Award shows motivate young talent - Govana

"Wow, YVAs nah keep next year?" said a surprised Govana, who had recently returned to the island following a tour in Toronto.

The 4th Genna hitmaker said it has been difficult to keep up to date with media amid his busy schedule.

He was disappointed to hear that the Your View Awards (formerly Youth View Awards) will not be held in 2019.

When the dancehall deejay released Gyal Clown in the summer of 2017, his aim was to garner the attention of the public and keep it.

Little did he know that would become his official breakout single that earned him the YVAs 'Breakthrough Artiste of the Year' at the 2018 edition of the show.

But he admits that he is not big on awards.

"Personally, I am doing music from my heart and for the people so I am more focused on getting the acceptance of the people," Govana told The STAR. "(But) Awards shows, especially those which highlight dancehall entertainers, do give young talent that are looking to claim some type of accolade or put a stamp on their name motivation."

He says that once nominated or after wining an award, it forces an entertainer to maintain the standard higher.

"(But) After a while, it start fly over your head because a person may be 'preeing' the bigger awards. For those coming up, it definitely gives them something to look forward to," he said.

He said awards shows may not get the attention they deserve "because it starts controversy where people feel someone else should have won a specific award but did not".

"It would be good to know that can change but dancehall has a mentality that may not allow for it," he said.

Although the organisers of YVAs, An Elegant Affair have only called for a timeout, the 'Champ' deejay says it is cause for concern since there are not many existing award options either locally or internationally for dancehall that target public vote and also engage young artistes of the genre.