ELECTRIC FIELDS, MOJO JUJU

and more among the big winners

at the 2019 National Live Music Awards

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WEDNESDAY 4TH DECEMBER 2019

Tonight at 8 simultaneous events around Australia, the winners of the 2019 National Live Music Awards were revealed, with the awards once again highlighting the strength and diversity of the Australian Live Music Scene.

Electric Fields were the big winners of the night, with three trophies, including the night’s two biggest artist awards – Live Act of the Year presented by APRA AMCOS and Live Voice of the Year presented by Panhead Custom Ales, which went to Zaachariaha Fielding. They also took home Best Live Electronic Act.

Mojo Juju walked away with two awards, winning for the second straight year for R&B/Soul Live Act of the Year, and taking home the public-voted award for Best Live Act in Victoria, presented by SYN.

Gang of Youths continued their winning streak, sitting as the most awarded act in National Live Music Awards history, having won 8 trophies across all four events. This year they took home the trophy for International Live Achievement (Band). Stella Donnelly won the Solo category for that award, adding to the three trophies she took home in 2018.

Dark Mofo won two awards, winning the Best Live Event in Australia and Tasmania. Falls Festival also won two awards, taking out the Best Live Event in Victoria and also winning the All Ages Achievement trophy in Tasmania, celebrating their Marion Bay event as the festival’s only All Ages leg in the country.

Also big winners in 2018, Tropical F*ck Storm have two awards to add to their mantle, this year for two of its musicians – Drummer Lauren Hammel and Guitarist Erica Dunn. Erica was on hand at the Brisbane event to accept the trophy for both of them. For the first time ever, the four instrumentalist awards were won exclusively by female musicians, with Bree Tranter and Jennifer Aslett taking out the Instrumentalist and Bassist categories, respectively.

There were a few surprises on the night, including Canberra outfit Glitoris taking out the Hard Rock Live Act of the Year, beating out acts such as Northlane and DZ Deathrays. Bec Taylor, a founding member of band, also took home the All Ages Achievement award in Canberra for her music education organisation, Bec Taylor’s School of Music.

Taking out the biggest industry award of the night, The NLMA, was Leanne de Souza; the award recognising her work for three years as head of the Association of Artist Managers, and 25+ years as an artist manager – cementing her status as one of the true champions of artists and managers in this country.

The Country Award was tied for the first time ever, with both Kasey Chambers and The Waifs – two first-time nominees in our category – taking home trophies.

Following on from her wins at the ARIA Awards, Tones & I took home Best New Act, presented by Jameson, and having played the first ever NLMAs in Melbourne, Didirri was a thrilled first-time winner for Best Live Voice in Victoria. Michelle Grace Hunder was named Live Music Photographer of the Year, and she accepted the award while in Dublin with fellow winner Ruel, who was named Best Live Voice in NSW, saying to the crowd, that she hoped her win ”inspired other young female music photographers to go out there and kick some goals”.

Two Deborahs, legendary in their own right, also took home trophies. The first was Deborah Cheetham AO, the inaugural winner for the Classical Live Artist of the Year. In a recorded message in front of a live string quartet, Cheetham delivered one of the most poignant speeches of the night, saying,

“Live Music is an integral part of who we are. I salute the finalists in all categories tonight. We need to keep this alive because it’s our purpose for being. Why do we strive to do anything except to know ourselves? And how do we know ourselves but through the arts? And there’s no better way of connecting that than though live performance.”

And then the one and only Deborah Conway was inducted as a “Live Legend”, whose trophy was presented by Katie Noonan following messages from the likes of Kate Ceberano and Paul Mason. She reflected on the power of live music in her speech, saying

“once again recorded music is secondary to live music, it is merely the calling card for the real deal. which happens in venues from vast to inatime anywhere. Who would have predicted that? And what a wonderfully surprising outcome. While I’ve heard some despairing about the decline of record sales, signalling the end of music, I prefer to believe it’s only the beginning.”

Director of the NLMAs, Larry Heath, said of the successful night, “We were thrilled tonight to welcome a thousand people around Australia to showcase some of the best live music in the country, and celebrate the industry for the fourth consecutive year. I feel both the judges – and the general public who were given more control this year than ever before – made some incredible choices. You’ll agree with some, and you won’t agree with others – but we can all agree that this pool of talent is to be envied the world over”.

Board Member Damien Cunningham head, “Yet again through the nominees and winners tonight we have seen the overwhelming talent that Australia has to offer! It is fantastic to see such great acts as Electric Fields, Mojo Juju, Stella Donnelly, Sampa the Great and Tones and I to win awards tonight. The awards really covers all area of live music from the new emerging acts like Jack Davies & The Bush Chooks and A. Swayze and The Ghosts through to Deborah Conway who is honoured as a live legend!”

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Here’s the full list of winners:

National Awards

LIVE LEGEND
2019 INDUCTEE
DEBORAH CONWAY

BEST LIVE VOICE
PRESENTED BY PANHEAD CUSTOM ALES
Zaachariaha Fielding (Electric Fields)

R&B / SOUL ACT OF THE YEAR
Mojo Juju

BLUES & ROOTS ACT OF THE YEAR
The Teskey Brothers

HARD ROCK ACT OF THE YEAR
Glitoris

POP ACT OF THE YEAR
G-Flip

COUNTRY ACT OF THE YEAR
KASEY CHAMBERS and THE WAIFS (TIE)

INDIE / ROCK ACT OF THE YEAR
Angie McMahon

ELECTRONIC ACT OF THE YEAR
Electric Fields

HIP-HOP ACT OF THE YEAR
Sampa The Great

CLASSICAL ACT OF THE YEAR
Deborah Cheetham

JAZZ ACT OF THE YEAR
The Necks

INTERNATIONAL LIVE ACHIEVEMENT (BAND)
Gang of Youths

INTERNATIONAL LIVE ACHIEVEMENT (SOLO)
Stella Donnelly

LIVE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR
Michelle Grace Hunder

LIVE INSTRUMENTALIST OF THE YEAR
Bree Tranter

“THE SHEDDY”
LIVE DRUMMER OF THE YEAR
Lauren Hammel

LIVE GUITARIST OF THE YEA
Erica Dunn

LIVE BASSIST OF THE YEAR
Jennifer Aslett

BEST NEW ACT
PRESENTED BY JAMESON
Tones & I

LIVE EVENT OF THE YEAR
Dark Mofo

LIVE ACT OF THE YEAR
PRESENTED BY APRA AMCOS
Electric Fields

THE NLMA
FOR EXCELLENCE IN SUPPORT OF THE
LIVE MUSIC INDUSTRY PRESENTED TO
Leanne de Souza

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NSW Awards

BEST LIVE ACT IN NSW
PRESENTED BY THE MUSIC NETWORK
Jack River

BEST LIVE VOICE IN NSW
PRESENTED BY THE MUSIC NETWORK
Ruel

BEST LIVE VENUE IN NSW
PRESENTED BY OZTIX
Oxford Art Factory

BEST LIVE EVENT IN NSW
PRESENTED BY THE MUSIC NETWORK
Yours & Owls Festival

ALL AGES ACHIEVEMENT: NSW
PRESENTED BY THE MUSIC NETWORK
Music NSW

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ACT AWARDS

BEST LIVE ACT IN ACT
PRESENTED BY BMA
Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers

BEST LIVE VOICE IN ACT
PRESENTED BY BMA
Genesis Owusu

BEST LIVE VENUE IN ACT
PRESENTED BY OZTIX
Smith’s Alternative

LIVE EVENT IN ACT
PRESENTED BY BMA
Groovin The Moo

ALL AGES ACHIEVEMENT: ACT
PRESENTED BY BMA
Bec Taylor School of Music

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NT AWARDS

BEST LIVE VOICE IN NT
PRESENTED BY FOLDBACK MAG
Colin Lillie

BEST LIVE ACT IN THE NT
PRESENTED BY FOLDBACK MAG
Baker Boy

BEST LIVE VENUE IN THE NT
PRESENTED BY OZTIX
Darwin Railway Club

BEST LIVE EVENT IN THE NT
PRESENTED BY FOLDBACK MAG
Darwin Festival

ALL AGES ACHIEVEMENT: NT
NT Music School

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VIC AWARDS

BEST LIVE ACT IN VIC
PRESENTED BY SYN MEDIA
Mojo Juju

BEST LIVE VOICE IN VIC
PRESENTED BY SYN MEDIA
Didirri

BEST LIVE VENUE IN VIC
PRESENTED BY OZTIX
The Corner Hotel

BEST LIVE EVENT IN VIC
PRESENTED BY SYN MEDIA
Falls Festival

ALL AGES ACHIEVEMENT: VIC
Music Victoria

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WA AWARDS

BEST LIVE ACT IN WA
PRESENTED BY RTR FM
Jack Davies and The Bush Chooks

BEST LIVE VOICE IN WA
PRESENTED BY RTR FM
Carla Geneve

BEST LIVE VENUE IN WA
PRESENTED BY OZTIX
Mojos

BEST LIVE EVENT IN WA
PRESENTED BY RTR FM
WAMFest

ALL AGES ACHIEVEMENT: WA
Em Burrows

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TAS AWARDS

BEST LIVE ACT IN TAS
PRESENTED BY EDGE RADIO
A. Swayze and The Ghosts

BEST LIVE VOICE IN TAS
PRESENTED BY EDGE RADIO
Claire Anne Taylor

BEST LIVE VENUE IN TAS
PRESENTED BY OZTIX
The Brisbane Hotel

BEST LIVE EVENT IN TAS
PRESENTED BY EDGE RADIO
Dark Mofo

ALL AGES ACHIEVEMENT: TAS
Falls Festival Marion Bay

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SA AWARDS

BEST LIVE ACT IN SA
PRESENTED BY THE CITY OF ADELAIDE
Teenage Joans

BEST LIVE VOICE IN SA
PRESENTED BY THREE D RADIO
Bec Stevens

BEST LIVE VENUE IN SA
PRESENTED BY OZTIX
Lion Arts Factory

BEST LIVE EVENT IN SA
PRESENTED BY THREE D RADIO
A Day of Clarity

ALL AGES ACHIEVEMENT: SA
Girls Rock! Adelaide

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QLD AWARDS

BEST LIVE ACT IN QLD
Cub Sport

BEST LIVE VOICE IN QLD
Thelma Plum

BEST LIVE VENUE IN QLD
PRESENTED BY OZTIX
The Tivoli

BEST LIVE EVENT IN QLD
Caloundra Music Festival

ALL AGES ACHIEVEMENT: QLD
Brett Wood
Principal of the Music Industry College

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For more details about the awards, head to nlmas.com.au.

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AMNPLIFY – DB