Amy Shark and David Le’aupepe are two of the country’s most popular songwriters and musicians at the moment, so it comes as little surprise that they would come out on at the top end of the list for an event like the Vanda and Young Songwriting Competition.
The Gold Coast’s Amy came out with first place, with “Adore” being announced as the winning song. For it, Shark has won $50,000 cash courtesy of APRA AMCOS, Alberts and BMG.
“I wrote this song in my bedroom and it’s a testament to what just one piece of music can do and how important it is to keep doing what you love.” she has said. “I’m proud to be part of a legacy of songwriters that together have raised over $1 million dollars for Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy Australia.”
In addition to the overall prize, Shark has also received a $5,000 travel package from the Show Group.
For the Gang of Youths frontman, the Vanda and Young Songwriting Competition saw Le’aupepe come away with the second and third prizes, receiving $10,000 courtesy of AMPAL (Australasian Music Publishers Association) for “Let Me Down Easy” and $5,000 courtesy of Seventh Street Media for “The Heart is a Muscle”.
“There’s a sense of discomfort I feel when it comes to these things, because accepting praise is not exactly my forte. I never in my wildest imagined that in a competition like this, among so many actually talented writers, that I would manage to place.” he has said. “Thank you to those Judges who saw beauty and value in these songs of mine/ours, for it’s a reminder to me that they may not be completely garbage after all. Thank you to the scores of writers more deserving and gifted than me for shining as bright as you do. Lastly, thank you APRA AMCOS and Vanda & Young for contributing to such a worthwhile initiative in NRMTA. Their work is well and truly the most extraordinary part of this.”
Mallrat was also included in this little winner’s circle, taking out the Best ‘Unpublished’ Work prize – a new one added to the competition this year, winning $5,000 for “Better”.
Over a million dollars was raised via the Vanda and Young Songwriting Competition for the Nordoff-Robbins Music Therapy Australia organisation, an excellent group of people who are doing wonderful work in the community.
For more information about the competition, visit http://apraamcos.com.au/vandayoungsongcomp.
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