Australia Cleans Up at 2014 International Song Competition
The International Songwriting Competition has announced its 2014 winners, with Australian artist Vance Joy winning the Grand Prize withRiptide.
Australian entrants cleaned up at the US-based competition, garnering one Grand Prize Win, three First Place wins, four Second place wins,three Third Place wins and 51 Honourable mentions. A total of 62 Australian artists were honoured out of more than 18,000 entries from 118 countries.
Among these winners included Western Australian indie rockers San Cisco, Sydney R&B group Thundamentals and Australian songbird Kimbra.
Grand Prize-winning trackRiptidehas already sold over one million copies worldwide, and is certified triple Platinum in Australia. The track peaked at #1 on the US Alternative and Rock charts, UK Indie charts and #6 on the ARIA charts.
Vance Joy's manager Jaddan Comerford told TMN,"We are obviously stoked on the success Riptide (and his album Dream Your Life Away) continues to bring Vance Joy all across the world. It's a testament to an incredible song writer and his ability to record and perform these amazing songs."
“It is such an honour to win this songwriting prize,” said Vance Joy.“Writing songs is what gives me a feeling of purpose. I’m proud to receive this award voted on by my songwriting peers.”
Vance Joy was the first entrant in the 14-year history of the competition to receive a perfect score from every judge. This year’s panel included a plethora of international acts, including Bastille, Sarah McLachlan, London Grammar and Avicci. The judging panel also included representatives from major record labels, including the presidents of Warner Bros., Atlantic and Virgin Records.
Candace Avery, Founder and Director of ISC told TMN: "One of the biggest reasons why Australians do so well in our competition is that artistically, they don't always stick to the conventional style. Their songs tend to often be a little out of the box, and can regularly be seen as a new approach to an age-old system of songwriting.
"They seem to look at songs with fresh eyes and create something truly new and unique. I also believe that Triple J's support of local music nurtures Aussie artists and allows them to grow and progress in their careers. Over the years we have had so many great Australian artists do very well in ISC, and it has become their songwriting competition of choice."
FULL LIST OF AUSTRALIAN WINNERS
Grand Prize Winner
"Riptide" – James Keogh (Glen Iris, VIC, Australia) – AAA (Adult Album Alternative)
First Place Winners
"90s Music" – Kimbra Johnson, Matt Morris, Mark Foster, Timon Martin, Stephen McQuinn (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Music Video, Performance
"90s Music" – Kimbra Johnson, Matt Morris, Mark Foster, Timon Martin, Stephen McQuinn (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Performance
"Run" – San Cisco (Fremantle, WA, Australia) – Rock
Second Place Winners
"Ohio" – Alexander Laska, Fergus Linacre, Jeremy Hunter (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Rock
"Prehistoric Love" – Tenielle Neda, Rob Agostini, Denny Thakrar (Perth, WA, Australia) – Pop/Top 40
"Something I Said Ft. Thom Crawford" – Thundamentals (Sydney, NSW, Australia) – R&B/Hip-Hop
"State of War" – Paul McDermott, Jessica Malakouti, W. Cate (Sydney, NSW, Australia) ¬- Dance/Electronica
Third Place Winners
"Pull The Trigger" – Benjamin Dowd (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Rock
"Sirens" – Lucy Mason (Sydney, NSW, Australia) – Adult Contemporary
"Stars" – Justin Snowball (Perth, WA, Australia) – Unsigned Only
Honorable Mentions
"A Heart Is Not A Yo-Yo" – M.Luzuriaga, G. Christiansen (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Pop/Top 40
"Advice From Beyonce" – Jordan Millar (Sydney, NSW, Australia) – Adult Contemporary
"Afterglow" – George Mathew Haman (Sydney, NSW, Australia) – Rock
"Anyone But You" – Jeremy Drakeford (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Pop/Top 40
"Anyone But You" – Jeremy Drakeford (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Unsigned Only
"Barricade" – Bec Ivanov, Sebastian Ivanov (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Unsigned Only
"Bridesmaid" – Nikki Nicholls (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Unsigned Only
"Burn This House" – Mwansa Msapenda (Perth, WA, Australia) – Dance/Electronica
"Burn" – Hamish Anderson (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Blues
"Carried Away" – Canary (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Unsigned Only
"Closed Door" – Shane Timmo (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Lyrics Only
"Dreamers Ft. Phoebe Lou" – J Hardy, D Hume, P Lou (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Music Video
"Dreamers Ft. Phoebe Lou" – J Hardy, D Hume, P Lou (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Performance
"Dreamers Ft. Phoebe Lou" – J Hardy, D Hume, P Lou (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Pop/Top 40
"Eyes Be Opened" – Naarah Seagrott (Alabaster Box) (Gold Coast, QLD, Australia) – Gospel/Christian
"Freedom" – Patrick Mau (Thursday Island, QLD, Australia) – World Music
"Give Her The World" – Adam Eckersley, Jason Reeves, Danelle Leverett (Mannering Park, NSW, Australia) – Country
"Got Love" – Thundamentals (Sydney, NSW, Australia) – R&B/Hip-Hop
"Hideaway" – Drummer Buck (Newcastle, NSW, Australia) – Lyrics Only
"Holiday From Me" – Paul McDermott, W. Cate (Sydney, NSW, Australia) – Dance/Electronica
"I Know This Girl" – Jaron Natoli (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Teen
"I Lied" – Danielle Deckard (Sydney, NSW, Australia) – Folk/Singer-Songwriter, Unsigned Only
"Little Darling" – The Secret City (Sydney, NSW, Australia) – Music Video
"Loca" – Kat Risteska (Keeda), Andre Nookadu (Sydney, NSW, Australia) – Pop/Top 40
"Loca" – Kat Risteska (Keeda), Andre Nookadu (Sydney, NSW, Australia) – Unsigned Only
"M & R" – Bec Laughton (Brisbane, QLD, Australia) – Music Video
"Maybe, Maybe" – Cam Nacson (Sydney, NSW, Australia) – Folk/Singer-Songwriter
"Maybe, Maybe" – Cam Nacson (Sydney, NSW, Australia) – Unsigned Only
"Miracle" – Kimbra Johnson, Daniel Johns, Stephen Bruner (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Music Video
"Miracle" – Kimbra Johnson, Daniel Johns, Stephen Bruner (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Performance
"Miracle" – Kimbra Johnson, Daniel Johns, Stephen Bruner (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Pop/Top 40
"My Mindset" – Howqua (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Music Video
"Not Ready For Love" – Rita Satch (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Performance
"Ohio" – Alexander Laska, Fergus Linacre, Jeremy Hunter (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Music Video
"Possible" – Vita Adam, Jeremy Fowler (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Gospel/Christian
"Puppet Master (Club Edit)" – Shane Burgess (Goulburn, NSW, Australia) – Dance/Electronica
"Put It On The Line" – Emily Brewis (Brisbane, QLD, Australia) – Unsigned Only
"Rescued" – Mark Watson (Gold Coast, QLD, Australia) – Dance/Electronica
"Run For Your Life" – Bertie Blackman, Louis Schoorl, Marashric (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Performance
"Rust and Bones" – Gretta Ziller (Oakleigh, VIC, Australia) – Americana
"Superforce" – Ani Neradilkova, Dave Greene, Mathieu Valton (Sydney, NSW, Australia) – Dance/Electronica
"Sweet Satellite" – Luke Batterbury (Torquay, VIC, Australia) – Gospel/Christian
"Tears of Loneliness" – Jessica Day (Gold Coast, QLD, Australia) – Dance/Electronica
"The Breach" – Dustin Tebbutt (Armidale, NSW, Australia) – Folk/Singer-Songwriter
"The Gathering" – Stu Hunter (Sydney, NSW, Australia) ¬- Jazz
"Tiny Roar – Kirsten O'Shea (Brisbane, QLD, Australia) – Lyrics Only
"UltraHigh" – Lili Kendall (Brisbane, QLD, Australia) – Teen
"Unearth Me, Baby" – James Edgar Francis (Sydney, NSW, Australia) – Unsigned Only
"Violets" – Belbel (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Music Video
"Who Killed Love" – Peta Jeffress (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) – Adult Contemporary