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The top five finalists nominated for this year’s prestigious APRA Silver Scroll Award have been announced, and for the first time ever, they’re all female.
Bic Runga, Lorde, Aldous Harding, Chelsea Jade and Nadia Reid have all been recognised for their songwriting work by the association, with the official ceremony set to be held next month in Dunedin.
Music icon Bic Runga is a veteran of the industry and will be coming back to the awards 20 years after having won her very first Silver Scroll in 1997 for “Sway”. This time around, she’s nominated for the love song “Close Your Eyes”, written with partner Kody Nielson.
The other seasoned performer nominated this year is Lorde (Ella Yelich O’Connor), who won for “Royals” in 2013 and is up now for “Green Light”, the lead single from her new album Melodrama.
The track, which was written by Ella and Joel Little, hit the Top 20 Billboard chart upon release and heralded the much-anticipated release of her second studio record.
The top five is also rounded out by three newcomers to the awards. Aldous Harding is nominated for her song “Horizon” from her sophomore album Party, Los Angeles-based pop artist Chelsea Jade is nominated for “Life of the Party” and indie singer-songwriter Nadia Reid is nominated for her folk-rock track “Richard”.
The Silver Scroll Award is considered to be the most prestigious honour given by the New Zealand music industry, with this year marking the 52nd ceremony.
Other awards presented on the night include the Maioha Award celebrating exceptional waiata featuring te reo Māori, SOUNZ Contemporary Award celebrating excellence in contemporary composition, the Best Original Music in a Feature Film Award and the Best Original Music in a Series Award.
