The ‘Dance Monkey’ hitmaker bags the Song of the Year trophy and the Breakthrough Songwriter of the Year prize, while the ‘Cheap Thrills’ singer claims Most Performed Australian Work Overseas.
- May 26, 2020
AceShowbiz – Tones And I was the big winner at Australia’s APRA Music Awards on Monday (May 25), taking home two prizes including the prestigious Song of the Year trophy.
Tones, real name Toni Watson, bagged the peer-voted APRA prize for artists’ favourite song with her international smash hit “Dance Monkey”, as well as the prize for Breakthrough Songwriter of the Year.
Collecting the Breakthrough award, the star said: “As an artist, we don’t get recognised, a lot of the time as songwriter, but as an artist that does write my music, I want to say thank you.”
“Dance Monkey” topped the charts in more than 30 countries, including a record-setting 24-week run atop Australia’s ARIA Singles Chart and 11 weeks at the summit of the U.K.’s singles rundown – the most by a solo female artist.
Other winners included Aussie hip-hop trio Hilltop Hoods, who won the Songwriter of the Year award and the most performed urban work gong for their track “Leave Me Lonely”.
Teenage sensation Kian Brownfield, 17, and his co-writer Jerome Farah also won two APRA awards, for his track, Waiting, recognised for Most Performed Australian Work and Most Performed Alternative work.
Sia Furler‘s “Cheap Thrills” won the Most Performed Australian Work Overseas trophy for the third consecutive year.
The APRAs, run by Australian performing rights organisation APRA AMCOS, were originally slated to take place on 28 April at the International Convention Centre in Sydney, but plans for the ceremony were scuppered by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Instead, Monday’s virtual event was emceed by rapper Briggs and featured special performances curated by musical director Kate Miller-Heidke.
Source: Music - aceshowbiz.com
