Few phrases define the year in music and culture like Moliy’s scintillating directive to “shake it to the max.”
The Ghanaian singer’s sultry voice reverberated across the globe, blending her own Afropop inclinations with Jamaican dancehall-informed production, courtesy of Miami-based duo Silent Addy and Disco Neil.
Originally released in December 2024, Moliy’s breakthrough global crossover hit ascended to world domination, peaking at No. 6 on the Global 200, thanks to a remix featuring dancehall superstars Shenseea and Skillibeng. Simply put, “Max” soundtracked a seismic moment in African and Caribbean music in 2025.
Given its blockbuster success, “Shake It to the Max” was widely expected to be a frontrunner in several categories at the 2026 Grammys. In fact, had the song earned a nomination for either best African music performance or best global music performance, many forecasters anticipated a victory. So, when “Shake It to the Max” failed to appear on the final list of 2026 Grammy nominees in any category earlier this month (Nov. 7), listeners across the world were left scratching their heads — none more than gamma. CEO Larry Jackson.
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“It pains me to have to acknowledge this, because Harvey Mason, Jr. is a longtime personal friend, and I also don’t attribute any of this directly to him,” Jackson tells Billboard in an exclusive statement. “But I found it to be deeply disappointing that [the Recording Academy] subjectively chose to disqualify Moliy’s “Shake It to the Max (Fly)” remix – one of the biggest songs in the world this year – from the Best Global Music Performance and African Music categories.”
The “Shake It to the Max” remix arrived within the 2026 Grammys eligibility period on Feb. 21, with new verses from Shenseea and Skillibeng, and a revised intro from Moliy, which satisfies the Recording Academy’s definition of a “new recording.” As per the 68th Grammy Awards Rules & Guidelines, “new recordings” are defined as material that has been recorded within five years of the release date.
Beyond the performance and production criteria, the “Max” remix also holds a unique ISRC (International Standard Recording Code), a globally recognized digital identifier assigned to distinct sound recordings and music videos, confirming it as its own distinct master recording. The remix is also the only version of “Max” that has ever been submitted for Grammy consideration, which complies with the Recording Academy’s rule that “only one version/mix of a recording is eligible in the GRAMMY process in any year.”
Due to its fusion of Ghanaian Afropop and Jamaican dancehall, gamma. submitted the “Shake It to the Max” remix for consideration in the best global music performance category. On Sept. 20, the Recording Academy notified the Jackson-founded label that the song was deemed ineligible in that category but remained eligible for best music video and song and record of the year. The Academy did not allow the “Max” remix to compete in a different genre category, despite compelling arguments for the song fitting within the parameters of pop, melodic rap or African music.
