Five, instead of the six gospel artists, who were nominated to represent Rwanda at the Groove Awards—Kenya’s premiere Gospel Awards, left the country for Kenya on April 29 by road.

The grand finale of the Groove Awards is slated for Sunday, May 2 at the Kenyatta International Conference Centre.

According to the Groove Awards coordinator in Rwanda, Patrick Blessedson Kanyamibwa, Diane Nkusi, Irene Gabby Kamanzi (a member of The Sisters), Patrick Nyamitari, Alexis Dusabe and Albert Shala are the five artists who will perform.

"Wibabara Gisele Phanny and Aline Gahongayire (of The Sisters) couldn’t travel because they lost their sister and Uwitonze Clementine (Tonzi) couldn’t travel by road to Nairobi because she is pregnant, while Aime Uwimana is also sick,” Kanyamibwa revealed.

This year marks the fifth edition of the Groove Awards, and it sees newcomers Rwanda and Burundi, which joined Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda to give the event a regional fiesta.

The ceremony was organised by Skiza, a Safaricom service that allows callers to listen to music before a call is answer.

The Groove Awards seeks to promote and celebrate gospel talent in the region and across Africa.

Since its inception in 2004, over 600 artists/groups have been nominated and over 100 Groove statuettes have been presented to musicians in East African region.
The penal comprises 13 judges selected from the region.

The categories are:

Division I

1. Male artist of the year
2. Female artist of the year
3. Group of the year
4. New artist/ group of the year

Division II

1. Song of the year
2. Worship song of the year
3. Album of the year
4. Hip-hop song of the year

Division III

1. Audio producer of the year
2. Video producer of the year
3. Song writer of the year
4. Video of the year

Division IV

1. Collaboration of the year
2. Dance group of the year
3. Worship team/choir
4. Live band of the year

East Africa Region

1. Artist of the year (Rwandan)
2. Artist of the year (Ugandan)
3. Artist of the year (Tanzania)
4. Artist of the year (Burundi)
5. Diaspora artist/group of the year (E.A)

Ends