Entries for the $70K global songwriting competition have opened
Entries into the 2018 Vanda & Young Songwriting Competition have now opened, with songwriters worldwide invited to go into the running for a $50,000 cash prize, courtesy of APRA AMCOS, Alberts and BMG.
This year, the competition is set to surpass a massive $1 million raised all-time for Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy, with the $50 entry fee per song going directly towards the work of NRMTA, which “uses music therapy to help people cope with the struggles of living with a wide range of needs”
The Vanda and Young competition is one of the world’s most coveted songwriting titles, with Gretta Ray scooping the crown last year for her banger ‘Drive’.
“The Vanda & Young prize made a huge impact on what I have achieved in the last year. It assisted me in being able to travel overseas to America, write and work on new music there with amazing people, and provided me with the time to wholly focus on my music. That in itself is a gift.”
Two runners-up cash prizes are also on offer with second place receiving A$10,000 thanks to AMPAL (Australasian Music Publishers Association) and third place taking home A$5,000 courtesy of media sponsor, Seventh Street Media. This year $5,000 will also be granted for the best ‘Unpublished’ work’.
This year’s panel members include three-time APRA Songwriter of the Year Daniel Johns, electronic artist and triple j host KLP, ARIA-winner Montaigne, and The Bamboos’ Lance Ferguson. Past winners of the Vanda & Young award are Megan Washington, Kimbra, Isabela Manfredi and Husky Gawenda.
Visit www.apraamcos.com.au/vandayoun
This article originally appeared on The Industry Observer, which is now part of The Music Network.