PPCA and Australia Council announce record number of sound recording grant recipients
The Phonographic Performance Company of Australia (PPCA) and the Australia Council for the Arts today announced the latest recipients of their partnership program, which, to date, has provided $657,000 in creative grants to Australian musicians.
Ten new recipients of the $15,000 grants to assist with the creation of new sound recordings were announced, doubling the usual number of annual grants that have been provided since the program’s inception in 2013.
The additional $75,000, effectively doubling the number of projects that could be supported, was provided by the Australia Council in response to an extraordinary year for artists, which has curtailed opportunities for live performance and impacted on the ability of artists to generate income.
Minister for Communications, Urban Infrastructure, Cities and the Arts, the Hon Paul Fletcher MP, congratulated the recipients of this year’s Australia Council and PPCA grant program.
“I am proud to support this important partnership grant program – supporting Australia’s talented musicians to create new sounds and experiences for us all to enjoy,” Minister Fletcher said.
“Congratulations to the talented ten new recipients, we look forward to hearing your new recordings.”
PPCA Chief Executive Officer, Annabelle Herd, said: “I am so pleased to be able to congratulate an incredible 10 artists on being awarded grants through PPCA’s partnership with Australia Council, who I would like to thank again for their continued assistance.
"It’s an immense point of pride for PPCA to be able to continue to not only champion our wealth of home-grown musical talent, but to increase that support in such a difficult time for artists.
"This program has an amazing history of success dating back to the first round of grants handed out in 2014, which helped fund Courtney Barnett’s breakthrough album and gifted the world smash hits like Pedestrian At Best and Depression. Since that first round of grants, our partnership has provided support to 50 Australian artists, including the current round of 10. I cannot wait to see what comes next from this amazingly talented and diverse group,” she said.
Australia Council’s Head of Music, Kirsty Rivers, said: “We are proud to partner once again with the PPCA to support the creation of new recordings by Australian artists. Over the past year, as the pandemic curtailed opportunities for live performance, recorded music has connected us, uplifted and supported us through challenges.
"We are particularly pleased to see the breadth of artists supported, reflecting the diversity of Australian musical talent and storytelling, and can’t wait to see what they produce.”
The latest recipients of the PPCA Australia Council grants are:
- Matthew Hsu: The Queensland Music Award winning composer and multi-instrumentalist draws on his Taiwanese-Australian roots to create otherworldly compositions and will be recording a collaboration album with the Obscure Orchestra, a First Nations, POC, queer and abilities diverse group whose individual artists have achieved everything from appearing in successful Australian acts like Regurgitator to winning a Grammy.
- Briana Clark: Recording her debut album Waiting, an 11-track breakup album detailing the hurt, the rediscovery of self and the acceptance that comes with working through pain with pen, paper and a piano.
- Timothy Shiel: After multiple albums and collaborations under other names and as a video game composer, Timothy Shiel's "debut" artist album is slated for 2022, called Distraction Season, a sprawling, deeply collaborative project involving upwards of 20 predominantly Australian creatives.
- Delali Zevon: Creating and promoting Volta Hymn's debut LP, Incognito Mode, merging the sonic influences of Electronica and Avant-pop Delali fell in love with as a Canberra teen, with elements of her West-African heritage. A woman-led team is an integral feature of this project.
- Nathan May: The 26-year-old Indigenous Australian based in Adelaide is writing and recording his first full-length album, working with respected songwriters and mentors James Gillard, Kevin Bennett, Colin Buchanan, and Luke O’Shea in Sydney.
- Chelsea Wilson: Recording with the Women of Soul Collective for their second album celebrating 10 years of collaboration and demonstrating the incredible strength and talent of Australian women. The album will be released independently in Australia via the House of Valerie Joan label which has national distribution via Rocket.
- Charlene Collins: Recording her sophomore album slated for release in November, Charlie Collins has performed support slots for Orville Peck, Sam Fender, Kasey Chambers and Gang of Youths, along with multiple sold-out headline shows across the country. In 2019, her debut solo album Snowpine was nominated for Best Country Album at the ARIA Awards and won the Best Independent Country Album award at the 2020 AIR Awards.
- Brooke Wilkie: Working with Alter Boy to produce and promote their debut EP for release in September 2021, after early success with Triple J. Alter Boy’s members include two deaf signers – natural performers and daily Auslan users who are perfectly positioned to provide greater accessibility, inform and educate.
- Rebeca Amani: “Modern DIY” artist Beckah Amani will record her debut EP, Monumental Moments, a self-produced, written, distributed and marketed work that follows a series of breakout singles last year.
- Patrick Pierce: Melbourne based indie-folk rock group Pierce Brothers will record a five track collaboration EP. After the success of their latest album into the great unknown, Pierce Brothers are teaming up with five different artists to put together an eclectic EP featuring some of Australia’s best and emerging names in music. This project will also encompass a PR campaign and a live tour schedule following this up in 2022.