Despite a promise last year that it would return in 2018 after an absence in 2017, the MTV Africa Music Awards will be a second consecutive no-show this year, with Viacom Africa telling TVwithThinus there won't be a MAMAs although it still believes in the local awards show and is still working on bringing it back in a changed format.
Last year two of Africa's biggest awards shows - CNN International and MultiChoice's prestigious one for African journalists and MTV Africa's one for musicians and achievers - both got scrapped for 2017.
Both CNN International and Viacom International Media Networks Africa (VIMN Africa) promised that the CNN MultiChoice African Journalist Awards and the MTV Africa Music Awards, that both usually took place during October, would be back in 2018.
In June this year CNN International and MultiChoice confirmed to TVwithThinus that the CNN MultiChoice African Journalist Awards won't actually be back and has been dumped, claiming it had become too big and expensive.
Last year Viacom Africa said that "at Viacom International Media Networks Africa we have been working to reinvent the MAMAs to create a deeper music experience that will be more immersive for our fans and partners in 2018".
Now Viacom Africa says the MTV Africa Music Awards won't be taking place this year either but that unlike the CNN MultiChoice African Journalist Awards, its award show for Africa isn't completely dead.
Viacom didn't respond to a question asking why the 2018 MTV Africa Music Awards isn't taking place and when this decision was taken, but said in response to a media enquiry that it continues to believe in the MTV Africa Music Awards and is working on bringing it back in a new format.
"The MAMAs continues to be a key differentiator for the brand and we still believe the show to be the epitome of all awards shows," says Alex Okosi, the executive vice president and managing director at VIMN Africa and BET International.
"We are currently working on various opportunities to bring the next MAMAs to market imminently in an evolved format."
"While the MAMAs will not feature in 2018, our focus continues to elevate great African talent on the continent with the recent nominees of Davido, Shekhinah, Nyashinski, Tiwa Savage, Distruction Boyz and Fally Ipupa at the upcoming 2018 MTV Europe Music Awards in November."
"Additionally we have just announced our broadcast partnership at the upcoming Global Citizen: Madiba 100 concert featuring the world’s most talented artists in Johannesburg in December," says Alex Okosi.
