News July 26, 2019

Chapter Music wins Best Indie Label at 2019 AIR Awards [winners list]

Members of the music industry arrived in Adelaide to celebrate the success of the vibrant Australian independent music sector on Thursday for the 2019 AIR Awards.

The ceremony took place at the iconic Freemasons Halls with a stunning performance by Mojo Juju to open the evening’s proceedings.

Courtney Barnett, G Flipp and Confidence Man were among last night’s winners (full winners list below).

Chapter Music, one of Australia’s longest-running independent record labels, won the coveted Best Independent Label award and a digital marketing package valued at $20,000 to help promote their roster.

Laura Jean showed off the impressive calibre of talent up for this year’s Best Independent Artist with a spectacular performance of ‘Girls on the TV’. The award went to Courtney Barnett for the second time in her career.

B Wise took home the Best Independent Hip Hop Album for Area Famous and also gave a stunning performance of ‘The Key’.

Best Independent Dance, Electronica or Club Single went to What So Not for their track ‘Beautiful’ (Ft. Winona Oak).

Best Independent Dance/Electronica Album was awarded to Confidence Man for their aptly titled album Confident Music For Confident People.

Best Independent Hard Rock, Heavy or Punk Album went to DZ Deathrays for their Bloody Lovely third album and Best Independent Blues and Roots Album went to Emily Wurramara, for her tribute to family, culture and the land Milyakburra.

Best independent Jazz Album was awarded to Jonathan Zwartz for his third solo album Animarum.

Best Independent Classical Album went to the Grigoryan Brothers/Adelaide Symphony Orchestra/Benjamin Northey for their Bach Concertosnewly arranged for two guitars and orchestra.

G Flip’s performance backed up the international hype around her debut single ‘About You’, following on from her acceptance of the AIR Award for Breakthrough Independent Artist of the Year presented by the PPCA.

The Best Independent Album came down to a tie between Courtney Barnett and Gurrumul, for two of this country’s most impressive offerings to date, each in their own right.

Finally, the newest addition to the prestigious Outstanding Achievement Award supported by Merlin.

This award recognises an individual or group who has made a significant and lasting contribution to the Australian independent music community.

This year’s honour went to Gerarda McKenna, Australia’s most recognised royalty audit and accounting expert.

The evening’s events closed with a fitting performance from Adelaide’s own seven-piece West Thebarton, and it was an honour to have Minister Pisoni, the Minister for Innovation and skills celebrate the event with us.

Minister Pisoni commented: “The Marshall Government is proud to support South Australia’s thriving local music industry, and it’s terrific that Adelaide has played host to the AIR Awards, celebrating Australia’s independent music community.”