SOJA Wins 2022 Grammy Award For ‘Best Reggae Album’
Virginia-based Reggae band SOJA (Soldiers of Jah Army) has won the 2022 ‘Best Reggae Album’ Grammy Award for Beauty in the Silence, eclipsing the five Jamaican nominees and leaving many Jamaican pundits who were predicting that one of their compatriots would have won, speechless.
It’s the first time a mostly white Reggae band has won the award (Two members are Hispanic, one each from Venezuela and Puerto Rico). It’s also the third time a non-Jamaican person or group has won in the Reggae category’s 37 year history. British band Steel Pulse won in 1987 with their album Babylon The Bandit, followed by British singer Sting who teamed up with Shaggy for 44/876 in 2018.
SOJA came out ahead of Queen of Dancehall Spice, who was nominated for her debut album 10, Reggae songstress Etana, who earned a nomination for Pamoja; Sean Paul for Live N Livin, Jesse Royal for Royal and Gramps Morgan for Positive Vibration.
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The band members appeared magnanimous in victory, and in saying thanks, paused to pay tribute to Jamaica, the homeland of Reggae.
“We wanna thank all our influences when we were growing up. Starting our reggae band was kind of our dream and the only thing we wanted to do. And then one day people started coming to the shows,” band lead singer Jacob Hemphill said.
“To the founding fathers of Reggae music into the island of Jamaica, you inspired us all. Give thanks. One love,” another added.
The 13-track Beauty in the Silence was released on September 24 via ATO Records and had peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Reggae Albums, No. 34 on Billboard’s Current Albums Chart and at No. 52 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales Chart. It featured the collaborations The Day You came with Ali Campbell of UB40 and Rebelution; press Rewind with J Boog and Collie Buddz and Something to Believe in with Stick Figure, among others.
This is SOJA’s third nomination and first Grammy win.
They had copped a nomination for the Best Reggae Album for SOJA: Live In Virginia which was released in 2016. Prior to that they were nominated for Amid The Noise And Haste in 2014.
SOJA had made their first ever visit to Jamaica in January 2015 where they made their debut performance on the island in front of a relatively small audience at the Jamaica jazz and Blues Festival at the Falmouth Multipurpose Complex in Trelawny, performing an array of songs including Tear it down, She still loves me, Rest of my life and Not done yet.
Back then, Jacob Hemphill had also taken time out to express gratitude to Jamaica for creating reggae music, a genre he told the audience he grew up listening to.
“For the past 20 years of our lives we have been listening to this music… Thank you guys for making us a part of this beautiful picture,” Hemphill had said then.