BIGSOUND announces largest music prize in Aus music history
Brisbane conference and showcase event BIGSOUND has just upped its game with the announcement of a $100,000 annual prize pool.
Dubbed the largest music prize in Australian music history, the prize pool was created in partnership with Levi’s and will be administered by QMusic in conjunction with Sounds Australia.
The Levi’s® Music Prize is eligible to any artist who plays BIGSOUND 2017. An initial $25,000 prize will be awarded on the final day of BIGSOUND. It will be judged by “a panel of visiting international music industry experts.”
The program will then be opened up to BIGSOUND alumni that have featured in the showcase over the last five years to apply for further $25,000 prizes over the following three quarters.
Levi’s has made an initial thee-year commitment to the music prize but plans to expand the initiative with additional opportunities for artists over the coming years.
“This partnership with the Levi’s® brand is a game-changer for Australian music export,” said QMusic Executive Officer Joel Edmondson.
“It is a major commitment by the Levi’s brand to the music sector that has been designed to further enhance the value BIGSOUND can offer our brightest talents to achieve their international goals,” he added. “The Levi’s® Music Prize creates an important new link in the support chain, enabling artists to capitalise on the opportunities created by showcasing in front of over a hundred international industry players at BIGSOUND.”
The announcement comes as BIGSOUND reveals it will expand to four nights this year with artists given the green light to play twice across the Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday night event.
BIGSOUND sees over 1300 delegates globally descend on Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley each September (5-8), with 160 artists featured across 16 venues annually.
Applications to play at BIGSOUND Festival 2017 are now opened via: www.bigsound.org.au
Industry tickets for BIGSOUND 2017 go on sale today with special early-bird rates available until May 14.
This article originally appeared on The Industry Observer, which is now part of The Music Network.