SARKODIE WINS ANOTHER INTERNATIONAL AWARD AHEAD OF HIS PERFORMANCE AT MAMAS 2014

Ahead of his performance at Saturday’s MTV Africa Music Award (for which he is also a nominee), Sarkodie has picked up another international award.

He has won the Best Rap/Hiphop award at The 13th Annual Independent Music Awards for his song, ‘Illuminati’.

Willie Sugarcapps, Vienna Teng, Valerie June, The Bankesters, Pete Seeger, The Soul of John Black, I See Stars, Rabbit Rabbit, Sultans of String, Elizabeth Mitchell, Marcio Novelli and Fanfara Tirana Meets Transglobal Underground were all among the exceptional self-released and independent label talent named by Music Resource Group (MRG) as the judge-determined Winners of The 13th Independent Music Awards (The IMAs), the influential international awards program for independent bands and fans.

The veteran artists and rising stars named as 13th IMA Winners in more than 80 Album, EP, Song, Music Producer, Music Video and Design categories were winnowed from thousands of submissions from around the globe, and were determined by a panel of influential artists and music industry executives.

Among the noteworthy achievements of the 13th IMA program, Vienna Teng was named the winner of four categories, the most any artist has received in a given year. The self-proclaimed “chamber folk” artist was honored in the Adult Contemporary Album, A Cappella Song, Social Action Song and Pop Song categories.

Mree, who bills herself as an emerging, experimental folk artist, and who is currently entrolled at NYU’s Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music, received top honors in the Music Producer category for her sophomore album “Winterwell.” The judges cited the sophisticated soundscapes that cushion the songs among the reasons for honoring the album’s overall production.

The unique pairing of Fanfara Tirana Meets Transglobal Underground was awarded Best Short Form Music Video for its whimsical, stop-motion video for the song “No Guns To The Wedding.” This collaboration between members of the Albanian military brass band (Fanfara Tirana) and the British dance pioneers (Transglobal Underground) was also honored for top World Beat Album.

In the IMA Long Form Video category, Marcio Novelli was named winner for the documentary “Marcio Novelli Presents Walking Proof,” a film that shows the process of recording his debut album “It’s Not An Excuse, It’s A Reason.”