and will be adjudicated by a panel of judges. The rest are voted for by the public. What is important to note is that the names posted up on hypemagazine.co.za are not the final nominees. Each category has a list of 20 names who have been active during the eligibility period. This is only the first round of the public vote process, which is explained in detail in the upcoming December/ January issue of HYPE. The public voting has started, and by mid December, we will have a top 15 per category. By the end of January, we will announce the top 5 nominees. This top 5 will be the final list of nominees. The public will then vote for the best out of the final 5. What you see now is the first elimination round. It is structured like a marathon, where fans constantly vote to keep their favorite artists in the running. Artists are encouraged to run their individual campaigns in order to get their fans to vote for them. Never has there been such an engaging public vote system and the public has shown great willingness to participate in the process.



3) We have seen the nominees and we believe that everybody there holds so much talent and skill in their own rights. What were the requirements for artists to be nominated in the different categories?

Like I said, these are not the final nominees, instead, these are pools of artists who are eligible for nomination. What is required of an artist to be placed in these top 20 pools, is visible activity in the hip hop industry between September 2008 and October 2009. Artists who have released albums, created graf pieces, entered dance, DJ and beat boxing competitions, as well as all those who have practiced their art form publicly… those are the artists eligible for nomination.

3) Some of the categories, such as the award for “The Best Producer” and ‘The Best Dance Crew” is not open to public voting. In such cases, how will these winners be judged or determined?

The categories, Best Producer, Best Dance Crew and Best B-Boy/Girl are not up for public vote because of the nature of these disciplines. Lets start with Best Producer. This category is difficult for the public to vote for because of the criteria. The Best Producer is judged according to the overall body of work made public by the producer. Points are awarded for the number of songs released within the eligibility period, carrying the producer’s work. Extra points are given for the success of the music produced by that individual. The producer is then awarded points for mass appeal, and most importantly, for artistic appeal. The public is often unaware of the producers of various songs, and have often not followed a producer’s work to the extent that they are able to make a fair comparison, based on the producers’ full body of work. We have therefore called upon a panel of judges who would give their professional input and make well informed decisions. Similarly, the categories of Best Dance Crew and Best B-Boy/Girl, are judged according to competitions entered, competitions won as well as other significant performances with a heavy emphasis on dance technique and style. These are also adjudicated by a credible panel of judges.


5) Okay let us get onto the main event. When and where will the second annual MTN HYPE Awards take place?

The second annual HYPE Awards are set to take place on the 12th of February at the Lyric Theatre. Please log onto www.hypemagazine.co.za for updates.

6) The tickets to the event… where can we get ourselves tickets and what is the price range?

I’m glad you are already excited about getting to the main event. I would once again ask you to stay logged onto www.hypemagazine.co.za for updates and in future, opportunities to win tickets. But for now… do the right thing. Log onto the site, click on the big HYPE Awards logo and VOTE SMART!

General President King Mizi Amin Jacob Hannibal Goodwill Barack Sese Seko signing off.