The 4th Annual Ariana Television Network’s Awards show was held in Hamburg, Germany on Saturday, December 5th, 2009.  Your favorite Afghan celebrities and artists from all over the world were invited and given recognition for their achievements. The awards show reached a global television audience covering the majority of Afghans everywhere. It was a wonderful opportunity for supporting Afghan culture and the performing arts.

The recorded program will likely be broadcasted end of December or for new years.

Below is the list of 2009 award recipients (not in order):

Best Male Artist: Farhad Darya
Best Female: Naghma
Best New Male: Shekeb Osmani
Best New Female: Ghazal
Best Duo: Hafiz & Devyani Ali
Best Ghazal Artist: Najim Nawabi
Best Mahali Artist: Mir Maftoon
Best Album: Jawid Sharif (Kankaash)
Best Track: Bia Janam (Tawab Arash)
Best Music Video: Atish Ba Dilam (Valy)
Best Patriotic Song: Shahe Mardan (Jawid Sharif)
Best Lyrics: Maadar (Hafiy & Devyani)
Best Light Song: Dokhtar-e Afghan (Mozhdah)
Lifetime Achievement Award Recipients: Zahir Howaida, Afsana, Rahim Mehryar, Parasto, Ustad Arman, Madadi

AfghanMP3.com editor’s note:
Though better than last year’s show… like most of you, we felt that some of the awards given in certain categories were biased simply because certain artists have videos and program deals with Ariana Television Network.

No disrespect to Tawab Arash and Jawid Sharif – they’re both great artists, but by awarding Bia Janam and Shah-e Mardaan as Best Song and Best Patriotic Song of the year respectively, is ATN telling us that they are better than Latif Nangarhari’s Afghanistan or Farhad Darya’s Atan? Mozhdah’s Dokhtar-e Afghan for Best Light Song? You kidding me!

We are witnessing small but positive signs of Afghan music industry picking itself up through the production of better music and videos as well as tv programs… let’s hope that people in charge of such award and tv shows do justice by selecting and awarding the appropriate winners instead of playing favors or the usual biased politics.

Some fundemental changes are necessary, both by TV stations and our artists, if we want to see our music industry succeed in the right direction.

Check out darya’s message:

De Afghaanse zanger en songwriter Farhad Darya is de meest invloedrijke muzikant sinds 1980 in zijn vaderland. Hij heeft in zijn carrière al vele prijzen gewonnen, waaronder de Human Rights Award in 2006 en Leading Singer of Afghanistan in 2002. Hij wordt als grondlegger gezien van de hedendaagse muziek in Afghanistan. Zijn invloeden zijn hoorbaar in vele verschillende muziekstijlen en hebben vele generaties geraakt. Zijn muziek wordt gekenmerkt door een mix van Afghaanse en internationale muziekstromen.

Zijn nummer “Kabul Jaan” (Geliefd Kabul) was het eerste lied wat op de radio in Kabul te horen was in 2001 bij Radio Afghanistan. Vanaf 1980 heeft hij meer dan 30 albums in Afghanistan uitgebracht. Op zaterdag 26 september is deze levende legende in Ahoy Rotterdam te aanschouwen vanwege de viering van het Suikerfeest.

Source: Dutch website

Afghanistan’s upcoming presidential election has been looking increasingly American — with posters, rallies, Web sites and music.

The country’s biggest musical star is performing a series of concerts aimed at “rocking the vote.”

A concert Tuesday night in Kabul drew thousands of excited fans. They were divided, Afghan-style, between men and women.

Most of the young men pumping their fists in the air on the soccer field were in Western dress, — but some are more traditional. One young man, who was wearing a starched, foot-high turban, brought with him a dozen of his young friends who are from a border province in the east where the Taliban is strong. But none of them were thinking about that last night.

They were there for the message and the music.

“The population of Afghanistan is 68 percent young generation,” he says. “Why we should be afraid of insecurity and war? Why shouldn’t we get together? We should all work for stability and peace in Afghanistan. That’s why we are here.”

Listen to the full report – includes Darya’s interview

There were plenty of women and girls in attendance and ready to swoon at the sight of Farhad Darya.

The name “Farhad” has a great romantic connotation: Farhad is the “Romeo” in Afghanistan’s version of Romeo and Juliet.

But the concert had a serious side, too: He is hoping to convince Afghans to get out and vote.

Darya himself fled the bloody civil war that destroyed Kabul in the early 1990s, when warlords fought over who would rule the country. He didn’t come back from his home in the United States until after the Taliban were driven out. As a result, he has as many sad memories as anyone in the audience.

He is acutely aware, for instance, that Kabul Stadium, the site of his concert, became infamous as the place where the Taliban conducted public executions and dismemberments — and particularly of women.

“I had my first concert here after 2001, here in this same stadium. People saw me singing about love and new life and giving them hope. People were crying. I’m trying to heal the painful past here,” he says.

Note: All content courtesy of http://www.npr.org/

The tour will kick start on August 3 in Jalalabad at Sports Stadium, followed by Mazar Sharif on August 7 and then ending with the last show in Kabul on August 11 at Sports Stadium.

It should be noted that the admission to these concerts will be free of charge.

Shabnam Soraya along side Ali Etemadi will be touring Canada this summer… holding concerts in Montreal, Vancouver and Toronto.

Below you can find the concert details.

Montreal
Friday, July 31
Le Chateau Roayal Convention Center
3500 Boulevard Du Souvenir, Laval QC
Doors open at 7pm show Starts at 8pm

Vancouver
Saturday, August 8
Red Robinson Show Theatre
2080 United Boulevard, Coquitlam, BC
Doors open at 7pm show Starts at 8pm

Toronto
Saturday, August 15
International Centre (Hall#5 – Arrow Hall)
6900 Airpot Road, Missisauga, ON