Finki and Sudden Lights Dominate Latvian Music Awards

Riga, Latvia – March 9, 2026 – The Latvian music industry celebrated its achievements of 2025 at a ceremony held at the “Xiaomi Arena” in Riga, where the winners of the GAMMA awards – the nation’s highest contemporary music honor – were announced across 31 categories. Finki and the band Sudden Lights emerged as the clear frontrunners, solidifying their positions as the standout artists of the past year, following their success at the Golden Microphone awards in Ventspils.

Finki’s Rocket to Success

While the Golden Microphones are determined solely by jury evaluation, the GAMMA awards utilize a complex system combining industry data and a broad panel of judges – over 150 musicians, authors, industry professionals, and music enthusiasts – to determine its laureates. Finki received the most awards, winning in the categories of “Solo Artist of the Year,” “Hits of the Year,” “Radio Hit of the Year,” and surprisingly, “Hip-Hop Artist of the Year.”

Much of Finki’s success can be attributed to the hit song “Baudam!”, which also received two Golden Microphones. The song also won the title of the most streamed song of the year, with “Bermudu divstūris” holding the top spot in that category for an extended period. Finki’s calculated career moves, including unconventional performances, appear to have cultivated a dedicated fanbase and honed his musical skills, leading to hits like “Rocket Science” (featuring Patriša) and now “Baudam!”.

Sudden Lights Shine Bright

The triumph of Sudden Lights at the GAMMA awards mirrored their success at the Golden Microphone awards, securing three “crowns” for “Group of the Year,” “Pop Artist of the Year,” and “Concert of the Year.” Notably, they surpassed the long-standing group Prāta Vētra in these categories. Sudden Lights acknowledged Prāta Vētra as their idols and inspirations, recognizing their influence on their growth.

However, the group faces a change in management, as Linda Āboliņa, their long-time manager, announced her departure after six years, stating on social media, “it was an honor to be a part of our six-year long story” and “my @suddenlights era has come to an end.”

Other Notable Winners and Trends

Mārtiņš Kanters jokingly suggested he might explore hip-hop after Roland Che’s country side project “Hunting Fields” won in the “Gamma” award for cross-genre music. The alternative music category saw Jūks recognized for their work, while Carnival Youth was named the best indie band of the year.

The awards also highlighted the success of Dzelzs Vilks as the rock music performer of the year, despite a relatively quiet year in terms of new releases. Aminata was crowned solo artist of the year, and Very Cool People won in the Jazz/Funk category.

The Future of Latvian Music Awards

The GAMMA award, organized by the Association of Latvian Performers and Producers (LaIPA), aims to honor both artists and industry professionals. The organizers hope for peaceful coexistence and mutual learning between the GAMMA and Golden Microphone awards, believing that competition fosters development within the Latvian music industry.

GAMMA ‘2025 Award Winners

• Solo Artist of the Year: Finki
• Solo Artist of the Year: Aminata
• Group of the Year: “Sudden Lights”
• New Artist/Band of the Year: DOE
• Hit of the Year: Finki – “Baudam!”
• Radio Hit of the Year: Finki – “Baudam!”
• The most streamed song of the year: “Bermuda Triangle” – “Flamingo” (feat. DJ Guano)
• Artist of the Year in Genre: Pops: “Sudden Lights”
• Hip-hop: Finki
• Rock: “Iron Wolf”
• Electronic dance music: “Nice Weather”
• Jazz/Funk: “Very Cool People”
• Folk music/folk: “Uli”
• Pop/Country: “Hunting Fields”
• Alternative music: “juke”
• Indie: “Carnival Youth”
• Cross-genre music: “Latvian Voices”
• Instrumental music: Gints Smukais
• Metal music: “Skyforger”
• Live Performance/Concert of the Year: “Sudden Lights”, Xiaomi Arena, 15.11.2025
• Concert venue of the year: “Angar” concert hall
• Annual exports: Might Delete Later