The host city for the 23rd MOBO Awards is London and the ceremony will take place on 12th November 2020. 

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To be eligible for a MOBO Award nomination, recordings (Albums, Singles, Mixtapes & EP’s) must be released within the specified eligibility period. 

The eligibility period for the 23rd MOBO Awards is from 1st September 2019 – 31st August 2020. 

To be eligible, recordings must be for sale commercially via general distribution or made available as a digital recording, either for sale or via a recognised streaming service.

Outlined below is more detailed information on what qualifies as a digital recording and general distribution:

General Distribution: Works must be released via general distribution, defined as the nationwide release of a recording via third-party online retailers, and/or applicable digital streaming services. Applicable streaming services are paid subscription, full catalogue, on-demand streaming/limited download platforms that have existed as such within the United Kingdom for at least one full year as of the eligibility period. 

Digital Recordings: Recordings released nationwide via download or streaming service.

The MOBO team start this part of the process by compiling a list of recordings that were released in the eligibility period. Using information made available by Official Charts Company, record labels, streaming and online platforms, over a period of about 6 months, MOBO meticulously evaluates each one to ensure they are eligible for inclusion in the list of potential nominees. MOBO does not make artistic or technical judgments about the recordings, but merely ensure that each entry is placed in the proper category.

A longlist of eligible nominees are then presented to members of the MOBO Awards Voting Academy via a secure online Voting Academy Website where they will select their top 5 or 10 choices in each category. 

The MOBO Awards Voting Academy is the body who help to select the nominees of most of the MOBO Awards categories each year via a secure online system. The Voting Academy is made up of over 100 key professionals drawn from across the UK music industry.

In 2017, MOBO established an 11-strong expert MOBO Awards Judging Panel – a voting body, chaired by artist manager and consultant Kwame Kwaten, made up of independent music expert judges who screened the results from the online MOBO Awards Voting Academy to produce the final list of nominees and, ultimately, the winners for the following MOBO Award categories:

BEST MALE ACT

BEST FEMALE ACT

BEST ALBUM

BEST SONG

BEST VIDEO

MOBO Awards Voting Academy Members are professionals within the UK music industry. These may include songwriters, producers, music video directors, press officers, journalists, agents, DJ’s and A&R’s.

The criteria for being a Voting Academy Member remain the same as ever, however members are only invited by the MOBO team on the basis of their expertise across different aspects of music. For further information, please contact theacademy@mobo.com

For the Nominations Process, MOBO Awards Voting Academy members only. The results from Voting Academy members are then screened by the independent MOBO Awards Judging Panel to produce the final list of nominees. 

Once the complete list of nominees is announced at our Nominations Launch, voting opens up to the general public and the MOBO Awards Judging Panel will reconvene to determine the eventual winners for specific MOBO Award categories.  

In order to preserve the integrity of the voting process, in select award categories — Jazz, Gospel, Reggae, and African — MOBO Award nominations and eventual winners are determined by Specialist Category Committees, comprised of highly specialised Voting Academy Members who are knowledgeable, passionate, and qualified within these fields.

There are currently 8 fields (General, Grime, Gospel, Reggae, Hip Hop, R&B/Soul, Afrobeats, and Jazz) and 14 distinct award categories across those fields.

The awards process is constantly evolving to reflect what’s happening in music. Each year, we receive proposals with suggested changes on everything from awards categories to rule revisions. We typically alert the public and Voting Academy members of any category or rule changes in September.

Award process updates for the next MOBO Awards will be reflected here. For further information, please contact theacademy@mobo.com. 

There are currently 14 MOBO Awards categories in total. 

BEST MALE ACT 

BEST FEMALE ACT 

BEST ALBUM

BEST NEWCOMER

BEST SONG

BEST VIDEO

BEST HIP HOP ACT

BEST GRIME ACT 

BEST R&B/SOUL ACT 

BEST INTERNATIONAL ACT 

BEST AFRICAN ACT

BEST REGGAE ACT

BEST JAZZ ACT 

BEST GOSPEL ACT 

We acknowledge that there have been some fantastic projects released during our growth period. To honour this, we’ve made the decision to include an additional category for the 23rd MOBO Awards called BEST ALBUM (2017 – 2019). This will be a one-off category and will highlight the best albums released during 1st September 2017 – 31st August 2019. The number of nominees to be included in this category will be 10. 

Arena tickets for the 23rd MOBO Awards can be purcahsed here.  

We also offer VIP packages - further information can be obtained via viptickets@mobo.com.

Sign up to our newsletter for exclusive news and access to pre-sale tickets. Furthe details can also be found on mobo.com 

For the general public, all attendees aged six-years-old and up need to purchase a ticket to attend the MOBO Awards. Please note, MOBO recommends all children under 18 attend with an adult and all children under 15 must be accompanied by an adult.

For nominated artists, an Awards department representative will get in touch immediately after nominations are announced to outline the ticket application and accreditation process to gain access to the red carpet and telecast.

VIP packages are the only way to receive exclusive insider access to everything that’s happening around the MOBO Awards. VIP Packages include the best seats, excellent networking opportunities, access to after show parties and the opportunity to rub shoulders with some of the hottest stars in music and entertainment.

To find out more information, please click here OR email viptickets@mobo.com. 

An Awards department representative will work directly with nominees to co-ordinate ticket orders and pick-ups. In order to pick up your artist's tickets, we must have authorisation from the artist himself/herself.

We share the MOBO Awards show rundown—as well as lots of other pertinent information— shortly after our Nominations Launch, which takes place in the lead-up to the awards ceremony. Stay tuned for more information.

If you purchase a MOBO Awards ticket via a third party site e.g. Ticketmaster, AXS or Eventim, your ticket will be sent to your selected address or can be collected at the venue box office.

For VIP ticket holders, you can arrange for tickets to be collected at our London headquarters or to be handed to you by an Awards representative at the Awards show venue. Further details regarding access to the after party will be outlined in an email, as well in your ticket package. To find out more information, please contact viptickets@mobo.com. 

Please contact press@mobo.com to find out further information. Unfortunately, due to the high volume of applications, we cannot guarantee access or a response to all press applicants.

An Awards representative will reach out regarding the status of your application a couple weeks prior to the awards. 

Performers and guest presenters for the MOBO Awards will be announced leading up to the next MOBO Awards. Follow @MOBOAwards on Twitter and Instagram for up-to-the-minute updates. You can also head to mobo.com.

We appreciate your interest in having your artist or client participate in the 23rd Annual MOBO Awards. Please direct all enquiries to press@mobo.com

When talking about the MOBO Awards, please use #MOBOAwards.

Twitter

For nominated artists: 

Honoured to be among the nominees announced by @MOBOAwards for the #MOBOAwards. 

For congratulating other nominated artists: 

So many talented artists nominated by @MOBOAwards as nominees for the #MOBOAwards. Can't wait to celebrate their achievements <insert date> at <insert location>! 

General info: 

Excited to join @MOBOAwards and celebrate the creative community at the #MOBOAwards, <insert date> at <insert location>. 

And please make note of our social URL links:

1. Twitter.com/MOBOAwards
2. Facebook.com/MOBOOfficial
3. Instagram.com/moboawards
4. YouTube.com/MOBOTv
5. Snapchat: MOBOAwards 

Further details regarding public access to the MOBO Awards red carpet will be made available closer to the ceremony.

We're expecting several high-profile special guests at the MOBO Awards but any interaction with fans is solely to their discretion.

If you have a general enquiry, please contact team@mobo.com. Alternatively, click here if you have a more specific MOBO enquiry.