Today, Independent Music NZ (IMNZ) is very pleased to announce the finalists for the Taite Music Prize 2022 and the Auckland Live Best Independent Debut Award. These two prestigious awards will be awarded on Tuesday, April 20th, 2022 alongside the NZ On Air Outstanding Music Journalism Award, IMNZ Classic Record and the Independent Spirit Award recipients.
The ten albums in contention for the 2022 Taite Music Prize span genres from hip hop to alt-country to indie electro pop and include some of Aotearoa's finest and pigeon hole defying musicians.
The 2022 Taite Music Prize finalists are:
Anthonie Tonnon - Leave Love Out Of This (Slow TIme Records)
Dianne Swann - The War On Peace of Mind (Bads Music)
French For Rabbits - The Overflow (AAA Records)
Lips - I Don't Know Why I Do Anything (Independent)
Luke Buda - BUDA (Buda Records)
Reb Fountain - IRIS (Flying Nun Records)
Sheep, Dog & Wolf - Two-Minds (Aphrodite)
Team Dynamite - Respect The Process (Independent)
Troy Kingi - Black Sea Golden Ladder (AAA Records)
Vera Ellen - It's Your Birthday (Flying Nun Records)
The Auckland Live Best Independent Debut Award celebrates the freshest talent of Aotearoa. The winner receives a $2000 cash prize plus a performance or technical upskilling opportunity thanks to Auckland Live.
The three albums nominated for the 2022 Auckland Live Best Independent Debut Award are:
Adelaide Cara - How Does This Sound?
Jazmine Mary - The Licking of a Tangerine
Proteins of Magic - Proteins of Magic
The NZ On Air Outstanding Music Journalism Award is the first of its kind for Aotearoa New Zealand and comes with a $2500 cash prize. The ground-breaking addition to the Taite Music Prize for 2022 celebrates special individuals who made a creative contribution and significant impact with coverage of Aotearoa music in 2021. For the award’s inaugural year, finalists are shortlisted by the IMNZ board.
IMNZ chairperson, Pippa Ryan-Kidd, says, “The addition of the NZ On Air Outstanding Music Journalism award is in the spirit of legendary broadcaster Dylan Taite and our wish to congratulate those who give media space to New Zealand music. We found the decision on finalists a difficult one as many dedicated individuals do much of this work purely out of passion with no recompense. Our criteria for this award is to highlight “creative contribution and significant impact” and our judges had to hone in on the best of the best under this guise. Our hope and aim is to encourage new and young writers to take up the voice that some of our leading music journalists have worked so hard to give a platform to over the years.”
The finalists for the NZ On Air Outstanding Music Journalism awards are:
Undertheradar.co.nz – Editorial Team; Chris Cudby and Annabel Kean
Rova's 'Aotearoa Hip Hop: The Music, The People, The History' - Podcast creators; DJ Sirvere and Martyn Pepperell
RNZ Music’s The Sampler - Producer and journalist; Tony Stamp
95bFM’s Long Player “Milk III - Reuben Winter” episode - Producer; Jess Fu
This annual award acknowledges one Aotearoa New Zealand record released over 20 years ago on an independent label. Whether a 12”, a compilation, EP, or full-length album, these records have become quintessential gold nuggets of our musical history. Like the Taite Music Prize main prize the Classic Record is a critically judged award for originality considering the artistic merit, creativity, innovation and excellence of an album in its entirety irrespective of album sales, artist popularity, previous awards or international achievements.
This year's judging panel has recognised the 1994 New Zealand album; PROUD - An Urban-Pacific Streetsoul Compilation. Encapsulating and showcasing the incredible talent of young artists from South and West Auckland that were yet to come into mainstream consciousness, producer Alan Jansson worked with Tim Mahon (from Otara Music Arts Centre and Blam Blam Blam) and Phil Fuemana to bring in a range of artists representing the contemporary Māori and Pacifica music of the time. The result was the hugely influential 1994 compilation PROUD, featuring Sisters Underground, Pacifican Descendants, Semi MCs, MC Slam, Radio Backstab, DJ Payback, and Otara Millionaires Club.
In his book, 100 Essential New Zealand Albums, music writer and broadcaster Nick Bollinger wrote, “It was Jansson’s instinct to emphasise elements of the music that reflected the Pacifican background of the artists, and throughout the album one could hear log drums, ukuleles and the so-called ‘Māori strum’ which Jansson had first encountered at after-work parties on the building sites where he had worked as a teenager. The result was a sound uniquely New Zealand, and strikingly different from the R&B and hip-hop coming from anywhere else at the time.”
The most successful tunes off the compilation were Sisters Underground’s ‘In The Neighbourhood’ and ‘We R The OMC’ by The Otara Millionaires Club.
Jansson continued working with Pauly Fuemana, who had taken the OMC name after the group had split. Their collaboration eventually gave the world ‘How Bizarre’, described on British TV show Top Of The Pops as “the biggest song ever to come out of New Zealand”. ‘How Bizarre’ reached the Top 10 in 15 countries, and reached No.1 in many places, including Australia, NZ, Austria, Canada, Ireland and the United States.
Listen to PROUD - An Urban-Pacific Streetsoul Compilation
on Apple Music HERE
on Spotify HERE
Now in its fourth year, the Independent Spirit Award recognises and celebrates a New Zealander: someone who is passionate about NZ music; who's ahead of the game in creativity, diversity, and imagination; and has dedicated themself to helping artists and the wider music community to grow and find their own unique pathways. The annual recipient is determined by the IMNZ Board.
IMNZ General Manager, Dylan Pellett says, “As we move through these crazy times, it’s still so heartening to hear fresh new music being made and released in Aotearoa. Congratulations to all this year’s finalists!"
Presented by: Independent Music New Zealand (IMNZ)
Founding Partner: Recorded Music NZ
Official Partner: NZ On Air
Event Partner: Q Theatre
Award Partner: Auckland Live
Media Partners: 95bFM / Radio NZ
Charity Partner: MusicHelps
Supporting Partners: APRA AMCOS / Media Arts Lawyers / NZ Music Commission / McCarthy Design / Commotion Ltd / Loop / College Hill Productions / Tone Deaf Productions / Oceania / Merlin / Panhead Breweries / Auckland City Of Music
Named after the late Dylan Taite, one of the country’s most highly respected music journalists, The Taite Music Prize‘s purpose is to recognise outstanding creativity for an entire collection of music contained on one album. The winner receives a cash prize of $12,500, to be spent as they wish – with thanks to Founding Partner of the Taite Music Prize, Recorded Music NZ.
Also recognised at the ceremony are the Independent Spirit Award; the Independent Music NZ Classic Record – acknowledging a defining NZ record from our yesteryear and the Auckland Live Best Independent Debut award – celebrating the freshest talent of Aotearoa. The winner receives a $2,000 cash prize, plus a performance or technical upskilling opportunity thanks to Auckland Live.
Announced in 2022 is the NZ On Air Outstanding Music Journalism Award - the first of its kind for Aotearoa New Zealand and comes with a $2500 cash prize, thanks to Official Partner, NZ On Air. The ground-breaking addition celebrates a special individual who made a creative contribution and significant impact with coverage of Aotearoa music during the year. For the award’s inaugural year, finalists will be shortlisted by IMNZ board and the recipient announced at the Taite Music Prize ceremony.
Wikipedia entry, Taite Music Prize: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taite_Music_Prize
The Taite Music Prize highlights outstanding New Zealand albums released in the past year. The award is open to all genres of music and judged on artistic merit regardless of genre, sales, or record label.
This award acknowledges one New Zealand record released over 20 years ago on an independent label. These records, whether a 12”, a compilation, EP, or full-length album have become quintessential gold nuggets of our musical history. The annual recipient is determined by the judging panel.
The Auckland Live Best Independent Debut Award celebrates the freshest talent of Aotearoa. The winner receives a $2000 cash prize plus a performance or technical upskilling opportunity thanks to Auckland Live.
The Independent Spirit Award recognises and celebrates a New Zealander: someone who is passionate about NZ music; who’s ahead of the game in creativity, diversity, and imagination; and has dedicated themself to helping artists and the wider music community to grow and find their own unique pathways. The annual recipient is determined by the IMNZ Board.
2019 - Bernie Griffen
2020 - Murray Cammick
2021 - Pete Rainey & Glenn Common