The Brag Media
▼
News February 17, 2022

Gang of Youths, DMA’S, MAY-A and others shortlisted for Vanda & Young Global Songwriting Competition

Gang of Youths, DMA’S, MAY-A and others shortlisted for Vanda & Young Global Songwriting Competition

Gang of Youths, DMA’S, MAY-A and Genesis Owusu figure in the shortlist for the Vanda & Young Global Songwriting Competition, unveiled early Thursday (Feb. 17).

The Top 40 is boiled down from a total of 3,837 songs from 64 countries, organisers say, with the entry process raising $192,000 for good causes.

The coveted praises carries much more than bragging rights.

A first-place cash prize of $50,000 will be awarded to the winning songwriter, courtesy of APRA AMCOS, Alberts and Sony Music Publishing, while second place earns $10,000, by way of legal experts Banki Haddock Fiora.

A gift of $5,000 will go to the third place recipient, thanks to Aon.

More than half the shortlisted numbers are the work of unpublished songwriters, with one of those poised to score the $5,000 AMPAL Emerging Songwriter Prize, provided by Australasian Music Publishers Association Limited (AMPAL).

Continuing a new tradition, ten of the Top 40 finalists will receive a runner-up prize of $1,000, a present from an anonymous donor wishing to help songwriters during the pandemic.

Winners in the comp, which is open to songwriters from anywhere, doing all kinds of music, will be announced in March.

Named after the legendary songwriters and founding members of The Easybeats, Harry Vanda and the late George Young, the competition has honoured a range of songwriting talent, from Thelma Plum (2020), Matt Corby and Dann Hume (2019), Amy Shark (2018), Gretta Ray (2016), Husky Gawenda (2014), Isabella Manfredi (2013), Kimbra (2011) and Megan Washington (2009), and others.

Each song entry carries with it a $50 fee, with 100% of that sum benefiting the services of Noro Music Therapy.

Since the contest launched in 2009, those entries have contributed nearly $1.6 million for the music charity.

The judging panel this time included a mix of artists, producers, media and music industry professionals, including KLP, Jenny Morris, Anna Lunoe and employees from Double J, The Industry Observer, Billboard, reps from the three majors, and Jaxsta, which this year helped promote the competition to its worldwide network of songwriters and music creators.

Visit vandayoungsongcomp.com for more.

2021 Vanda & Young Global Songwriting Competition Top 40:

 
Song TitleSongwritersPublisherPerformer

Another Day
 
Nicole McKinneyunpublishedNicole McKinney
ApricotsMaya Cumming & Roberto De SaSony Music PublishingMAY-A
Artificial LightBenjamin Hornstein, Bradley Beaman, Connor McCrae & Steeve BodyunpublishedVoyager Run
Better To LeaveSamuel Baird, Thomas Baird, Peter White, Miles Sly & Lucas SlyunpublishedLost Woods
Boring PeopleBenjamin Tan & Melodie Mezieres-WagnerunpublishedSUNNY.
CannonballPeter Harding & Noah CyrusKobalt Music Publishing, Universal Music PublishingPJ Harding & Noah Cyrus
Care Too MuchIsabella Losi & Joel QuartermainMushroom MusicBella Deer
ChapelJack McAllister, Tim Anderson, Nathan Donmoyer & Tavon ThompsonMushroom MusicWillaris. K
Come N’ See MeKate Steele & Graham McLuskieunpublishedKaty Steele

Consider Me Gone
 
Chloe StylerunpublishedChloe Styler
CoolEloise Willis-Hardy & Barnaby MatthewsunpublishedVigilantonie

Dangerous
 
Liz StringerGaga MusicLiz Stringer
Fallen SoldierMichael Hardy, John Turner, Clark Fivaz & Riaan Janse van RensburgunpublishedTDK90
Gold ChainsKofi Owusu-Ansah, Andrew Klippel, Kieran J Callinan, Michael Di Francesco & Julian SudekKobalt Music Publishing obo Ourness Songs, Sony Music Publishing, Mushroom Music obo Ourness Songs, Kobalt Music Publishing obo Future ClassicGenesis Owusu
GratefulPatrick Bolster & Scott StevenunpublishedPatrick James
Guided By AngelsAmy Taylor, Fergus Romer & Bryce WilsonunpublishedAmyl and The Sniffers
Half AwakeLouis Schoorl, Claire Howell, Alex McIntyre, Cameron Nacson & Grace PittsUniversal Music Publishing, BMG Rights Management & Kobalt Music PublishingGRAACE
HIGHWAY TO HELLLachlan Hodder-TrenwithunpublishedHT
HimNgaire Joseph & Jack BrittenUniversal Music Publishing & Embassy Music PublishingNgaiire
I Just Wanna Hold YouCourtney Keil, Rodney McCormack, Templeton Thompson & Samuel GayunpublishedCourtney Keil
Ice Tea LiberacePhebe Starr, Xavier Dunn & Demi BartonSony Music Publishing & Universal Music PublishingPhebe Starr
Junk Truck Head FuckJohn Took, Matthew Mason & Thomas O’DellUniversal Music PublishingDMA’S
Keep Rolling OnYirrmal Marika & Neil MurrayUniversal Music PublishingNeil Murray, Emma Donovan & Yirrmal
Made For SilenceMiiesha Young, Lucian Blomkamp, Stephen Collins & Jordan PanasewychSony Music Publishing & BMG Rights ManagementMiiesha

Mikey Might
 
Jerome FarahMushroom MusicJerome Farah
MoveDanzal Baker, Dallas Woods, James Iheakanwa & Willie TafaKobalt Music Publishing & BMG Rights ManagementBaker Boy
Never Too Hurt To HealAydan Calafiore, Michael Paynter & Michael DeLorenzisUniversal Music Publishing & Mushroom MusicAYDAN
OTHERSIDEDaniel Kirkland & Taka PerryDowntown MusicKirklandd
OverdueJarryd Klapper, James Ho, Davon Prather & Francis NguyentranSony Music PublishingJarryd James
Power Without GreedLance Ferguson & Kylie AuldistBMG Rights ManagementThe Bamboos
PSYCHO HOLEAishwarya Shah & Jarrad RogersNative Tongue/Sentric Music & BMG Rights ManagementASHWARYA
Remember UsStan Walker, Natalie Dunn, Joanna Levesque, Devin Abrams & Ashton SellarsEMI Music Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, Universal Music PublishingStan Walker
searching for freedomZiggy AlbertsKobalt Music PublishingZiggy Alberts
Shining LightYirrmal Marika & Daniel PattersonunpublishedYirrmal
SlowlyLouis Schoorl, Peter Harding & Jessica KarpovUniversal Music Publishing, Kobalt Music Publishing AustraliaPJ Harding
TalkJoel Slabb, Maya Cumming & Chris CollinsMushroom Music & Sony Music PublishingBudjerah & MAY-A
These Are The DaysSusan O’Neill & Simon O’ReillyunpublishedSusan O’Neill & Mick Flannery
Time I Love To WasteMaya Cumming, Roberto De Sa & Christian Lo RussoSony Music PublishingMAY-A
unisonDavid Le’aupepe, Dominik Borzestowski, Maxwell Dunn, Thomas Hobden & Jung KimUniversal Music PublishingGang of Youths

Waiting for the Sun
 
Tyler MillottunpublishedThe Terrifying Lows

This article originally appeared on The Industry Observer, which is now part of The Music Network.

Related articles