Rhythm & Posey awards return this weekend to celebrate county’s top musicians and creatives

The music and arts event which seeks to celebrate talent, creativity and diversity, is back for its third year and is on Saturday, February 8, at The Black Diamond in Northampton.

Kas Aisagbonhi founded Rhythm & Poesy in 2022 with the first edition held the following year.

A few months later, Kas partnered with friend Nnamdi Okafor and together they ran the second edition in 2024 that introduced the Rhythm & Poesy Awards.

Since then, the duo, known fondly by friends as the ‘Glorious Boys’ have continued to grow the brand through different events.

Kas Aisagbonhi said: “Rhythm & Poesy is more than just an event for me.

“I truly believe in the talents around us here in this great town and I think we need to create an avenue for talents and creatives to be appreciated and grow."

Nnamdi Okafor adds: “Rhythm & Poesy celebrates Northamptonshire’s talent and businesses while setting a world-class standard for creativity and community."

Award categories this year include Artist Of The Year, Photographer / Videographer Of The Year, DJ Of The Year, Music Innovator Of The Year and Performer Of The Year.

Organisers have this year renamed the Breakthrough Artist of the Year award to The Shay Breakthrough Artist of the Year in honour of Oluwaseyi 'Shay' Bola-Shadipe, who sadly passed away in October 2022.

Organisers describe Shay as someone passionate about providing young people with a space to express their creativity.

There will also be a Special Recognition Award that honours an individual, group, or business that has made a significant impact on the Northamptonshire music and creative scene and a Digital Artist of the Year award for an artist who has significantly leveraged digital platforms to expand their audience and make a major impact.

Some of the winners will be decided by public vote while some will be picked by organisers and an industry panel.

There will be live performances on the night by Banké, Maddox Jones, Freya Rose, Great Adamz, Eden Lole, Titus and Megzz as well as an after party at Replay night club.

This year’s Rhythm & Poesy is sponsored by Croydon based Kato Enterprise.

On Saturday, the red carpet walk will begin at 6pm and the main show will begin at 7.30pm.

This year’s Rhythm & Posey awards will include an all-female DJ line-up featuring DJ Olympia, Ojay The DJ and DJ CJ.

The dress code is ‘black tie’ and there will be a £250 prize for best dressed and this year’s theme is ‘Love Takes Centre Stage’.

Tickets are still available and cost £11.55 including fees.

After party and couples bundles are also available.

To book, visit https://www.eventbrite.com/e/rhythm-poesy-iii-love-takes-center-stage-tickets-1099888027699

The award categories and nominees are as follows:

ARTIST OF THE YEAR

Bloody Bath

Freya Rose

Great Adamz

Maddox Jones

Megzz

Weirdoe

PHOTOGRAPHER / VIDEOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR

J Pix

Lab Ryte

Mike Musanu

Nick Rees

Photomafia

Renecied

DJ OF THE YEAR

DJ Mark Ski

DJ Melvyn

DJ Principal

Jay Faded

Madam Electrifie

Ojay The DJ & DJ Olympia

THE SHAY BREAKTHROUGH ARTIST OF THE YEAR

Banké

DC3

Gigi Gold

Loco Blac

Nevermore

Z1NO

MUSIC INNOVATOR OF THE YEAR

Celeste Day (Good Vibes Only)

The Lab

Dready Jamz

Lay It Down

Leo Robinson

Picky New Promotions

PERFORMER OF THE YEAR

Banké & Dcollage

Gareth Fuller & Northants Sings Out Choir

Great Adamz & The 99 Band

Hxrmz

Nerissa & The Vibe

T Bone Afrika Allstars