With several gospel projects named in the provisional list for the Best Reggae Album Grammy Award, music producer Canute Neil Ellis believes it spells a new day for inspirational music in Jamaica.

New Day by Cario Young, No Distortion by DJ Nicholas, New Heights by Brotha George and New Man by Sone G are among the 119 albums/EPs being considered for the Best Reggae Album category.

The Recording Academy will announce the nominations for the 69th Grammy Awards on November 16. It is likely that five artistes will make the cut for Best Reggae Album.

Ellis produced New Day, Young’s first album. He also produced two songs from No Distortion and worked as engineer on all that album’s 10 songs.

“This shows that it’s not only secular (acts) can be on the road to nomination or win. We as gospel artistes can do it because we have good quality and good content,” Ellis told Observer Online. “Somebody like DJ Nicholas who has been doing this for 20-something years has a good chance too. They can be in the running with the Kartels, the Masickas and the Shaggys.”

Vybz Kartel (God And Time), Masicka (Forever Reign) and Shaggy (Lottery) have also been named in the consideration list, which sees a significant increase from 73 last year. Shaggy has won the Best Reggae Grammy Award twice. His first came in 1996 for Boombastic; the second was in 2019 for 44/876, his album with Sting.

Other previous Best Reggae Grammy Album winners named in the provisional list are Beenie Man, Buju Banton, Burning Spear and SOJA. The latter, who won in 2022 with Beauty In The Silence, are the only American act to win the category.

Blxxd & Fyah by Keznamdi won the 2026 Grammy for Best Reggae Album.

— Howard Campbell