Tony Dath is a popular dancehall musician
Dancehall musician Tony Dath has come to the defense of fellow artiste Stonebwoy over the controversial incident that occurred during the then 2019 Vodafone Ghana Music Awards (VGMA).
Speaking in a recent interview on Angel FM with MC Portfolio, Tony Dath argued that Stonebwoy should not be blamed for his actions on the night, insisting the artiste acted in self-defense due to inadequate security at the event.
“What I’ve learned is that in Ghana, we do not protect our artistes. Thank God Stonebwoy had a strong team to hold him down and protect him that night; else it could have been a different story,” he said, adding that the BHIM Nation boss “did what he had to do to protect himself.”
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Tony Dath further claimed that organisers failed to provide adequate security, which forced Stonebwoy and his team to take matters into their own hands.
“Stone shouldn’t be blamed. He did what he had to do to protect himself. If the organisers had provided adequate security during that event, we would have waited for them. But there was no security, so we had to do what we had to do. He shouldn’t be punished,” he said.
He also described Stonebwoy as the most hardworking artiste that year, saying he deserved the Artiste of the Year title.
“I believe he won the Artiste of the Year title for that year. He was the most hardworking artiste that year, and he has been till date,” he said.
What happened?
The 2019 VGMA ceremony was marred by a chaotic confrontation between Stonebwoy and Shatta Wale, which erupted after Stonebwoy won the Reggae/Dancehall Artiste of the Year award.
Shatta Wale and his entourage reportedly stormed the stage, leading to a scuffle during which Stonebwoy was seen wielding a firearm.
The incident disrupted the ceremony and forced organisers to temporarily halt the event.
Following the fracas, both artistes were invited by the police for interrogation and were later sanctioned by the award organisers, with bans imposed on both artistes and the Artiste of the Year title, which was heavily contested by the two artistes has been withheld.
The incident remains one of the most controversial moments in Ghanaian music award history.
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