The Metro FM Awards made their comeback last year after a six-year break and being affected by the Covid-19 pandemic and facing some financial woes. They made a comeback to the City Of Mbombela in Mpumalanga. Although they were off to a wobbly start, this year they promise to return bigger and better.

THE NEW DATE

The SABC is set to announce the final date for the awards on 18 January 2024 back at Mbombela. The former Group Executive for SABC Radio Nada Wotshela told ZiMoja last year that there were several reasons why the awards were held back for so many years. "In the years 2017 and 2018, the organisation was recalibrating. There was a lot of instability, as you know during that year," she said. "We then started working on a comeback in 2019 for 2020 and then Covid-19 happened, and we did not want to come back on a small scale and do a virtual thing. We wanted to come back strong and with a bang."

LAST YEARS 

Last year, deceased rapper Kiernan "AKA" Fobes walked off with Artist of the Year, Best Collaboration Song, Best Hip-Hop Artist and Best Male Artist categories. While fellow rapper and friend Ntokozo "K.O" Mdluli received seven nominations and no wins from his hometown. Although K.O. was disappointed, he expressed to ZiMoja how award ceremonies do not define his talent. "Not that I take the nominations and awards lightly, but I have never been invested like that. There are so many cases where you anticipate a win and it doesn't come or when you don't, and you get it. So, awards are really a seesaw for any artist. It's up to you to maintain a level of sanity, you just need to focus on the things that matter. The fact that I was nominated seven times is already a blessing on its own," he said.