Durban – Two of South Africa’s biggest young stars are hoping to walk away victorious from the MTV Europe Music Awards on Sunday night.
The awards will take place at London’s SSE Arena and this will be the sixth time the British capital plays host.
Durban-born rapper Nasty C and the Gqom sensation, Babes Wodumo, are among the nominees for their successful debut projects, which include hits such as Hell Naw and Wololo.
They are nominated among continental heavyweights such as Nigeria’s Wizkid and Davido, as well as Angola’s C4 Pedro and Kenya’s Nyanshinski in the best African category.
The show will be hosted by singer and actress Rita Ora, who will also be performing.
“I’m so excited to be hosting this year’s MTV awards in my hometown,” said Ora.
Nasty C, whose real name is David Ngcobo Jr, who was also nominated at the BET Awards earlier this year, said he was honoured to be in the mix again.
“I’m extremely honoured and humbled by it. It really means a lot to see that my work is being recognised across the world,” he said.
“The MTV Europe Music Awards are a global platform and being nominated alongside some of the world’s greatest African artists really means a lot to me.”
Angola’s C4 Pedro said the nomination was significant for him as Nigerians and South Africans appeared to dominate the awards.
“It feels great. As a Luso- phone (Portuguese-speaking) singer I just want everyone to know how big and strong we are,” he said.
“Artists from Angola have been nominated since 2005 and have never won. We feel like only Nigerians and South Africans can win this award, but I’m telling you change is going to come one day and I hope that time is now.”
On the international front, Taylor Swift leads the pack, nabbing six nods, including best video for Look What You Made Me Do. Shawn Mendes received five nominations, including best song and best artist. Other nominees include Kendrick Lamar, Ed Sheeran, Ariana Grande, Demi Lovato and Bruno Mars.
Performers for the night will include Liam Payne, French Montana, Kesha, Travis Scott and The Killers.
The 2017 MTV Europe Music Awards will be broadcast live on MTV (DStv channel 130) and MTV Base (DStv channel 322) on Sunday, 12 November at 22:00 CAT. Sunday Tribune
