Headie One, Nines, Mahalia and Aitch were among the big winners at the MOBO Awards 2020. The night – which took the form of a virtual ceremony hosted by Maya Jama and Chunkz – marked the return of the ceremony after a three-year hiatus.
Nines received five nominations this year and took home the prestigious Album Of The Year honour for Crabs In A Bucket honour, and was also crowned Best Hip Hop Act.
Elsewhere, Headie One claimed Best Male Act and Mahalia scooped up Best Female Act and Best R&B/Soul Act.
Aitch scored Best Newcomer and Nottingham duo Young T & Bugsey took home Song Of The Year for their hit Don’t Rush (featuring Headie One).
Other winners on the night included recent Music Week cover star Burna Boy, who won Best International Act while Wizkid secured Best African Act.
Performers on the night included Headie One, Tiwa Savage, Kojey Radical, Ms Banks, Young T And Bugsey, HER, Davido, Tiana Major9, Wordsmiths, Shaybo and Stylo G.
The MOBO Awards 2020 was live-streamed on YouTube and was broadcast on BBC One at 10.45pm (on December 9), with a highlights special on BBC iPlayer.
Speaking about the ceremony, MOBO founder Kanya King said: “I feel very proud about this year’s show which will go down in history because of its unique commentary and set of circumstances. We will archive it for future generations to watch and learn about the times we are currently in. I want to thank the BBC and YouTube for working together, all for the greater good. This wasn’t just an Awards show, this is an empowering show with a purpose that represents opportunity over inequality, that represents pride for an audience that often feels marginalised, that represents achievement against all odds. There will be new artists watching the show and because of it, and their lives and those of their families may be forever changed. Roll on our 25th anniversary next year – let’s get ready to MOBOLISE!”
2020 MOBO AWARDS WINNERS
BEST MALE ACT
HEADIE ONE
BEST FEMALE ACT (IN ASSOCIATION WITH ISAWITFIRST)
MAHALIA
ALBUM OF THE YEAR
NINES – CRABS IN A BUCKET
SONG OF THE YEAR [PUBLIC VOTED]?
YOUNG T & BUGSEY FEAT. HEADIE ONE – DON’T RUSH
BEST NEWCOMER (IN ASSOCIATION WITH ARTS COUNCIL ENGLAND) [PUBLIC VOTED]
AITCH
VIDEO OF THE YEAR?
NSG – LUPITA (DIRECTED BY KEVIN HUDSON)
BEST R&B/SOUL ACT
MAHALIA
BEST HIP HOP ACT
NINES
BEST GRIME ACT [PUBLIC VOTED]
JME
BEST INTERNATIONAL ACT [PUBLIC VOTED]
BURNA BOY
BEST PERFORMANCE IN A TV SHOW/FILM [PUBLIC VOTED]
MICHEAL WARD AS MARCO – BLUE STORY
BEST MEDIA PERSONALITY [PUBLIC VOTED]
CHUNKZ
BEST ALBUM (2017 – 2019)
*This is a one-off additional category just for this year’s MOBO Awards to highlight the best albums released from September 2017 – August 2019.
ELLA MAI – ELLA MAI
BEST AFRICAN ACT? (IN ASSOCIATION WITH AFROZONS) [PUBLIC VOTED]
?WIZKID
BEST REGGAE ACT
BUJU BANTON
BEST GOSPEL ACT?(IN ASSOCIATION WITH PREMIER GOSPEL)
CALLEDOUT MUSIC
BEST JAZZ ACT (IN ASSOCIATION WITH BBC RADIO 6 MUSIC)
EGO ELLA MAY
BEST PRODUCER
JAE 5
INSPIRATION AWARD
STEVE MCQUEEN
An independent MOBO Awards judging panel determined the nominees and winners for the majority of categories, while six categories are public voted: Song of The Year, Best Grime Act, Best Newcomer (in association with Arts Council England), Best African Act (in association with Afrozons), Best International Act, Best Performance in a TV Show/ Film and Best Media Personality.
You can read Music Week’s recent interview with MOBO founder Kanya King here.
Photo: Michael Tubes
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