Vanda & Young Global Songwriting Competition returns for 2021

The Vanda & Young Global Songwriting Competition is back for 2021, with entries for the coveted song contest now open.

Named in honour of seminal Australian musical duo Harry Vanda and George Young (The Easybeats, Flash In The Pan), the annual initiative seeks to recognise and celebrate songwriting excellence, with each winner taking home a substantial cash prize to assist in funding their career.

Previous competition winners include the likes of Matt Corby, Amy Shark, Kimbra and Thelma Plum, who took out last year’s top prize with her track ‘Better In Blak’ alongside songwriters Alexander Burnett and Oliver Horton.

Open to entrants from around the world, this year’s competition sees $80,000 of prize money put on the line, with the winning songwriter taking home $50,000 courtesy of APRA AMCOS, Alberts and Sony Music Publishing.

A prize of $10,000 is granted to the competition’s runner-up courtesy of Banki Haddock Fiora, while a third-place prize of $5,000 is awarded by Aon.

$5,000 will also be given to an unpublished songwriter as part of Australasian Music Publishers Association Limited’s (AMPAL) Emerging Songwriter Prize, while an additional $10,000 from an anonymous donor will be split between a further 10 finalists.

In 2020, the Vanda & Young Songwriting Compeition recevied more than 4,000 entries from 46 countries to mark the competition’s biggest year yet, raising over $200,000 to aid in funding the Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy Centre (Noro).

This year also marks the end of BMG’s four-year involvement as first-place prize co-sponsor, with Noro CEO Belinda Leonard thanking the label for its ongoing support of the competition.

“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank Heath Johns and the team at BMG for their support of Vanda & Young Global Songwriting Competition over the past four years, particularly last year as we faced significant challenges in the context of COVID-19,” Leonard said.

“Their support enabled us to think strategically and invest in developing programs while we couldn’t physically see many of our participants, and this saw us emerge from the 2020 lockdown in a strong position, as we will again in 2021.”

Representing incoming co-sponsors Sony Music Publishing Australia, managing director Damian Trotter said that the company was proud to support Noro and uphold the legacy of Vanda and Young on a global scale.

“On behalf of Sony Music Publishing Australia, we are thrilled to be partnering with Alberts in support of the Vanda & Young Global Songwriting Competition,” Trotter said.

“As a music publisher, we regard it as a particular privilege to be honouring the legacy of two of this country’s greatest ever songwriters, while at the same time, raising much-needed funds for Nordoff-Robbins’ life-changing music therapy programs.”

Entries for the 2021 Vanda & Young Global Songwriting Competition are open now, and close at midnight on Friday October 8. For further details, visit the competition website.