2021's edition of the Levi’s® Music Prize in partnership with BIGSOUND has announced six of the country's most exciting emerging musicians to share in a $90k cash prize. Queensland artists Beddy Rays and Sycco join ASHWARYA, Birdz, Jerome Farah, and JK-47 as winners of the QMusic produced prize.
Each artist will take home $15k each, as well as a mental health workshop with The Indigo Project, a digital marketing workshop with Bolster, and a fresh set of Levi’s® threads.
“I remember seeing G Flip and Hatchie win over the last few years and manifesting in those moments! Hopefully we can tour overseas next year so the money will definitely assist with getting over there! This is so awesome, I cannot believe it!”
Sasha McLeod
Sycco
Going from strength to strength since their inclusion in the 2020 BIGSOUND50 hot-list, Sycco and ASHWARYA dropped critically acclaimed debut EP's; Beddy Rays, BIRDZ and Sycco landed songs in triple j's Hottest 100; JK-47 took out triple j's Unearthed Artist of the Year; and Jerome Farah consistently dropped hits, selling out an impressive debut headline show at Chapel Off Chapel.
Levi’s® Head of Marketing, Trent Bos, is proud to continue Levi’s® support of Australian and New Zealand artists through the Levi's® Music Prize in partnership with BIGSOUND.
“We believe music is a force for good. But belief without real backing isn’t enough to help aspiring musicians fulfill their ambitions, and our only hope is that this contribution can help these incredible artists do just that."
Delivering the good news in the wake of last week’s devastating cancellation of September’s BIGSOUND conference and festival, QMusic CEO, Kris Stewart said how critical the ongoing support of initiatives like the Levis® Music Prize is to the survival of the music industry.
“Our musicians and the music industry at large continue to be one of the hardest-hit sectors, having to prove their resilience time and time again in the face of cancellations and tougher restrictions than other industries. The Prize will go a long way to supporting these talented BIGSOUND artists to not only survive but thrive through COVID and beyond.”
"Winning the Levi’s Music Prize in these current times is such a huge help towards this dream while we can’t play many gigs to help fund the album. Now we can make this happen without a mi goreng diet that would shave a couple years off our lives."
Beddy Rays
The Levi’s® Music Prize in partnership with BIGSOUND has given almost $500,000 to artists and bands since its inception in 2017, including G-Flip, The Teskey Brothers, Alex Lahey, Angie McMahon and Ecca Vandal.
With the hardships experienced by the music industry since the onset of COVID-19, this cash boost and support package can help artists create opportunities that'll help to turn their dreams into reality. From touring and meeting industry execs to recording the next album, working with top producers and everything in between, the Levi’s® Music Prize in partnership with BIGSOUND is here to help.
Are you ready to make Queensland music history? Queensland’s 2022 music award season begins with nominations now open for artists and filmmakers who released songs and music videos between 1 Dec 2020 and 30 Nov 2021!
Valley Fiesta is back October 28-30 to make the rescheduled Ekka long weekend the most Valley weekend ever! With over 150 bands in 21 venues, get back to the Valley for three nights of FIESTA!
Creative Arts Alliance's Live and Local Series kicks off this weekend, and QMusic's very own Development and Program Manager Dom Miller will be presenting a series of panels and workshops.
QMusic supports the call by live music and entertainment industry bodies for the adoption of a government-backed insurance scheme to provide certainty for the Australian live music and entertainment sector.
One of Australasia’s biggest annual music prizes, the Levi’s® Music Prize in partnership with BIGSOUND, awards a total of $90,000 to emerging artists ASHWARYA, Beddy Rays, Birdz, Jerome Farah, JK-47, and Sycco.
In yet another blow to the Australian music industry, COVID-19 has forced BIGSOUND, the Southern Hemisphere’s biggest industry gathering, to be cancelled.
