Organizers said its longlist of 85 titles was whittled down to the nine finalists, which represent a “wide and diverse pool of talent from right around the country.”
The feedback “directly from artists who released albums in 2020 has been quite incredible; much praise for us being able to keep The AMP alive in a year that wasn’t alive in so many ways,” comments Scott Murphy, founder and director of the SoundMerch Australian Music Prize.
“It could not have been done without the help of long term industry friends, especially APRA and the Mushroom Group, whose financial support remained intact for the 16th year.”
The winner will receive a check for A$20,000 ($15,000) check, courtesy of merchandise specialist SoundMerch, and is typically announced during the month of March.
Previous winners include A.B.Original, Courtney Barnett, The Jezabels, Eddy Current Suppression Ring and last year’s recipient, Sampa the Great.
The Soundmerch 2020 Australian Music Prize Finalists
Alice Ivy – Don’t Sleep
The Avalanches – We Will Always Love You
Blake Scott – Niscitam
Emma Donovan and The Putbacks – Crossover
Fanny Lumsden – Fallow
Gordon Koang – Unity
Miiesha – Nyaaringu
Tame Impala – The Slow Rush
Ziggy Ramo – Black Thoughts
