It’s official, the two (2) biggest dates in South African music have been confirmed. The eagerly awaited MTN South African Music Awards (MTN SAMA 19) Nominations Announcement will be held on Wednesday, 20 March at The Turbine Hall in Newtown with the main awards themselves taking place at Sun City on May 10th and 11th. And this year promises to be the most digitally connected awards ever. The music industry will be holding its collective breath on Wednesday 20 March when it will be revealed who the nominees are that have made it through to the 19th Annual MTN South African Music Awards (MTN SAMA 19). The announcement will be streamed live and in real time on mobile (www.mtnsamatv.mobi) and Facebook (www.facebook.com/samusicawards). And then when celebrations begin that night at the official nominee party, fans will be able to watch interviews with their favourite artists LIVE on the Y’ello Carpet on their mobile phones and online. Furthermore, clips will be packaged and uploaded as Video on Demand content post the events on the 20th March, so if you do not catch the LIVE streams you can still watch all the action on the mobisite (www.mtnsamatv.mobi) and on the official MTN SAMA You Tube Channel (www.youtube.com/samusicawards). “After a fantastic year in South African music, the 19th Annual MTN South African Music Awards are sure to leave millions of people on the edge of their seats, starting with the nominations event on March 20. There will be shock, awe and surprises and we cannot wait for the weekend of 10 – 11 May 2012 at the Sun City Superbowl”, added MTN SAMA CEO Nhlanhla Sibisi. The MTN South African Music Awards exist to recognize accomplishments in the South African recording industry and will be broadcast live to millions of viewers on the country’s favourite channel, SABC 1 on Saturday, 11 May. Tickets for this prestigious event are available from Computicket. Please visit the official website for further details - http://samusicawards.co.za The full list of categories for the 19th Annual MTN South African Music Awards are: TOP 5 CATEGORIES • Album of the Year • Duo or Group of the Year • Female Artist of the Year • Male Artist of the Year • Newcomer of the Year ALBUM GENRE SUPER CATEGORIES • Best Rock Album • Best Pop Album • Best Adult Contemporary Album • Best Kontemporêre Musiekalbum • Best African Adult Album • Best Alternative Album • Best Kiddies Album • Best R&B / Soul / Reggae Album • Best Rap Album • Best Kwaito Album • Best Dance Album • Best Traditional Faith Music Album • Best Contemporary Faith Music Album • Best Traditional Album • Best Maskandi Album • Best Jazz Album • Best Classic & Instrumental Album OTHER • Best Live DVD SPECIAL AWARDS • Lifetime Achievement Award • International Achievement Awards • Best Selling Album • Best Selling DVD • Best Collaboration MTN BEST SELLING MOBILE MUSIC DOWNLOAD • Best Selling True-Tone • Best Selling Ring-Back-Tone • Best Selling Full-Track Download TECHNICAL CATEGORIES • Best Music Video of the Year • Best Producer • Best Engineer • Remix of the Year PUBLIC VOTE CATEGORY • Record of the Year SAMPRA AWARD Highest Airplay of the Year Please find below MTN SAMA 19 digital platforms: Website URL: www.samusicawards.co.za The website is the core source of official MTN SA Music Awards information and content. Mobisite URL: www.mtnsamatv.mobi The ultimate mobile digital experience of MTN SAMA 19. It’s an all access pass to MTN SAMA 19, jam packed with exclusive behind the scenes footage. Watch intimate interviews, get the latest breaking news, catch performances from your favourite artists PLUS don’t miss the live web/mobi cast of the show. Catch the Live Streaming experience on your mobile phone (www.mtnsamatv.mobi) & on Facebook (www.facebook.com/samusicawards): Schedule: 20 March 2013: Nominees Announcement 10H00 - 11H00 20 March 2013: Nominees Celebration Y’ello Carpet Interviews 20H00 - 22H00 10 May 2013: Friday Non – Broadcast Industry Awards Ceremony 19H30 – 21h30 11 May 2013: LIVE from the Y’ello Carpet Interviews 18H00 – 20H00 11 May 2013: Saturday MTN SAMA 19 Awards Ceremony 20H30 – 22H30 11 May 2013: LIVE Backstage Web/Mobi cast Interviews with Winners, Performers etc. 18H30 – 22H30