UPDATE (July 8): Grammy-nominated dancehall icon Bounty Killer will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2025 Caribbean Music Awards, which will be held on Thursday, Aug. 28, at Kings Theatre in Brooklyn, N.Y.
The honor, in recognition of Bounty Killer’s transformative influence across multiple generations of Caribbean artists, comes just over a month after the Kingston-bred artist headlined Brooklyn’s Barclays Center for his first U.S. performance in 15 years on July 5. Bounty Killer has earned three entries on the Billboard Hot 100: 1997’s “Hip-Hopera” (No. 81, with The Fugees), 1998’s “Deadly Zone” (No. 79, with Mobb Deap and Rappin’ Noyd) and 2001’s “Hey Baby” (No. 5, with No Doubt).
Austin “Super Blue” Lyons, a Trinidadian calypsonian giant who pioneered this iconic “jump and wave” style of soca with 1991’s “Get Something and Wave,” will receive the Calypso Honors for his impact on the genre. Notably, Super Blue was the first artist to win Trinidad’s annual International Soca Monarch competition in 1993. That same year, he also won the country’s annual Road March contest (with the same song, “Bacchanal Time,” no less), making him the first artist to do so.
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Trinidadian composer, songwriter, producer and artist Kerwin Du Bois, who won International Groovy Soca Monarch in 2014 with “Too Real,” will receive a special Producer Honor.
PREVIOUSLY (April 9): Grammy-nominated pop-dancehall princess Shenseea and Jamaican dancehall hitmaker Masicka lead the nominations for the 2025 Caribbean Music Awards, with seven nods each.
Notably, Shenseea, who won her first Caribbean Music Award last year for female artist of the year (dancehall), scored her first solo Grammy nomination earlier this year. Her sophomore album, Never Gets Late Here, was recognized in the best reggae album category, ultimately losing out to the Bob Marley: One Love soundtrack.
Soca superstars Patrice Roberts and Kes follow with six Caribbean Music Awards nominations. Dancehall legend Vybz Kartel, genre-fusing soca star Nailah Blackman and Jamaican dancehall stars Chronic Law and Kranium each have five nods. In addition, Trinidadian soca titan Bunji Garlin and reggae luminaries Romain Virgo and Lila Iké are next in line with four nods each.
The Caribbean Music Awards recognizes artists, producers and industry professionals who have significantly contributed to the Caribbean music landscape. This year’s nominations list includes more than 150 nominees across 40-plus categories spanning a diverse range of genres including reggae, soca, dancehall, calypso, R&B and gospel.
This year, the Caribbean Music Awards is introducing seven new categories: Caribbean R&B and Zess-Steam Artist of the Year, International DJ of the Year (Female), Reggae Collaboration of the Year, and Reggae, Gospel, and Caribbean Fusion Song of the Year. The new categories reflect the breadth of Caribbean music and the increasing consumption of particular styles and sounds. “The Greatest Bend Over,” Yung Bredda’s Full Blown-produced smash, became one of the biggest soca crossover hits of the year thanks to its incorporation of Zess.
“Zess has a very large following among the youth in Trinidad, but [those artists] have been struggling to be accepted by mainstream Trini music – which is soca,” Kevon Hart of Full Blown told Billboard in March. “For us, this was a very clever way of combining the two and showing the Zess artists that they do what we do, just in a different way.”
Other notable nominees include Jada Kingdom, Spice, Mical Teja, Lady Lava and Dexta Daps — last year’s most nominated artist — with three nods each.
The awards are presented by the Caribbean Elite Group, which also produces Caribbean Elite Magazine – a print and digital publication that highlights Caribbean entertainers, artists, producers, promoters, cuisine, travel, fashion and entrepreneurs.
Voting is currently underway at the Caribbean Music Awards website, and will conclude on Friday, May 1. Winners will be celebrated on Thursday, Aug. 28, at King Theatre in Brooklyn, N.Y.
For the complete list of nominations, visit the Caribbean Music Awards website. Here are the nominees in selected categories:
Reggae — Album of the Year
Various Artists — Bob Marley: One Love – Music Inspired by the Film (Deluxe)
Bugle — Apex
Etana — Nectar of the Gods
Mortimer — From Within
Romain Virgo — The Gentle Man
UB40 — UB45
Dancehall — Album of the Year
Dexta Daps — Trilogy
Govana — Legacy
Shenseea — Never Gets Late Here
Spice — Mirror 25
Vybz Kartel — First Week Out
People’s Choice Award
Joé Dwèt Filé
Kes
Lady Lava
Shenseea
Skeng
Skillibeng
Vybz Kartel
Yung Bredda
Dancehall Song of the Year
Squash, “Big Breeze”
Vybz Kartel, “The Comet”
ArmaniI, “HAAD (Fiesta)”
Busy Signal, “Happy Birthday”
Kranium & Chronic Law, “Higher Life”
Shenseea, Masicka & Di Genius, “Hit & Run”
Jada Kingdom, “What’s Up (Big Buddy)”
Masicka, “Whites”
Reggae Song of the Year
Romain Virgo & Masicka, “Been There Before”
Bugle, Buju Banton & Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley, “Thank You Lord”
Lila Iké & Joey Bada$$, “Fry Plantain”
Pressure Busspipe, “Haunted”
Protoje, “Legend Legend”
Marlon Asher & Sizzla, “Never See Us Fall”
Alaine & Usain Bolt, “Pile Up”
YG Marley, “Praise Jah in the Moonlight”
Soca Song of the Year
Patrice Roberts, “Anxiety”
Nailah Blackman & Lyrikal, “Best Self”
Blaka Dan, “Blessing”
Bunji Garlin, “Carnival Contract”
Problem Child, “Carnival Jumbie”
Mical Teja, “DNA”
GB Nutron & Farmer Nappy, “In the Center”
Trilla-G, Lil Boy & Quan, “Someone Else”
Musical Event of the Year
Buju Banton — Long Walk to Freedom
Dominica World Creole Festival
Patrice Roberts — I Am Woman
Konpa Kingdom
Saint Lucia Jazz & Arts Festival
Soca Brainwash
Stink & Dutty
Vybz Kartel — Freedom Street
Zess-Steam Artist Of The Year
Lady Lava
Father Philis
Nelly Cottoy
Sackie
Trinidad Killa
Yung Bredda
Caribbean R&B Artist of The Year
Amanda Reifer
Dexta Daps
D’yani
Kranium
Monéa
Tosh Alexander
Caribbean Fusion Artist of the Year
5 Two
Kalash
Kanis
Michael Robinson
Naika
Stefflon Don
Dancehall Artist Of The Year (Male)
Busy Signal
Chronic Law
Dexta Daps
Kranium
Masicka
Sean Paul
Valiant
Vybz Kartel
Reggae Artist Of The Year (Male)
Anthony B
Buju Banton
Gramps Morgan
Pressure
Romain Virgo
Sizzla
Tarrus Riley
YG Marley
Soca Artist Of The Year (Male)
Bunji Garlin
GBM Nutron
Kerwin Dubuis
Kes
Mical Teja
Mr. Killa
Problem Child
Skinny Fabulous
Dancehall Artist Of The Year (Female)
Jada Kingdom
Shaneil Muir
Shenseea
Spice
Stalk Ashley
Stefflon Don
Vanessa Bling
Reggae Artist Of The Year (Female)
Alaine
Etana
Lila Iké
Marcia Griffiths
Naomi Cowan
Queen Omega
Tanya Stephens
Soca Artist Of The Year (Female)
Anika Berry
Destra Garcia
Fay-Ann Lyons
Jadel
Nadia Batson
Nailah Blackman
Nessa Preppy
Patrice Roberts
Best New Artist (Dancehall)
Armanii
Daan Chorus
Kman 6ixx
Kraff Gad
Lady Lava
Malie Donn
Monea
Rajah Wild
Best New Artist (Soca)
Blaka Dan
Coutain
Hunter
Imani Ray
Mela Caribe
Star Martin
Th3rd
Trinidad Killa
Best New Artist (Reggae)
Halie
Aiesha
Blvk H3ro
Jayden
Joby Jay
Kxng Izem
Royal Blue
Sevana
Latin Caribbean Artist of the Year
AKIM
Bad Bunny
El Alfa
Kruziano
La Pana
Prince Royce
Romeo Santos
Shakira
