Dunedin songwriters Nadia Reid and Shayne Carter have been named in the top 20 finalists for the coveted Apra Silver Scroll Award.
Emerging talent jostles for attention alongside some of the most prominent names in New Zealand music in this year's long list, which will be shortened to a final five before the awards ceremony, to be held at the Dunedin Town Hall on September 28.
Reid's song Richard (from her second album Preservation, released earlier this year) joins Carter's I Know Not Where I Stand (from 2016 album Offsider) on a list that includes two from Lorde and her co-writers (Green Light and Liability).
First awarded in 1965, the Apra Silver Scroll is regarded as the most important songwriting award in New Zealand. Past winners include Lorde, Neil Finn, Dave Dobbyn, Bic Runga, Don McGlashan, Che Fu and Scribe.
The awards night typically attracts more than 500 musicians, industry and media figures from New Zealand and around the world in a celebration of Kiwi songwriting at its best.
Carter, founder of Dunedin bands Straitjacket Fits and the Double Happys as well as Dimmer, his former Auckland-based project, is also music director for this year's awards. His role includes selecting performers to interpret the songs of the finalists.
The final top five finalists will be named next month. The New Zealand Music Hall of Fame inductee will be announced in early September.
An invitation-only event, the Silver Scrolls ceremony is streamed live online and features presentations, speeches and live performances.
