Record-breaking voter numbers for SAM Awards as A.B. Original, Tkay Maidza top nominees list
The countdown for the third SAM (South Australian Music) Awards night, held on Thursday November 9 at Thebby Lane (Thebarton Theatre) in Adelaide, kicked off with the announcement by Music SA of the nominees for the Peer-Voted and People’s Choice categories.
Hip-hop duo A.B. Original received six nominations and Tkay Maidza with four, while emerging acts on the list included young South Sudanese-born rapper DyspOra and indie folk singer Naomi Keyte, who is nominated for Best Female, Best Release and The People’s Choice: Folk Award.
“The 2017 SAM Awards are shaping up to be the biggest to date with a record-breaking amount of votes cast by the public,”Music SA’s General Manager Lisa Bishop said.
“I’m proud to see the diversity and talent represented across the board and I’m looking forward to celebrating at Thebby Lane in six weeks’ time. 50% of tickets have already sold.”
Over 6,500 individual votes were cast across the 12 genre-based categories.
The People’s Choice Award finalists, whittled down to 60, included Bad//Dreems (4 nominations), Grenadiers, and triple j favourites Heaps Good Friends.
The awards will be hosted by musician and double j radio host Henry Wagons, with performances bySAM nominees Timberwolf, Grenadiers, Glass Skies, Hana & Jessie-Lee, Dyspora, Lonelyspeck and Allume.
Full list of nominations and further info at the SAM Awards website.
THE PEER-VOTED AWARDS
BEST STUDIO
Chapel Lane Studios
Hillside Recordings
Island Studios
Stormfront Productions
Wizard Tone Studios
BEST ENGINEER
Gabs Agostino
Kiah Gossner
Matt Hills
Simon Kither
Tom Barnes
BEST MUSIC FESTIVAL/EVENT
Blenheim Music & Camping Festival
Futuresounds
Porch Sessions
Scumfest
WOMADelaide
BEST MUSIC VENUE
Crown & Anchor Hotel
Exeter Hotel
Fat Controller
Grace Emily Hotel
Jive
BEST MANAGER
Ben Martin
Craig Lock
Matthew Hayward
Sian Walden
Tom Gordon
BEST COVER ART
Capital Waste & Jamie Brockenbrow – Space Bong’s ‘Dead In Paradise
Hebe Sayce – Neon Tetra’s Relections
Henry Stentiford – The Bitter Darlings’ Stuart Highway
Nic Ames & Sam Kruckemeyer – Kaurna Cronin’s Southern Loss
Todd Fischer – Donnarumma’s Billy Billy
BEST MUSIC VIDEO
Aaron Schuppan – Cosmo Thundercat’s’Warning Bell’
Kieran Ellis-Jones – Sleep Talk’s’Mother’
Lewis Brideson – Donnarumma’s ’Love Your Man’
O’Foley – Standard Union’s ’I Don’t Care’
Richard Coburn – A.B. Original’s’January 26th’
BEST SONG
A.B. Original – ’January 26th’ feat. Dan Sultan
Bad//Dreems – ’Mob Rule’
Timberwolf – ’Washed Out’
Tkay Maidza – ’Simulation’
West Thebarton – ’Moving Out’
BEST NEW ARTIST
Bec Stevens
Donnarumma
Dyspora
Heaps Good Friends
Lonelyspeck
BEST ABORIGINAL/ TORRES STRAT ISLAND ARTIST
A.B. Original
Corey Theatre
Glenn Skuthorpe
BEST GROUP
A.B. Original
Bad//Dreems
Battlehounds
Cosmo Thundercat
Wanderers
BEST MALE ARTIST
Adam Page
Dyspora
Ross McHenry
PNK FME
Thom Lion
BEST FEMALE ARTIST
Allume
Bec Stevens
Hunt
Naomi Keyte
Tkay Maidza
BEST RELEASE
A.B. Original
Bad//Dreems
Lonelyspeck
Naomi Keyte
Tkay Maidza