Black Sherif Wins Artiste of the Year Award Again

Black Sherif emerged as the biggest winner at the 27th Telecel Ghana Music Awards (TGMA), winning the coveted Artiste of the Year award for the second time in his career.

The “Iron Boy” hitmaker dominated the night with five major awards, cementing his place as one of Ghana’s leading music stars.

The star-studded event took place on Saturday, May 9, 2026, at the Grand Arena in Accra, where some of Ghana’s finest musicians gathered to celebrate excellence in music. Black Sherif, who first won the Artiste of the Year title in 2023, once again proved his dominance in the music industry after an outstanding year filled with hit songs, massive streaming numbers, and international performances.

The Konongo Zongo-born musician swept five awards on the night, including: Artiste of the Year, Album/EP of the Year with Iron Boy, Songwriter of the Year for Sacrifice, Best Hiphop Song for Where Dem Boys and Best Afropop Song for Sacrifice.

His latest album, Iron Boy, released in April 2025, played a major role in securing the top prize. The project became one of the most talked-about albums of the year, earning praise for its deep storytelling, emotional lyrics, and unique blend of drill, highlife, and Afropop sounds.

Black Sherif faced strong competition from some of Ghana’s biggest names in music, including Medikal, Stonebwoy, Wendy Shay, Sarkodie, and Diana Hamilton. However, his consistency throughout the year and his growing international influence gave him the edge over the other nominees.

One of his biggest challengers on the night was rapper Medikal, who also had an impressive outing. Medikal won four awards, including Best Hiplife/Hip-Hop Artiste, Best Hiplife Song, Collaboration of the Year, and Most Popular Song of the Year for the hit song Shoulder featuring Shatta Wale and Beeztrap Kotm.

During his acceptance speech, an emotional Black Sherif received a loud standing ovation from the audience as he dedicated the award to his hometown, Konongo, and to every hardworking young Ghanaian striving to succeed despite challenges.

His second Artiste of the Year win now places him among a select group of Ghanaian musicians who have won the prestigious award multiple times. Many music lovers and industry players believe Black Sherif’s ability to combine commercial success with meaningful storytelling has made him the voice of Ghana’s younger generation.

Aside from Black Sherif and Medikal, several other artistes also enjoyed memorable moments at the awards ceremony.

Kofi Kinaata won Best Highlife Song with It Is Finished and also took home the Best Highlife Artiste award.

Moliy earned international recognition after winning both Best Reggae/Dancehall Song and International Collaboration of the Year for Shake It To The Max Remix featuring Shenseea, Skillibeng, and Silent Addy.

Wendy Shay was named Best Afrobeats/Afropop Artiste, while Stonebwoy won Best Reggae/Dancehall Artiste. Gospel musician Diana Hamilton also emerged as Best Gospel Artiste.

Kojo Blak was crowned Best New Artiste after a breakthrough year in the music industry, while veteran highlife legend Daddy Lumba received the Lifetime Achievement Award in honour of his enormous contribution to Ghanaian music.

Other winners on the night included: Strongman – Best Rap Performance (Mensei Da), Enam – Best Female Vocal Performance (Amin), Asiama – Best Male Vocal Performance (Akoma), AratheJay – Best Music Video (Put Am On God), Keche – Best Group, Piesie Esther – Best Traditional Gospel Song (Nyame Ye), Kofi Owusu Peprah – Best Urban/Contemporary Gospel Song (Big God Afro) and Davido ft Omah Lay – Best African Song (With You)

The 27th TGMA once again highlighted the growth of Ghana’s music industry, with Black Sherif standing tall as the biggest star of the night and further establishing himself as one of Africa’s most influential young musicians.