Bigsound Expands Program, Introduces $100K Prize

Brisbane, Australia, showcase and conference Bigsound has this year extended its program by an extra day (Sept. 5-8) for 160 new acts to play 16 music venues in the Fortitude Valley entertainment precinct. 

– Bigsound 2017
in Brisbane, Australia

It injects $3.72 million a year into Brisbane’s economy. It announced April 3 the introduction of the Levi’s Music Prize of A$100,000 ($76,139) to provide a financial boost for export-ready acts that showcase at Bigsound.

The partnership is for an initial three-year period.

Launched in 2002 by Queensland’s peak music association QMusic, the conference and showcase event has developed into an event where international and Australian executives from booking agencies, festivals, venues, record labels, publishers and media can find the latest in Australian music. In 2016, according to QMusic, the event drew 1321 conference delegates and 6,724 music fans.

Flume, Courtney Barnett, The Temper Trap and Rufus were some names who launched their international careers at Bigsound.

“This partnership with the Levi’s brand is a game-changer for Australian music export,” said QMusic executive officer Joel Edmondson in a statement. The Prize will be administered by QMusic along with the Government-funded music export body Sounds Australia ,which has since 2009 showcased 512 Australian acts at SXSW, CMJ Music Marathon, Canadian Music Week, Folk Alliance International, the UK’s Great Escape, India’s Nokia Music Connects and Singapore’s Music Matters.

An initial A$25,000 ($19,030) prize will be awarded on the final day of Bigsound, as judged by a panel of visiting international music industry experts.

The program will then be opened up to Bigsound alumni that showcased over the last five years to apply for further $25,000 prizes over the following three quarters.