Country Music Dunedin Awards committee member Bridget Telfer-Milne said she and president Sharyn Anderton founded the event because, while there were events such as the NZ Gold Guitar Award in Gore, there was a lack of similar country music competitions in the Dunedin area.
The pair came up with the idea for the Dunedin awards on a trip back from the Southland extravaganza, and before long they were applying for funding to get their event off the ground, Ms Telfer-Milne said.
Dunedin residents had been very supportive of the event, which showed there was no lack of demand, Ms Telfer-Milne said.
Since the awards were established, they had gone from strength to strength.
When the event first started it drew competitors from Dunedin to Southland.
This year, singers had come from as far afield as Auckland, Nelson and Christchurch to perform.
The event had also moved from the Otago Racing Club at Wingatui, to the Taieri Bowling Club where it was held this year.
Over the past three years the event had been so popular that the organisers had to had to limit the number of entrants.
In the future, the committee would remain focused on presenting the highest quality event they could.
It was all made possible through the support of local sponsors and the whole purpose was to provide a platform for emerging local talent, Ms Telfer-Milne said.
There was no shortage of golden-voiced young Southerners, including former NZ Gold Guitar Award winners Kaylee Bell and Melissa Partridge, who had since taken their careers overseas.
"We honestly have so much talent down here that people probably don’t even know exists," Ms Telfer-Milne said.
By the end of the awards yesterday, some 300 items had been performed by the band, Saddle Sore.
The group had been with the awards since it first started.
Playing with such a high quality musical group drew experienced singers and was a great opportunity for new performers.
The event was also family friendly and the youngest category was the "tiny tots", encompassing singers under 8-years-old.
Winners would receive a trophy and cash prize.
The weekend drew great crowds and had an awesome vibe, Ms Telfer-Milne said.
The overall senior winner was Amanda Goodwin, of Dunedin.
