- Kanya King, the founder of the Mobo Awards , has died at the age of 57 following a “determined battle with colon cancer ”, the Mobo organisation said.
- King established the Mobo Awards in 1996 as a single mother from a Kilburn council estate.
- The Mobo Awards grew into a national institution, celebrating a diverse range of artists including Olivia Dean, Stormzy, and Raye.
- A statement from the Mobo Organisation said: “Thirty years ago, Kanya King remortgaged her home, alone, without institutional backing, without industry support, to build a stage that would transform British music forever.”
- It continued: “What Kanya created was never simply an awards ceremony. It was an act of cultural justice.”
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Kanya King death: Mobo Awards founder dies aged 57 after cancer battle