Amapiano Awards 2023 Nominees: Most Contested Categories

The Amapiano Awards 2023 are making a return, with the nominees and dates announced following the last show in 2021. 

The second edition of the Amapiano Awards are gearing up to take place in the coming months, following a one-year hiatus.

On Thursday, 9 February 2023, was the announcement of the nominees, across 22 categories.

We take a look at the year that it has been in Amapiano music and the most contended categories.

Who are the most nominated Amapiano artists?

This article looks at the categories which all our eyes will be looking at and the ones all the artists want to win.

As previously mentioned, there are nominees across the 22 categories.

However, we will be looking at some of those, which are: Amapiano Artist Of The Year, Best Amapiano Newcomer, Song Of The Year, and more.

DJ Maphorisa and Kabza De Small are the most nominated artists at the Amapiano Awards 2023 with a combined total of over 20 nominations. 

They are nominated for their songs such as ‘Asibe Happy’ featuring Ami Faku, and their individual tracks such as ‘Khusela’ and ‘Ba Straata’. 

Newcomer, Toss is also one of the most nominated artists boosting 8 nominations, mostly for his incredible track ‘Umlando’. 

Young Stunna also scores himself over 5 nominations, including artist of the year, with Boohle following closely with around 5 nods.

Uncle Waffles, Kelvin Momo, Musa Keys, Daliwonga, and Pabi Cooper each picked up more than one nomination. 

Scroll to the bottom of the article to see the full list of the Amapiano Awards 2023 nominations covered.

Amapiano Song Of The Year

Song of the year is probably the biggest award of the night and 15 songs are vying for this category.

Kabza De Small and DJ Maphorisa lead the pack with four songs each on the list. 

Young Stunna, Boohle, Busta 929, and Mellow & Sleazy all have two songs each. 

Busta 929 is not a stranger to this category as he took it home at the 2021 awards. 

Here is the list of Amapiano Song of The Year 2023 Nominees:

• Abalele – Kabza De Small & DJ Maphorisa (ft Ami Faku)
• Abo Mvelo – Daliwonga (ft. Mellow & Sleazy & MJ)
• Adiwele – Young Stunna (ft. Kabza De Small & DJ Maphorisa)
• Asibe Happy – Kabza De Small & Dj Maphorisa (ft. Ami Faku)
• Dipatje tsa felo – Felo le tee & Myztro (Daliwonga)
• Nkao Tempela – Ch’coo & Mellow & Sleazy
• Izolo – DJ Maphorisa & Tyler ICU (ft. Madumane, Mpura, and Visca)
• Khusela – Kabza de small (ft. Msaki)
• Mina Nawe – Soa Marix & Mashudu (ft. Happy Jazzman & Emotionz DJ)
• Ngixolele – Busta 929 (ft. Boohle)
• Paris – Q-Mark & Tpzee (ft. African Papi)
• Sengzwile – Mas Musiq (Aymos & Young Stunna)
• Siyathandana – Cassper Nyovest (ft. Boohle & Abidoza)
• Umlando – Toss, Mdoovar, 9UMBA
• Iy’ntsimbi zase envy – Amaroto (ft. Busta 929, Beast & Dladla Mshunqisi)

Amapiano Artist Of The Year

This category has some serious competition this time around. 

Artist of the year means one is the cream of the crop in this proudly South African genre. 

Newcomers, Felo Le Tee, Pabi Cooper, Toss, Uncle Waffles, and Young Stunna are all battling it out. 

Here is the list of the Amapiano Artist of the Year 2023 Nominees:

• Felo Le Tee
• Focalistic
• Kabza De Small
• Kelvin Momo
• Dj Maphorisa
• Musa Keys
• Pabi Cooper
• Toss
• Uncle Waffles
• Young Stunna

Best Amapiano Album / EP

A body of work is what solidifies an artist’s craft and sometimes dominance. 

The past year has had some of the best Amapiano albums or EPs being released. 

Kelvin Momo has had an incredible year, with over 40 million streams across Spotify and Apple Music in 2022.

Mas Musiq and Gaba Cannal are also vying to get their hands on this award.

Here is the list of the Best Amapiano Album or EP 2023 Nominees:

• Agape – Gaba Cannal
• Ivy League – Kelvin Momo
• KOA II – Kabza de small
• Notumato – Young Stunna
• Auti ‘eSharp – Mas Musiq

Best Amapiano Collaboration

Collaborations are the best way to reach different audiences and also introduce new artists. 

Amapiano is known for some of the biggest collaborations of recent times. It is no surprise that this is a highly contested category. 

Kabza who is almost nominated in each of the 10 categories we are looking at, has two nominations in this category. 

Busta 929 and Boohle also have two nods each, with “Ngixolele” being their joint nomination. 

Durban-based Beast and Dladla Mshunqisi both scored a nod for their collaboration with Amaroto. 

Here is the list of the Best Amapiano Collaboration 2023 Nominees:

• Asibe Happy – Kabza de small & Dj Maphorisa (ft. Ami Faku)
• Iy’ntsimbi zase envy – Amaroto (ft. Busta 929, Beast & Dladla Mshunqisi)
• Khusela – Kabza de small (ft. Msaki)
• Ngixolele – Busta 929 (ft. Boohle)
• Siyathandana – Cassper Nyovest (ft. Boohle & Abidoza)

Best Amapiano Music Video

Uncle Waffles hit the ground running when she first came on the scene. 

She and fellow newcomer Toss are vying for the Best Amapiano music video award. 

Costa Titch also gets a nod for his smash song ‘Big Flexa’, with Kabza the small missing out on a nod. 

However, Dj Maphorisa scores himself yet another nod with Tyler ICU and Visca. 

Here is the list of the Best Amapiano Music Video 2023 Nominees:

• Tanzania – Uncle Waffles & Tony Duardo (ft. Sino Msolo & Boibizza)
• Big Flexa – Costa Titch (ft. Sbuda M, Alfa Kat, Banaba Des, Sdida & Man T)
• Izolo – DJ Maphorisa & Tyler ICU, Visca
• Selema – Musa Keys & Loui
• Umlando – Toss, Mdoovar, 9UMBA (Ft. Sir Trill, Sino Msolo, Lady Du, Young Stunna & Slade)

Best Amapiano Newcomer

The category for Best Amapiano Newcomer is one of the tightest we have ever seen. 

Five of the biggest and hottest artists right now are all vying for this category. All five of them are also vying for Artist of the year, that is how hot they are. 

Uncle Waffles has had the most international success in the previous year, however, that doesn’t mean that she has an edge over the others. 

Pabi Cooper boosts, 1.9 million followers on Instagram, with well over 6 million streams on Spotify and hit after hit. 

When it comes to Young Stunna, he is who you want on your track!

Felo Le Tee broke out with an infectious song that still has everyone dancing. 

And Toss? His song “Umlando” made history and was a hit even before it could be released. This is going to be a tough one. 

Here is the list of the Best Amapiano Newcomer 2023 Nominees:

• Felo le tee
• Pabi Cooper
• Toss
• Uncle Waffles
• Young Stunna

Best Amapiano Female Artist

Dbn Gogo seeks to grab another SA Amapiano award this year, as she is nominated for Best female artist. 

Pabi Cooper and Uncle Waffles are also battling it out for this award. 

With Mawhoo and Nkosazana Daughter also looking to pick up a win. 

Here is the list of the Best Amapiano Female Artist 2023 Nominees:

• DBN gogo
• Mawhoo
• Nkosazana Daughter
• Pabi Cooper
• Uncle Waffles

There is currently no information on the Best Amapiano Male Artist for 2023. Once there is, we will update this article.

When are the Amapiano Awards 2023?

The last Amapiano Awards took place in 2021 and even aired on SABC 1. 

The Amapiano Awards 2023 will take place on Sunday, 2nd April 2023 at the Sun Arena, Sun City. 

It is not yet clear whether they will air on SABC1 as they did in 2021. 

Also, there has been no word about how much the tickets will cost. 

View the full list of nominees here.