Gena Rose Bruce, Lili Kendall, and Liam Burrows are among the winners in The Unsigned Only Music Competition 2014.
The Aussies, selected from almost 8,000 worldwide entries, were judged by a roster of high-profile artists and influential journalists. Unsigned Only is a unique music competition for solo artists and bands who are unsigned to a major label.
Produced by the same team that puts together the prestigious International Songwriting Competition, Unsigned Only this year has awarded three Australian artists with one First Place and two Second Place wins. Additional artists have garnered numerous Honorable Mention wins.
Winning First Place in the Teen category with her song 'Move' is the talented 17 year-old pop artist Lili Kendall from Brisbane. The organisers say she has the pipes of Adele and the edge of Rihanna. After a breakthrough first half to 2014, highlighted by international tour dates and a swarm of press, her newest single 'Run' was recently delivered to Australian radio and is available now. She has also performed in LA and was a featured Australian artist at Canadian Music Week in Toronto.
Garnering Second Place in the Vocal Performance category is the award-winning and gifted vocalist Liam Burrows. Stunning the public with a mature vocal style and stage presence that is way beyond his years, Burrows is just 20 years old - yet he is already a respected, prodigious jazz performer whose amazing talent has kept him in high demand.
Over the past two years he has performed at nearly 200 corporate and private shows and has headlined at some of Australia's most popular venues and festivals. In addition to being a finalist on Australia's Got Talent (his audition has had nearly 2 million views on YouTube), Burrows has performed at the prestigious Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland, was named Best Jazz Artist at the MusicOz Awards, and was the recipient of an Australian Entertainment MO Award for live performance.
Taking home Second Place honors in the Americana category is Gena Rose Bruce for her song 'Jackson'. A 21-year-old singer/ songwriter, she was born and raised in Melbourne's eastern heartland. With a songwriting ability that far exceeds her years, Bruce has been playing to audiences all over the country since her early teens. In addition to national tours with artists such as Ella Hooper, she has also travelled the world, including trips to New Zealand and the iconic music centre Nashville, where she performed in 2013 at the legendary Bluebird Cafe and The Basement.
Co-Founders Candace Avery and Jim Morgan said, "We are very pleased that these young artists fared so well in the competition, although it is certainly no surprise to us. The depth and diversity of talent coming from Australia is exceptionally high, and it continues to set the bar for the competition. We are looking forward to hearing next year's Aussie entrants."
The overall Grand Prize winner is awarded to the US band Goodbye June for their song 'Daisy'. Comprised of three cousins, indie-rockers Goodbye June released their highly anticipated debut album Nor The Wild Music Flow in 2012 and have not stopped since. With a European tour under their belt and a second album on the way, this band is poised for greater success.
In addition to winning $10,000 in cash and much more in merchandise, the Grand Prize winner receives the opportunity to be mentored by and directly network with the top echelon of record company professionals. Mentors include presidents and top-level executives from Universal Republic, Sire, Elektra, Warner Bros., Atlantic, Sub Pop, Big Machine, Word Label Group, Capitol, Roc Nation, American, and Virgin.
Sponsors include: Guitar Center, Casio, Sony Creative Software, Ultimate Ears, Disc Makers, D'Addario, The Intellitouch Tuner, Topspin Media, Mrs. Fields Cookies, The Music Business Registry, and Celebrity Access.
In addition to these First and Second Place winners, the list of Australian Honorable Mentions s:
Adult Album Alternative (AAA)
The Never Ever (Sydney, NSW, Australia) - "In Or Out"Adult Contemporary
Worldfly (Darwin, NT, Australia) - "Please Go Lightly"Country
Casey Barnes (Kingscliff, NSW, Australia) - "Flesh And Bone"Pop/Top 40
Alkira (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) - "Undone"Fieu (Brisbane, QLD, Australia) - "Put It On The Line"
Ginger And The Ghost (Sydney, NSW, Australia) - Call Up The Whales"
Lili Kendall (Brisbane, QLD, Australia) - "Move"
Rock
Kid Zeus (Sydney, NSW, Australia) - "Rabbit Suit"Talltails (Gold Coast, QLD, Australia) - "The Long Arm"
Veludo (Melbourne, VIC, Australia) - "Indigo"
Teen
Straalen (Gold Coast, QLD, Australia) - "1-2-3"Vocal Performance
Alex Hahn & The Blue Riders (Sydney, NSW, Australia) - "I'd Rather Go Blind"Liam Burrows (Sydney, NSW, Australia) - "Never Fallen In Love So Easily Before"
Sophie Hanlon (Sydney, NSW, Australia) - "My Dark Crusade"
This year's judges include: John Oates (Hall & Oates); 3 Doors Down; Neon Trees; David Crowder; Rosanne Cash; Craig Morgan; Delbert McClinton; Darryl McDaniels (Run DMC); Of Monsters and Men; Black Francis (Pixies); Aaron Shust; G. Love; Jason Gray; Dustin Lynch; The Mountain Goats; Alt-J; Mike Posner; Rapsody; Anthony DeCurtis (Contributing Editor, Rolling Stone); Chris Richards (Pop Music Critic, The Washington Post); Josh Jackson (Co-Founder and Editor-In-Chief, Paste Magazine); Lucy Jones (Deputy Editor, NME); and Michael Hann (Music Editor, The Guardian).
