Epixode suggests how reggae, dancehall and reggae-dancehall artistes can each be appreciated

Reigning Reggae-Dancehall artiste of the year, Epixode, has talked about how he believes reggae artistes, dancehall artistes and reggae-dancehall artistes can be heard and appreciated for what they each do.

This came after he mentioned that artistes in these three categories are usually not appreciated well for instance in terms of awards because they are all usually classified into the Reggae-Dancehall category and although some of them may have great songs, they may not be recognized since they’re not very vibrant or popular.

He explained with an instance that if Rocky Dawuni has a Reggae song that is bigger than a Dancehall song that Epixode has dropped, there is a higher chance of the award being given to Epixode just because they have been put in the same category and Epixode happens to be more vibrant on the streets than Rocky. This, he expressed, would be unfair.

Speaking on eTV Ghana with Foster Romanus on the Late Nite Celebrity Show, he noted that even though he is the reigning reggae-dancehall artiste and his voice will be heard, he alone cannot fix this. “I cannot only use my voice. I am not the only person who needs to fight. We need to have a united front so that we can actually help the award organizers know what is really happening”, he said.

He opined that the people on the awards board who represent Reggae and Dancehall should know best and put forth these concerns. “I’m not saying they don’t know because then again, they’re not the only people who dictate and we should also know that this is actually an individual scheme and they have their own criteria used in awarding artistes”, he clarified.

Epixode indicated that he is channeling his voice and his energy on supporting the talented and deserving upcoming artistes in these fields who unfortunately do not have the numbers yet. In doing this, he put out an instrumental of one of his very popular songs and called for entries from these young acts.

According to him, the plan was to pick only about two or three winners from that, however, looking at how good most of them were, he ended up selecting fifty young acts, whom he organized a seminar for, with the help of the VGMA to enlighten them on what they need to know about the industry, how to handle the business aspect of their craft, among other things.

Again, he awarded each of the 50 selectees plaques to make them feel recognized and appreciated and has promised to put each of them on his next album to be released early next year.