On Wednesday evening, the IRIE FM Music Awards 2023 edition kicked off with several prominent figures in attendance, including Beenie Man and D’Angel.
The annual ceremony aims to celebrate Jamaican music and culture’s best and most popular elements in the past year, with many entertainment practitioners competing for top honours in 25 categories.
Valiant, one of the most popular new acts, received the lion share of nominations with eight nods, while Popcaan was the runner-up with five. Spice and Shenseea were up for four awards, while Dexta Daps, Shaneil Muir, Stalk Ashley, Moyann, and Skeng each received three nominations. Other nominees included Beenie Man, Bounty Killer, Ding Dong, Koffee, Masicka, D’Angel, Alkaline, Burna Boy, Jada Kingdom, Shaggy, and Sean Paul.
As the night came to a close, here are the winners of some of the categories:
- Valiant: “New Artiste of the Year”, “Slang of the Year” (Kotch E Hat), “Male Singjay of the Year”
- Lila Ike: “Female Singer of the Year”
- Shaggy: “Reggae Ambassador of the Year”
- Julie Mango: “Social Media Influencer of the Year”
- DJ Mac: “Producer of the Year”
- Beenie Man: “Best Dressed Male of the Year”
- Ding Dong: “Dance of the Year (Stir Fry)”
- D’Angel: “Humanitarian of the Year”
- Tarrus Riley: “Male Singer of the Year”
- Kabaka Pyramid: “Album of the Year” (The Kalling)
- Skeng feat. Nicki Minaj: “Collaboration of the Year” (Likkle Miss remix)
- DJ Banka: “Selector of the Year”
- Reggae Sumfest: “Stage Show/Concert of the Year”
- Mutabaruka: “Poetry/Spoken Word Poet of the Year”
- Burna Boy: “Afrobeats Song of the Year” (Last Last)
- Alkaline: “Listeners Choice Award”
