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Canadian Reggae Music Awards
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The Canadian Reggae Music Awards (CRMA), which was founded by Winston Hewitt in 1985, present and promote Canadian-based reggae music. The CRMA recognizes many players in the music industry including musicians, producers, bands D.J.s, radio personlities and industry leaders. For over 20 years the awards ceremony has been held in various locations in the Greater Toronto Area.

Award Categories
1. Canadian Reggae Artist Award
 * Top Reggae Newcomer (female)
 * Top Reggae Newcomer (male)
 * Top Reggae Band
 * Top Dancehall Style D.J. (female)
 * Top Dancehall Style D.J. (male)
 * Top ReggaeSinger (female)
 * Top ReggaeSinger (male)
 * Top ReggaeProducer
 * Top ReggaeCD/Album
 * Top ReggaeSingle

2. Canadian Reggae Oriented Gospel Awards


 * Top Reggae Gospel Singer (female)
 * Top Reggae Gospel Singer (male)
 * Top Reggae Gospel CD. / Album

3. Canadian Soca/Calypso Awards


 * Top Soca/Calypso CD/Album

4. Top International Reggae Awards


 * Top Reggae CD/Album
 * Top Reggae Single

5. Special Awards


 * Canadian Award of Merit
 * International Award of Merit
 * Canadian Radio D.J. Award
 * The Peter Tosh Memorial Award
 * The Bob Marley Memorial Award

Awards of Merit

 * Two Awards of Merit were introduced in 1995 to recognize individuals who have made significant contributions to the reggae community in Canada and abroad:
 * Canadian Award of Merit
 * International Award of Merit

Gospel Awards

 * In 2000, three new award categories were added to the CRMA to recognize artists in the reggae-gospel genre: Top Reggae Gospel CD/Album, Top Reggae Gospel Singer (male) and Top Reggae Gospel Singer (female). Since the inception of these award categories, they have been dominated by Kay Morris and George Banton.

Radio Awards

 * The recognition of radio personalities began in 2001 with the addition of the Canadian Radio D.J. Award. This award is given to the D.J. who plays the most Canadian reggae music.

Top Reggae Newcomer
The Top Reggae Newcomer (female) award was not given in the following years: 1986, 1987, 1990, 1992, 1993, 2005, 2006 and 2007.
 * In 1986 and 1987, Top Reggae Newcomer (female) and Top Reggae Newcomer (male) were replaced by the Top Newcomer award (not gender specific). The award was received by male artists in both years; Walli Richie in 1986 and Ras Lee in 1987.
 * In 1990 and 1992, the Top Reggae Newcomer (female) category was defunct. Though the Top Reggae Newcomer (male) award was given, there was no female award category.

Top Reggae Band
The Top Reggae Band award has evolved over the years. In 1985 and 1986, the category was named Top Recording Band. In 1987-1989, the category was further divided to include two sub-categories: Top Recording Band and Top Live Band. The recipients were as follows:
 * 1987: Top Recording Band 20 th Century Rebels, Top Live Band Live Stock
 * 1988: Top Recording Band Sattalites, Top Live Band Live Stock
 * 1989: Top Recording Band Sattalites, Top Live Band Jah Cutter and the Determination
 * 1990: Top Recording Band Sattalites, Top Live Band Kalie & Dub Inc.

Soca/Calypso
The Soca/Calypso award category have endured several changes. Soca and calypso were first recognized at the CRMA in 1987. There have been up to 7 categories in this area. However, only one of the seven awards (Top Soca/Calypso Album) is consistently given every year.


 * Top Soca/Calypso Radio D.J.: first given in 1989 and discontinued as of 2001.
 * Top Soca/Calypso Live Band: first given in 1987 and discontinued as of 1991.
 * Top Soca/Calypso Record Store: first given in 1988 and discontinued as of 1995.
 * Top Soca/Calypso Male Singer: first given in 1987 and discontinued as of 1996.
 * Top Soca/Calypso Female Singer: only given in 1992 and 1995.
 * Top Soca/Calypso Single: given in 1988-1991 and 1995-1999.

Industry Awards
Industry awards include the following:
 * Top Reggae Promoter, Top Reggae Live Club , Top Reggae Record Store & Top Reggae Dance Club: first given in 1989 until 2000.
 * Top Reggae Video Store: given 1992, 1993, 1996 and 1997.
 * Top Reggae Distributor: given 1987 and 1988.

All industry awards were discontinued as of 2001.

The Missing Years
No Canadian Reggae Music Awards ceremony was held in 2005, 2006, and 2007. The awards show is scheduled to resume in March 2008.

Dates and Locations
The Canadian Reggae Music Awards ceremony has been held in the Toronto area for over 20 years.

Reggae Music Organizations in Canada

 * Reggae Canada
 * Canadian Reggae World
 * Calgary Reggae Festival
 * Montreal Reggae Fest
 * Ottawa Reggae Festival