News April 27, 2023

Andrew Stone, Jane Slingo Among Big Winners at 2023 AAM Awards

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Andrew Stone, CEO and co-founder of Chugg Music, and Jane Slingo, principal of Young Strangers, were among the winners’ circle at the 2023 AAM Awards, held lunchtime Thursday (April 27) at the Crowbar in Sydney, on Gadigal land.

Alongside legendary concert promoter Michael Chugg, Stone is the manager for the likes of Lime Cordiale, Sheppard, Teenage Dads, Mia Rodriguez, Mason Watts, and Casey Barnes, and head and co-founder of City Pop Records, which launched in 2019.

Also at the second annual awards ceremony, organized by the Association of Artist Managers,
Powerhouse Management’s Charlotte Ried won for breakthrough manager of the year.

In early 2022, Ried launched her own management enterprise in Melbourne, with a focus on exporting Australian talent globally.

Her roster has included Polish Club, Gretta Ray and breakthrough pop trio Blusher, which recently signed to Atlantic/Warner, and she has consulted on projects for Yorke, East Av3, Ben Lee, and Matt Corby.

Jane Slingo bigsound

Veteran artist manager, event organiser and tireless industry advocate Jane Slingo won the community engagement award.

Slingo established the boutique business Young Strangers in 2006, and through it manages the likes of Sampology and Middle Name Dance Band.

Based in Sydney, Slingo is also director of the annual Electronic Music Conference and she played a central role in the industry’s Vote Music campaign, collaborating on the policy paper that helped secure a $103 million commitment from the NSW Labor Party ahead of its state election win.

The day’s biggest honor went to Michael McMartin, the Canadian-born, Australia-based founder of Melody Management and the independent record company Trafalgar Records.

McMartin helped establish the AAM in 2007, and, since 1985, managed the careers of ARIA Hall of Famers Hoodoo Gurus and, later, producers Charles Fischer and Wayne Connelly.

Michael McMartin

Speaking ahead of the ceremony, McMartin shared his thoughts on the trials and rewards of artist management.

“When the artist goes, you’re gone. When the artist isn’t performing anymore, there goes your income. I’ve been really blessed with the Gurus. We’ve changed our contract, probably about three times,” he told The Music Network.

“And quite a few years ago, they changed it and said, ‘Look, rather than be on commission, we want you to be a member of the band and share with the band’. Yep. Which is a pretty special way to do it.”

In a change to the program, the APRA/AMCOS Lighthouse Award was presented at the AAM Awards, with Sundowner Artists’ Simone Ubaldi taking the prize.

Established in memory of pioneering artist manager Linda Gebar, the Lighthouse Award provides a $5,000 grant each year to a woman-identifying or non-binary artist manager.

Ubaldi has made the AAM Awards a happy hunting ground.

Last year, she took home Manager Of The Year Award, for her work with Amyl & The Sniffers, Grace Cummings, Nice Biscuit, Baby Cool and Girl & Girl.

And for the first time, the Patron’s Gift – a bursary presented by AAM Patrons and the2023 Legacy Award Winner – went to Ricky Simandjuntak of When Worlds Collide.

Led by executive director Maggie Collins, the AAM is the trade association for the Australian music industry’s managers, representing over 300 active managers, who in turn represent over 1,000 artists in contemporary music.

2023 AAM Awards winners:

Manager of the Year

Presented by Oztix

Andrew Stone, Chugg Music

Breakthrough Manager of the Year

Presented by Select Music

Charlotte Ried, Powerhouse Management

Community Engagement Award

Presented by Live Event Logistics

Jane Slingo, Young Strangers

Legacy Award

Presented by Frontier Touring