Mel Cooke, Freelance Writer

Spragga Benz

The Urban Music Awards have been six years in coming to the Caribbean, after being started by the Jordan Kensington-led Invincible Media Group. However, they will be making a double splash at the first staging in the region at the James Bond Beach, Oraca-bessa, St Mary, on Saturday, April 26.

For not only will the winners in 15 categories be announced then, along with performances by Sizzla, Spragga Benz, Tony Matterhorn, Cherine Anderson and others, but the 'Next Urban Superstar' competition will be a part of the awards' Caribbean debut.

The nominees for the Caribbean Urban Music Awards were announced at a press conference held at the Hilton Hotel, New Kingston, earlier this month.

In a release from the organisers, Jahson Nembhard, vice-president for the competition, said "aspiring acts will be auditioned from Jamaica, Anguilla, Martinique, Antigua and Barbuda, Bermuda, St Lucia, Curacao, Dominica, French Guiana, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guyana, Haiti, St Kitts and Nevis, St Vincent and the Grenadines and Trinidad and Tobago. Winners from Caribbean's Next Urban Superstar will win a recording and management contract and will win the chance to perform at the UMAs in Jamaica, New York and London, all expenses paid".

The competition is slated to be televised.

Beenie Man - File photos

The Urban Music Awards is on an expansion path, as it was staged in New York, USA, for the first time on July 7 last year. It is also put on in the UK, France and Germany where, as with the Caribbean, the public decides on the nominees as well as the winners in the various categories through online voting.

Ballots are cast at www.urbanmusicawards.net, with the 'Vote Caribbean' option specifically for the newest region on the Urban Music Awards' growth path.

Sizzla, Spragga Benz, Collie Buddz and Beenie Man have the most nominations with three each, all going up for 'Artist of the Year'. Beenie Man, Collie Buddz and Spragga Benz are nominated in the 'Best International Artist' category, while Sizzla and Spragga Benz are up for 'Best Male Artist', along with Buju Banton, Jah Cure, Tony Matterhorn and Wayne Wonder.

The CUMA reaches beyond Jamaica, with Collie Buddz also nominated for 'Best Newcomer', sharing the latter category with Cherine Anderson, DeMarco, Erup, Munga Honourable and Sean Kingston.

And it expands beyond Jamaican music, as there are categories for 'Best Reggaeton Act', 'Best Soca Artist' and 'Best Calypso Act'.

Radio stations from Barbados (Hott 93.5 FM), The Bahamas (More 94FM) and Trinidad (WEFM 91.1 FM) are up for 'Best Radio Station', along with Jamaica's IRIE FM.