Black British Award Show MOBO ReturnsSkip To ContentHomepageSign InSearch BuzzFeedSearch BuzzFeedlol Badge Feedwin Badge Feedtrending Badge FeedCalifornia residents can opt out of "sales" of personal data.Do Not Sell My Personal Information 2022 BuzzFeed, Inc PressRSSPrivacyConsent PreferencesUser TermsAd ChoicesHelpContactSitemap Posted on 9 Dec 2020 Meet Kanya King The Woman Behind Britain s Longest Running Award Show For Black MusicFollowing a two-year hiatus, Britain’s most prestigious award show honouring black music returns in the midst of a global pandemic and a moment of racial reckoning worldwide. by Nicolas-Tyrell ScottBuzzFeed ContributorFacebookPinterestTwitterMailLink londonphotos.biz MOBO Founder Kanya King delivering her keynote address at the 2017 award ceremony. Most contemporary music award shows exude anonymity, with their respective founders scurrying away from the spotlight, creating distance between the production itself and their position as figureheads. Kanya King, however, is an exception as the CEO and founder of the UK’s MOBO Awards. Standing as an acronym for Music of Black Origin, King has been an unapologetic advocate of Black culture since its 1996 inception. She’s spoken at most of the MOBO’s ceremonies, attempting to spark — whether successful or not — a sense of morale. As the memories of George Floyd, Belly Mujinga, Nicole Smallman, and Bibaa Henry were etched into the fabric of the world, King penned a letter in June addressed to the British government’s Department of Digital, Culture, Media, and Sports, demanding change. “I have never told this story before, but I have a younger brother who, after getting racially attacked at a football match, has suffered from ongoing health issues,” she revealed. Months later, she is hopeful but vaguely skeptical in her assessment of the social movements' influence as it pertains to action. “There’s more companies who have talked, [but] many don’t understand the might of institutional racism, they are listening [right now] though.” One aspect that King wholly agrees on, however, is that the world collectively awakening, and now more than ever, the MOBO Awards matter. King’s goals stem from a childhood inundated with prejudice. As the youngest daughter, she grew up in Kilburn, north-west London, feeling the wrath of a lack of representation in media and schooling. “It wasn’t cool to be from Africa growing up,” she admitted. “In the books at school, we were depicted as savages.” Being of Ghanaian and Irish ancestry, King said her school friends “would often joke about it and ask me, ‘What’s it like to have one Black parent and one white?’” From a young age, King strived for independence, seeking financial freedom and what she calls “purposeful fun”, which included a stint selling whistles at London’s Notting Hill carnival as a young girl. Peter Jordan - Pa Images / Getty Images Beverley Knight at the1999 MOBO Awards at London's Royal Albert Hall. In her speech, Knight called out record label executives over the lack of opportunities for black artists. Growing up, King's parents wanted her to become a teacher, and to pursue a career that would provide her with security and safety. After giving birth to her son at 16, King dropped out of her English and drama courses at college, to focus on her dream of being an entrepreneur in the entertainment industry. More than five years later, when King was in her early twenties and working at Clark Television Productions, booking talent for diverse programming such as The Chrystal Rose Show, she began spotting gaps in the market for showcasing Black artists and musicians. “I was surrounded by many talented creative people who were frustrated,” she recalled. “Their music wasn’t getting the recognition it deserved.” Fuelled by her own frustrations about the lack of Black representation in music, King began to host underground music shows at the Apollo Club in Willesden. She often filled the venue beyond capacity using DIY marketing tactics such as flyers and word of mouth. “Lots of high profile figures, such as Paul Weller, would turn up. That was definitely the start of the journey for me,” she said. It was in 1996, spurred on by a conversation with a network franchise holder and growing interest in London's diversifying population, King pitched the first MOBO award show. To pull it off in just six weeks, King took on the financial risk by remortgaging her home. On Nov. 21, 1996, King debuted the inaugural MOBO Awards, hosted by Sonya Soul, which had in attendance the likes of Lionel Richie, who received the first Lifetime Achievement Award, a then soon-to-be British prime minister Tony Blair along with other key British figures at the time. Dave Hogan / Getty Images 50 Cent at the 2003 MOBO Awards held at the Royal Albert Hall in London. The show quickly galvanised a market of engaged music enthusiasts and entertainers alike. In one of its most star-studded airings in 1998, Sean “Diddy” Combs received the then Outstanding Achievement Award, and global artists like Beenie Man, Destiny's Child, and Lil’ Kim were in regular attendance. As the global appetite for the show grew, a growing vocal Black British community began to use the platform to advocate for its validity and hold British musical institutions to account. Upon her 1999 win for Best Album, Wolverhampton born singer Beverley Knight took to the Royal Albert Hall stage to call out record label executives. “I’d like the UK record labels to just take notice,” she pleaded. “They could have the same calibre of talent if they just believed in UK talent.” However, with the increased visibility, came the criticisms particularly with regard to cultural appropriation when at the 2003 award show American performers Justin Timberlake and Christina Aguilera walked away with awards for Best R&B Act and Video respectively. The platform Black Britain, which wielded a large influence in Europe as the largest website for ethnic minorities at the time, called for a boycott of the brand. Over a decade later and the same debates have persisted as Sam Smith emerged as the big winner at the 2014 ceremony where they won four awards including Best Soul/R&B. For King, the MOBO Awards is underpinned by a principle of inclusivity. “It’s about providing a focus on music of Black origin, but not exclusion,” she said. King’s enthusiasm is ever-present as she returns to the core of the MOBOs in her commentary. “I guess that’s the reason that the MOBO’s exists — it was about trying to find an equitable place for representation for musicians and the wider creative sector.” Andrew Benge / Getty Images Cardi B performs on stage at the 2017 MOBO Awards in Leeds, England. In 2016, King rebooted the MOBO Awards’ “Unsung” arm and its success in championing the “next generation of superstars”. To date, the offshoot has discovered, supported, and funded Black british talent like Billboard-charting rapper Alika, and “Collide” vocalist Tiana Major9. “It’s always been an organic platform we’ve had. We’re launching it again very soon. My aim is to see how we can take this to the next level,” King said over Zoom. In 2018 and 2019, the MOBO Awards were put on hiatus to, as King said, reassess its position in the marketplace. “We wanted to take stock, to see if there was still a need for a show like our still.” During its hiatus, the organisation continued to build its community by expanding into the wider entertainment business through film screenings and its charitable fund but for King, it was important to bring back the awards show. “People would often tell me that [the MOBOs] were valuable and needed.” This led to her announcement of the show's return in 2020. As the global coronavirus pandemic plagued the entertainment business, the MOBO Awards pressed on with their plans to bring the show back this year as promised. “This was an important year for all of us, it felt like now more than ever that we had to [still] come back,” shared King, who places the show as a vehicle to carry Black culture forward during a year defined by it — through the resurgence of Black Lives Matter. The MOBO Awards returning in an unprecedented year also gives the platform an opportunity to address past controversies surrounding technical malfunctions and the overall production of the show. Having faced similar scrutiny in 2017, the BET Awards led the 2020 music awards season across the Atlantic, with a bold, innovative approach to performances and the show at large. “In my mind, it was about redefining what virtual ‘can’ be,” BET’s EVP of specials, music programming, and music strategy, Connie Orlando remarked in reference to this year’s ceremony. Similarly, King is forthright in acknowledging that viewers have “high” expectations of the MOBOs in a virtual climate. “People were trying to work out what we can and can’t do.” However, she does admit that the MOBOs have an advantage airing so late in the year. “We wanted to end [2020] on a high. We want it to be a momentous year for artists,” she said. Michael Tubi / Getty Images This year's hosts Chunkz and Maya Jama. To deliver this year’s show, MOBOs have arguably recruited the very best through a collaboration with award winning creators at CC-Lab and the first time use of Unreal, software hailed as the world's most open and advanced real-time 3D creation platform all coming together to create what King says will be an “experience of universes.” Technology isn’t the only change implemented into the MOBO Awards’ return. New members were inducted into the show's prestigious voting academy, which helped to shortlist nominees for most of the long-list categories for this year. “We changed up the panel,” King said. “It’s important to have a diverse range of people, whether it’s YouTube or Spotify. For us, we know how challenging it is for people to decide [who should be nominated].” 2020’s list of categories is somewhat ambitious, featuring the new Best Media Personality and Performance in a TV Show/Film additions. The former addition, King credits to a member of her digital team. The larger entertainment categories are an attempt to spotlight wider Black cultural contributions outside of music that King says their team acknowledged during their time off. Elsewhere, awards such as Best African Act, remain a staple category for the show, which includes Afrobeats, Afropop, and highlife-leaning talents this year. To some, such broad categories, lacking specificity, can be seen as lazy and archaic, especially when nuances for other Black genres exist — like jazz, reggae and gospel. On the issue of whether Best African Act should be compartmentalised to accurately portray crossover genres in the Western world, King admits that subgenres exist and are thriving but presents the scenario of too many existing for one awards show. “Of course there are probably many more genres that we could include. We are still proud that we’ve been able to showcase the artists that have made a footprint [in relation to African music], whether that’s winning an award, performing, or a nomination. The idea was to represent the impact on wider society,” she said. This year's return hosted by Maya Jama and rising presenter Chunkz promises to feature performances by high-calibre Black British talent as the award show prepares to compete, in a new decade and a crowded marketplace. King doesn’t hesitate to acknowledge the different offerings that competitors like GRM’s Rated Awards present. But for the MOBO Awards architect, thinking beyond the annual awards is now a more pertinent goal. “I’m thinking of tech, I’m thinking of mentorship, I can’t think of what the MOBO’s legacy is in one word, all I know is that I have to keep moving forward.” The MOBO Awards will stream from 7pm GMT on Dec. 9 online and air on BBC One 10:45pm GMT. Share This ArticleFacebook PinterestTwitterMailLink BuzzFeed DailyKeep up with the latest daily buzz with the BuzzFeed Daily newsletter!This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.