Koffee, Sean Paul, Shaggy, Kabaka Pyramid, and Protoje are the five Jamaican artists in the running for the 2023 Grammy for Best Reggae Album.
The nominations for the 65th annual Grammy Awards have been released, and for the first time in two years, the nominations list for Best Reggae Album is completely Jamaican. Host John Legend who revealed the nominees live on Tuesday morning, revealed the lucky artists who received a nod. They are The Kalling by Kabaka Pyramid, Gifted by Koffee, Scorcha by Sean Paul, Third Time’s The Charm by Protoje and Com Fly Wid Mi by Shaggy.
The Best Reggae Album category has been scrutinized after a California-based group, SOJA, won the award last year, leading to not only criticisms of the Grammys but also criticisms by fans of artists for the quality of music produced.
Since its inception in 1985, the Best Reggae Album award has only seen two non-Jamaican winners — Steel Pulse from England and SOJA from the United States, but it has also been dominated by the Marleys in years gone by.
This year also sees three past Grammy winners- Shaggy, Sean Paul, and Koffee vying for the coveted title along with past nominee Protoje (for his album A Matter of Time,2018) and first-timer Kabaka Pyramid.
Sean Paul previously won the award for his album Dutty Rock, released in 2004, and Shaggy won the award in 1999 for the smash project Boombastic and again in 2019 for his collaboration 44/876 with Sting.
Koffee won the award as the youngest female to win in the category in 2018 for Rapture.
For Sean Paul, Scorcha, which was released under Island Records, is his eighth studio album. He is no stranger to the Grammys, having been nominated several times before.
Koffee’s Gifted is her sophomore project following her Grammy-winning EP Rapture. The album was released through Land Recordings/Columbia Records in March.
Shaggy’s Com Fly Wid Mi – The Sinatra Songbook Inna Reggae Style, which is produced by his friend and collaborator, Sting, is a sample of Frank Sinatra’s 10 greatest songs but with a Reggae Twist.
Protoje’s Third Time’s the Charm, released in September 2022, marks his sixth studio album, and the album, with its mixture of traditional and future sounds, landed on the Top 10 of the Billboard Reggae Albums Chart.
Kabaka Pyramid’s The Kalling is a 15-track project released on September 30. The album is produced by former Best Reggae Album winner Damian “Junior Gong” Marley.
