Australian Music Prize founder launches American Music Prize

Scott B. Murphy, who founded the Australian Music Prize, has launched an American version called the American Music Prize.

The US award is for debut albums only, for those released between August 1, 2014, and July 31, 2015. They have to be recorded by an American performer or a band where at least 51% of its members are US residents.

The cash prize is approximately US$75,000. The finalists will be unveiled in late August 2015, and the first AMP winner announced in September. The winning record will be judged by a panel of 50 musicians, media, radio hosts and retailers.

“There are tens of thousands of album releases in the US in every 12-month period,” Murphy said in a statement, “which makes it difficult for new artists to break through no matter how great their recordings are.”

Murphy said that the new initiative is based on the UK’s Mercury Prize, which inspired his own Australian Music Prize in 2005, as well as Canada’s Polaris Music Prize. All the entrants to these get greater public, retail and media attention as a result.

Those from the US music industry who are “Friends of the AMP” include producer Steve Lillywhite, Sony Music’s John Fleckenstein, Elektra’s Jeff Castelaz, Warner Bros Records’ Alex Black and Jeff Sosnow, BMI’s Charlie Feldman, attorney Richard Grabel, and executives from Republic, The Orchard, BMG Chrysalis, Capitol Music Group, Crush Management, Red Light, Red Light Management, Harvest Records, Downtown Music Publishing, Mick Management, Hundred Handed, The Groove Merchant, DVC Management, Autonomic Media and Grand Jury.

Meantime, the final six albums for the Coopers Australian Music Prize were announced. They were by Bertie Blackman, Daily Meds, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, Krakatau, Lanie Lane and Shiny Joe Ryan.