After a record amount of artist submissions, the cream of the state’s musicians are included in the genre nominations in the 2021 Queensland Music Awards, announced this morning.

Names include Ball Park Music, The Jungle Giants, Mallrat, Confidence Man, Jaguar Jonze, Cub Sport, Sycco, The Kite String Tangle, Mieesha, DZ Deathrays, Hope D, Tia Gostelow, Eves Karydas, Lastlings, Jarryd James, Jesswar and No Money Enterprise.

The ceremony takes place at the Fortitude Music Hall on Wednesday, May 5 in Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley. Tickets go on sale tomorrow.

“The Queensland Music Awards have become an important date in the calendar for our music community and despite the hardship of the last twelve months, our artists have proven that they are among the best in the world,” QMusic CEO Angela Samut said.

“The creativity emanating from our state is both exciting and inspiring and I’m proud that the QMAs can be the place for Queensland to celebrate our musicians’ success.”

QMusic also announced the People’s Choice Awards voting opening, as well as the finalists for The Billy Thorpe Scholarship.

This year, the best venues and festivals in the People’s Choice Awards will be decided by 60% public vote and 40% from an industry panel.

Returning for its 13^th year, the Billy Thorpe Scholarship will be given to one of these four finalists: Gold Coast singer-songwriter Beckah Amani, Yolŋu surf rock band King Stingray, Gold Coast pop singer Phoebe Sinclair, and Gold Coast psychedelic art-rock band Selve.

Supported by the Queensland Government through Arts Queensland, the scholarship provides $10,000, the opportunity to record with an established producer and receive career planning from Chugg Entertainment.

Highly Commended for the scholarship are Gold Coast metalcore outfit Among The Ruined, indie rock virtuoso Andy Martin, melancholic Brisbane singer-songwriter Asha Jefferies, Sunshine Coast dreamgaze trio Fragile Animals, indie-roots singer-songwriter Hallie, the band Scenes and bedroom pop singer-songwriter Sycco.

GENRE NOMINATIONS

POP

Finalists

Eves Karydas – Complicated

Mallrat – Rockstar

Sycco – Dribble

The Jungle Giants – Sending Me Ur Loving

Highly Commended

Greta Stanley – Soak Into This

ROCK                      

Finalists

Ball Park Music – Head Like A Sieve

Beddy Rays – Sobercoaster

Hope D – Second

Jaguar Jonze – Rabbit Hole

Highly Commended

Bugs – Old Youth Feeling

Hallie – Sympathy

Nice Biscuit – Fem Chem

Sweater Curse – Close

Violent Soho – Pick It Up Again

ELECTRONIC/ DANCE

Finalists

Confidence Man – First Class Bitch

Lastlings – No Time

Pink Matter – You’ll Never Know

Young Franco – Juice feat. Pell

Highly Commended

CLOE TERARE – Intentions

Holiday Party – Let Down

The Kite String Tangle – I.S.T.A.U. (feat LANKS)

Syrup – Sun

HEAVY

Finalists

DZ Deathrays – Fired Up

RHINO – White Witch

These Four Walls – White Lies

VIRTUES – DoubleThink

Highly Commended

Caligula’s Horse – Slow Violence

The Atomic Beau Project – Cellar Door

HIP HOP/ RAP

Finalists

Jesswar – Venom

No Money Enterprise – Presto

LEMAIRE – Where’s Up? (feat. Jay Orient & JK-47)

Tbi$h – Endless Trips

Highly Commended

Gill Bates – Bob And Weave

Lauren. – Work for the Money

Matt Hsu’s Obscure Orchestra – Welcome To The Neighbourhood

Order Sixty6 – Bruce Banner

INDIGENOUS

Finalists

AYA J – Tenth Street

Beddy Rays – Sobercoaster

ELEEA – Wasting Time

Miiesha – Twisting Words

Highly Commended

Zennith – Ancient Warrior

Tia Gostelow – RUSH

BLUES/ ROOTS

Finalists

Billie Rose – Company With Regret

Karl S Williams – God Is A Bomb

LT – Hold Ya

Mardi Wilson – Runaway

Highly Commended

Hussy Hicks – Mountain Peak

Jack Bratt – Will You Ever

PEACH FUR – Preloved

COUNTRY

Finalists

Karl S Williams – Columbus Ohio

Melody Moko – Like Hank Would

Ruby Gilbert – No Vacancy

Vixens of Fall – The Long Game

Highly Commended

HaydenGoSeek – Old Friend

Jessica Emily Odgers – This Ain’t Over

FOLK / SINGER SONGWRITER                  

Finalists

Greta Stanley – Soak Into This

Hazlett   – Monsters

Jaguar Jonze – MURDER

Karl S Williams – Never Let Me Go

Highly Commended

Asha Jefferies – Dancefloor

Austen – Worse Things

Dami Im – Marching On

Mardi Wilson – Runaway

SOUL/ FUNK/ R’N’B                    

Finalists

DVNA – Sushi In Tokyo

FELIVAND – Ebb & Flow

MiCCY – Tug of War

Miiesha – Twisting Words

Highly Commended

Jarryd James – Miracles

Matt Hsu’s Obscure Orchestra – Welcome To The Neighbourhood

Volcanic Lovers – Magic In The Mundane

WORLD                  

Finalists

MZAZA – The Ether

Saraima Navara – Kaum Leva Tagu

Tenzin Choegyal – Heart Strings

Tijuana Cartel – Sufi

Highly Commended

Linsey Pollak – Light in the Tunnel

Menaka Thomas, Old Semeil, Tsoof Baras – Feel the Joy

SOL – TRILOGY

JAZZ

Finalists

Charlotte Mclean – Find Comfort in What Ends

Danny Widdicombe with Kristin Berardi & Trichotomy – Falling

Jordan Brodie – Twitch

Sophie Min – Time Is On (feat. Kayleigh Pincott)

Highly Commended

Denson Baartz Quartet – Frangipani

Linsey Pollak – 18th April

Antonix – Smooth Dancer

CHILDRENS

Finalists

Fabulous Lemon Drops – There Are Times

Nyssa Ray – Love Everybody

Happy Singing Kids – Uh Oh Spaghetti-Oh!

The Mini Moshers – Shark Chase Song

Highly Commended

The Mini Moshers – Superhero

Sharon mirii Bell – Mamaba Dyan

CONTEMPORARY CLASSICAL

Finalists

Camerata – Queensland’s Chamber Orchestra – Apis Australis

Danny Widdicombe & Ant Aggs – Alpha Centauri

Ray Lin – Moonlight Illusion

Tristan Barton – Eris’s Debt

Highly Commended

Julia Kourtidis – Leaving

Maddox/Devine – 1738

SCHOOLS (GRADE 6 – 12)

Finalists

Abi Muir – First Date

Amber Farnan – Over & Out

Amy Elise – Teenagism

Tayiha – No Happy Ending

Highly Commended

Bella Mackenzie – Dance in the Rain

Monet’s Pond – Floating In Air

REGIONAL                    

Finalists

Cloe Terare – Intentions

Fragile Animals – Only Until It’s Over

Greta Stanley – Soak Into This

Tia Gostelow – PSYCHO

Highly Commended

Colie – Kids These Days

LT – Till The Sun Dies

REMOTE                  

Finalists

Alison Jeeves – Angels Watching Over Me

Billie Rose – Kick Her To The Curb

Ella Hartwig – Can’t Ask You to Stay

Miiesha – Twisting Words

VIDEO

Finalists  

Dylan Dulcos | Rico Zhang – Lastlings, Out Of Touch

Jennifer Embleton – Cub Sport, Confessions

Levi Cranston – FELIVAND, Trajectory

Mick Soiza – Jarryd James, Miracles

Highly Commended

Alex Greaves – Pink Matter, You’ll Never Know

Deena Lynch | Ribal Hosn – Jaguar Jonze, MURDER

Jack Birtles – Clea, Sugar

Michelle Levings – GLVES, Heal Me

PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARD

 Metro Venue of the Year

Black Bear Lodge

Brisbane Jazz Club

Eatons Hill Hotel

Ipswich Civic Centre

Lefty’s Music Hall

Mo’s Desert Clubhouse

The Brightside

The Fortitude Music Hall

The Tivoli

The Triffid

The Zoo

Vinnies Dive

Woolly Mammoth Mane Stage

Regional Venue of the Year

Banshees Bar & Artspace

Empire Theatre

NightQuarter

Otherwise Bar

Sandstone Point Hotel

Solbar

Studio 188

The Events Centre, Caloundra

Festival of the Year

BLEACH* Festival

Brisbane Festival

Earth Frequency Festival

Horizon Festival

Mountain Goat Valley Crawl

Woodford Folk Festival

Yonder