Music and Youth
Vibe Awards & UPN celebrate excellence in music
MUMBAI: Vibe magazine and Cable network UPN has announced the second annual Vibe Awards on UPN. The winners were Alicia Keys (2), Terror Squad (2), Usher, Jay-Z, G-Unit, Twista, Anthony Hamilton, T.I., OutKast, Steve Stoute, Jadakiss and Kevin Lyttle.
The second annual awards was hotsed by LL Cool J with Tyra Banks. The Vibe Awards on UPN, a two-hour special event was dedicated to celebrating excellence, innovation, cutting-edge presentation and genre-expanding work in urban music, will air on 16 November on UPN.
The nominations for the awards were determined by the Vibe editorial staff, headed by Editor-in-Chief Mimi Valdés. The winners in each category were decided based on votes from music journalists and regional tastemakers.
The second annual Vibes Awards on UPN is a production of Vibe magazine, Flavor Unit Entertainment and White Cherry Entertainment. For Vibe, Kenard Gibbs and Mimi Valdés are executive producers. Shakim Compere and Queen Latifah are executive producers for Flavor Unit and Dedra Tate is supervising producer. Ricky Kirschner and Glenn Weiss of White Cherry are executive producers. The special will be directed by recent Emmy Award winner Glenn Weiss.
The winners are:
Artist of the Year
Alicia Keys
Best Group
G Unit
Sexiest Video Vixen
Ki Toy (The Way You Move, OutKast)
Reelest Video
99 Problems, Jay-Z
Best Comeback
Twista
Hottest Hook
Lean Back, Terror Squad
Street Anthem
Rubberband Man, T.I.
Power Broker of the Year
Steve Stoute
Coolest Collabo
Why (Remix), Jadakiss, featuring Anthony Hamilton, Styles P., Common & Nas
Next Award
Anthony Hamilton
R&B Voice of the Year
Usher
Best R&B Song
If I Ain’t Got You, Alicia Keys
Club Banger of the Year
Lean Back, Terror Squad
Boomshot Award
Turn Me On (Remix), Kevin Lyttle, featuring Spragga Benz
MUMBAI: Mumbai is about to witness something it has never seen before. The Global Youth Festival arrives on 6-7 December at Jio World Garden with 15,000 attendees and 60-plus experiences sprawled across six sprawling arenas. On its sixth edition, this is no ordinary jamboree—it is a carefully orchestrated collision of wellness, adventure, arts, music, yoga and social change.
Chief Minister of Maharashtra Devendra Fadnavis will throw open the proceedings with a landmark ceremony, signalling the state’s backing for a movement that has already mobilised youth across 20-plus countries and 170-plus cities. The sheer scale is staggering: 500-plus volunteers powering the machine, 600,000-plus volunteer hours logged across previous editions, and millions of lives touched annually.
The speaker roster is formidable. Diipa Büller-Khosla and Dipali Goenka, chief executive of Welspun India, will share the stage with Malaika Arora in conversations spanning leadership, creativity and culture. Union Minister for Sports and Youth Affairs Mansukhbhai Mandaviya will also attend, reinforcing GYF’s reach into the corridors of power.
But this is not mere talk. The Solaris Mainstage promises concerts from renowned Indian artists. Innerverse delivers a 360-degree LED spectacle of art, technology and sound. The Love and Care Arena houses hands-on projects spanning women’s empowerment, child education, rural upliftment and animal welfare. India’s largest outdoor sound-healing experience awaits. An inflatable obstacle course, neon drifter karts and open-sky bouldering cater to thrill-seekers.
Some have branded GYF the “Coachella of Consciousness.” Others call it “India’s Largest Sober Festival.” Spiritual visionary Pujya Gurudevshri Rakeshji, who inspired the festival, will deliver the Wisdom Masterclass. Every rupee goes to charity.
After Mumbai comes Kolkata on 14 December. New York looms next year. For one weekend in December, Mumbai becomes the epicentre of youth-driven change—and nothing will be quite the same after.
Tickets available on BookMyShow. Visit youthfestival.srmd.org or follow @globalyouthfestival on Instagram.
