2011 Best Alternative - Kokayi

In addition to winning Best Alternative, he also won a Living Legend award at the 2011 DMV awards. He reminds me of a mix between B.O.B and Cee-Lo; which works for him. On top of being a critically acclaimed, Grammy nominated artist Kokayi "keeps busy on multiple fronts with several side-projects – as one half of the electro-hop duo, Dastardly (with DJ/Producer Sharkey), and his long-time Afropunk outfit, The Caesarz - each of which has self-released albums to much critical acclaim. He's produced the MTV Jams staple, "Jet Setter" for fellow D.C. artist Tabi Bonney and created the theme to BET’s “How I’m Living”, as well as music for various commercials on MTV/Nickelodeon." Watch his interview with Societyhae.com, after his SXSW performance, below, the video for his song "RoxTar" above, and you can stream his latest album Robots & Dinosaurs here.

2011Best MD Male R&B - Kevin Ross

"Originally from Washington D.C., Kevin Ross has the next meaningful voice of this generation. Kevin's rich tone, creative run ideas, youthful look and piano skills, humbly places him into the category of some of the greatest performers of all time. As a trained vocalist and performer, his engaging stage presence and personality gives him the edge, while industry insiders find the freshness of his voice to be something special, comparing him to artists like Stevie Wonder and the late great Donnie Hathaway."

I can definitely see the Berklee College of Music grad doing big things. Get familiar here.

2011Best MD Female R&B - Paula Campbell

Paula Campbell, a Baltimore native has had much success. Her single "How Does It Feel" was a big hit on local radio, “The women want to talk to Paula because she writes music they identify with." She supported acts like Bone Crusher and Kanye West, worked with Neyo(video for the song above), and has even charted on billboard. Her independent album Who's Got Next? was very well received, but after signing with Sony they haven't released her follow up. Hopefully, that will all get worked out and she will have a new album soon. But that hasn't stopped her from touring. Check her out if you get a chance. Listen and watch more of her stuff here.

2011 DMV Awards Winners

The 5th Annual DMV awards took place on Saturday, giving recognition to the talented artists in DC, MD, and VA. Sadly, a fight broke out during the show taking away from the positivity of the night. Below is the list of winners, and this week I will do profiles on some of the winners.

BEST DC FEMALE RAP = RA THE MC
BEST DC MALE RAP = TABI BONNEY
BEST DC FEMALE R&B = ALISON CARNEY
BEST DC MALE R&B = KYONTE
BEST MD FEMALE RAP = KEYS
BEST MD MALE RAP = PHIL ADE
BEST MD FEMALE R&B = PAULA CAMPBELL
BEST MD MALE R&B = KEVIN ROSS
BEST VA FEMALE RAP = AUDRA THE RAPPER
BEST VA MALE RAP = K-BETA
BEST VA MALE R&B = CHRIS LEE
BEST VA FEMALE R&B = MIDIAN