It would appear 2022 is HunTer Leite’s year.
The Benoni songstress has been voted into the Top 20 SAMPRA (South African Music Performance Rights Association) Artist of the Year for SAMA28 (28th annual South African Music Awards), set to take place on July 31.
This category, first introduced in 2021, acknowledges musicians who best entertained during the past year as decided by the public.
The exciting news comes hot on the heels of HunTer making history by becoming the first South African to be nominated for any awards hosted at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville, Tennessee, USA.
She is an official nominee in two categories – World Music Artist of the Year 2022 and Vocal Event of the Year for her collaboration with Amy McAllister on the song Cause God. These awards take place on October 23.
Now, the public can vote HunTer into the SAMA Top 10 Public’s Choice by SMS. Fans can vote 30 times each.
“I would like to call on all the beautiful people of Ekurhuleni to help me get into the Top 10 by giving me your vote,” said HunTer.
How to vote
• SMS *120*33121#
• Select 1 (Artist of the Year)
• Select 0: Next
• Select 13: HunTer Leite
(SMSes cost R1,50 per vote, free SMSes do not apply and voting closes July 1)
About the SAMPRA Artist of the Year category
Any South African musician who has released a body of work between January 1, 2021, and December 31, 2021, is eligible for nomination.
The SAMA28 SAMPRA Artist of the Year category joins Record of the Year and Music Video of the Year categories as the third award voted for by the public exclusively. The other categories are adjudicated by a panel of expert judges.
SAMPRA CEO Pfanani Lishivha said: “We are incredibly proud of the work that South African artists accomplished in 2021, especially given the conditions that they had to create in.
“We urge every music lover to nominate and vote for their favourite artists because it truly is your nomination and vote that will count in the SAMPRA Artist of the Year category.”
Nhlanhla Sibisi, RiSA CEO enthused: “We once again invite South African music enthusiasts to have their say in selecting the year’s biggest act. It has been a fantastic year for South African music particularly with the emergence of new class acts.
“We anticipate that this will be a hotly contested category and we look forward to crowning the recipient at SAMA28.”
ALSO READ: VIDEOS: Benoni’s HunTer makes history with two Nashville nominations
ALSO READ: HunTer Leite receives two international awards
