Blakk Rasta’s Salaga Soljah album is the only African reggae album among the seventy-five eligible albums received for consideration at the first-round voting stage of the 67th Annual Grammy Awards for the ‘Best Reggae Album’ category.
As the Recording Academy gears up for another intriguing year, other renowned international artists have also submitted their works for consideration, including Vybz Kartel – Party With Me, The Wailers – Evolution, UB40 – UB45, Various Artists – Jamaica Festival Song 2024 Competition, Various Artists – Celebrating Jamaica 62, Spice – Mirror 25, Lee “Scratch” Perry – King Perry, Gyptian & Chambah – Guarded EP, Mutabaruka – Black Attack, and Etana – Nectar Of The Gods.
The ‘Best Reggae Album’ category according to the Academy, “recognizes excellence in albums of reggae music, including roots reggae, dancehall, and ska music.”
The nominations and awards are bestowed to “albums containing greater than 75% playing time of new reggae recordings.” Again, the Academy requires that the albums’ featured artists, producers, and engineers are only eligible for nomination if they contributed more than 50% of the project’s playing time.
Blakk Rasta is optimistic that a nomination and a possible Grammy win for an African reggae album would go a long way to affirm how impactful and relevant reggae music has been on the African continent.
For Blakk Rasta, the ‘Salaga Soljah’ winning the Best Reggae Album’ at the Grammy Awards will also satisfy the spirits of the inventors of the genre, Bob Marley and the Wailers.
The Salaga Soljah album is a live recorded twenty-track album sung in English, French, and other African languages including; Dioula, Dagbani, Hausa, Sissala, Akan and Gruni. International artists like Anthony B, Tiken Jah Fakoly and King Ayisoba were also featured on the album.
