The launch will be held on October 3 in Soweto, Joburg, at a venue yet to be revealed by the organisers. This after the Recording Industry of South Africa (RiSA), organisers of the SAMAs released a statement on Monday last week, regarding this year's event which didn't happen at the end of May, or June.
In August, Mo Media Newspaper reported about the North West Department of Arts, Culture, Sports and Recreation, which hosted the annual event for many years, that this year they were pulling out of the two-day gig, which also received TV coverage on its second day on SABC 1.
RiSA could not hold the event mid-year at the Sun City Superbowl because of financial woes. On Monday last week, they released a statement to officially kick off the #Road2SAMA29.
The CEO of RiSA, Nhlanhla Sibisi said, "The South African music industry has produced exceptional music over the past year and seen our artists take their brands to new heights both locally and globally. "We are proud to officially kick off #SAMA29 and look forward to sharing with the country some exciting new developments as the SAMA's finds a new home."
In the statement, the organization added, "A special announcement is also set for October 3, 2023, which will see South Africa's flagship music awards find a new home. This exciting partnership will bring about the biggest SAMA rollout to date, as the #Road2SAMA29 will activate across multiple cities anchoring on music, fashion and tourism."
The last time the SAMAs were held in Joburg, was during the 17th edition in 2011 at the Montecasino, in Fourways. The event was co-hosted by radio and TV personalities Phat Joe and Bonang Matheba.
That year, the biggest winner was Kwaito star Professor who bagged three awards - the prestigious Song of the Year, Kwaito Album of the Year and the Male Artist of the Year awards. His songs, Jezebel and Imoto were hit songs of that season. The 18th edition of the event went back to the Sun City Superbowl yet again in 2012.
