First GaySA Radio Awards a great success

GaySA Radio hosted its first Golden Mic Awards evening on Friday 25 November. The event was held to honour the volunteers at GaySA Radio for a job well done.

Hosted at the stylish Hertford Hotel near Lanseria, the event was both an awards ceremony for the station’s unpaid volunteers and a celebration of the first year’s operations.

2016 was an eventful year at GaySA Radio, and programming manager Ethan Baird took a look at the year and the many achievements so far. These included a water drive with the Reforming Church, the vigil for the victims of the Orlando massacre, as well as the very successful campaign to keep the gay hating pastor Steven Anderson out of South Africa.

Ethan also highlighted a number of successful advertising campaigns, including Pretoria Pride, Antiek Fabriek and Hertford Hotel, to name a few. He also spoke about some of the upcoming projects like #UprisingOfLove, Cape Town Pride, the big advertising campaign for Fortis Hotels’s Pink Weekends and the first staff training early in January 2017.

Station Manager Hendrik Baird acknowledged each and every volunteer with a certificate of appreciation, highlighting special moments or character quirks of the presenters and staff, before moving on to the more serious awards.

The Best Show of the Year was awarded to Tom Budge for the Sunday Soul Searching, while presenter of the year was won by Lazola Yoni who presents Your Make-up is Terrible on a Friday night. Other award winners were the breakfast show host Chris Jordan who won for best feature and Waseem Saheb winning for most popular show, The Steam Room.

The guests included a number of advertisers, contributors and VIP guests who all commented on the amazing diversity of the station’s staff and praised the great strides the station has made over the past year.

It is foreseen that this event will grow to include more categories in future years as well as awarding other people and organisations who are making a difference in the LGBTI community.

GaySA Radio is an internet radio station broadcasting on www.gaysaradio.co.za.

THE FULL LIST OF WINNERS

Interview of the Year: Rian Pelati (Evita Bezuidenhout)

Most Popular: Waseem Saheb (The Steam Room)

Best feature: Chris Jordan (WTF with S&L on The Eggs and Sausage Show)

Above & Beyond: Ditshego Ditshego (The Gay Agenda)

Most improved: Annemarie Baird (Sunday Stoep/Cocktail Hour: Theatre and Musicals)

Best Presenter: Lazola Yani (Your Make-Up is Terrible)

Best Show: Thomas Budge (Soul Searching)

Volunteer of the year: Lesego Ramokona