The leading nominees for this year’s edition are rappers Plutónio and Dillaz, along with the band Capitão Fausto, each securing three nominations.
In the Best Album category, Plutónio is nominated with ‘Carta de Alforria’, Dillaz with ‘O próprio’, and Capitão Fausto with ‘Subida infinita’. They are joined by Sara Correia, who contends with the album ‘Liberdade’.
Both Dillaz and Plutónio are also nominated for the PLAY Best Male Artist Award, alongside Nininho Vaz Maia and Slow J. Meanwhile, Capitão Fausto is nominated for the PLAY Best Group Award, competing against Calema, D.A.M.A, and Os Quatro e Meia.
In the lead-up to the Play awards, the group 4 Mens spoke in Lisbon about their nomination, which was announced on February 27.
Marina Gonçalves | 08:03 – 07/03/2025
The third nomination for Plutónio and Capitão Fausto is in the Critics’ Prize category, where they compete against Maria Reis with the album ‘Suspiro…’ and Ana Lua Caiano with ‘Vou ficar neste quadrado’.
Dillaz’s third nomination is in the Song of the Year category, the only award decided by the public, with the song ‘Alô’, featuring Plutónio.
Dillaz is also featured in another nominated song for Song of the Year – ‘Carro’ by Bárbara Bandeira. Other songs in this category include ‘Bênção’ by Mizzy Miles featuring Van Zee and Bispo, ‘Desliza’ by Ana Moura, ‘Garota’ by Maninho featuring Marisa Liz, and ‘Tata’ by Slow J.
The nominees for Song of the Year, Best Album, Best Group, Best Male Artist, Best Female Artist, Lusophone Award, and Breakthrough Artist are selected by the PLAY Academy, comprised of 200 professionals from the music industry.
In the Best Female Artist category, the Academy has chosen Ana Moura, Bárbara Bandeira, MARO, and Sara Correia.
Nominees in the Breakthrough Artist category include Bandidos do Cante, Bluay, Buba Espinho, and iolanda. For the Lusophone Award, nominations include ‘Cavalinho’ by Pedro Sampaio and Gasparzinho, ‘Crack com Mussilon’ by Matuê, ‘Macetando’ by Ivete Sangalo and Ludmilla, and ‘Sagrado Profano’ by Luísa Sonza and KayBlack.
In the remaining five categories – Best Fado Album, Best Light and Popular Song, Best Music Video, Best Jazz Album, and Best Classical/Erudite Album – nominees have been chosen by specialized committees.
For Best Fado Album, nominees include ‘Ao vivo no CCB — Homenagem a José Mário Branco’ by Camané, ‘Canta Carlos do Carmo’ by Marco Rodrigues, ‘Fado Camões’ by Lina, and ‘Sem palavras’ by Marta Pereira da Costa.
The Best Jazz Album nominees are ’11:11′ by Carlos Bica, ‘Algodão’ by Maria João and André Mehmari, Orquestra Jazz de Matosinhos with ‘Farol’, and ‘Not far from paradise’ by Eduardo Cardinho.
Contenders for the PLAY Best Classical/Erudite Album are ‘Anima’ by Luís Figueiredo, ‘Bach’ by Sete Lágrimas, ‘J.S.Bach: Goldberg Variations’ by Pedro Burmester, and ‘Talkin(g) (a)bout my generation’ by Pedro Lima.
In the Best Light and Popular Song category, nominees are ‘Alô’ by Rui Bandeira, ‘É no meio delas’ by 4 Mens, ‘Reviravolta’ by Toka e Dança, and ‘Vou beijar na boca’ by Toy.
In the Best Music Video category, the competition includes ‘Laurinda’ by Karetus featuring Vitorino and iolanda, directed by Aidan Kless, ‘Towards the Sun’ by Moullinex and GPU Panic, directed by Ruben do Vale, ‘Reverie’ by J.Mystery, directed by André Tentúgal, and ‘Good Morning’ by Memória de Peixe, directed by Miguel Nicolau.
Today’s ceremony will also present the Career Award, determined by the direction of Audiogest, which manages and represents the rights of multinational, national, and independent record labels promoting the PLAY awards.
The PLAY awards, established in 2019, were co-promoted until last year by GDA, the entity that manages the rights of artists, performers, and executors. In November, the organization announced it would no longer be associated with the awards, stating that “with the project now consolidated and matured, the Play awards no longer require GDA’s support.”
The ceremony will feature “new performances, unexpected collaborations, and tribute moments” by artists including Bárbara Bandeira, who will debut several songs from her newly released EP ‘Lusa: ato I’, and performances by Calema and Mizzy Miles, who will be joined by Diogo Piçarra, SleepyThePrince, Agir, and Nenny.
Bluay, iolanda, Bandidos do Cante, and Buba Espinho will come together on stage for a tribute performance to a renowned national musician.
Broadcast live on RTP1, RTP África, RTP Internacional, RTP Play, and Antena 1, the event will also include joint performances by guitarist Marta Pereira da Costa with fado singers Lina and Marco Rodrigues, and Toka & Dança with Toy, 4 Mens, and Rui Bandeira.
