Winners Announced In The New Levi’s Music Relief Fund In Partnership With Bigsound

Levi’s and QMusic, producer of BIGSOUND, have announced the first five winners as part of the reimagined Levi’s® Music Prize, offering more support to Australian and New Zealand musicians following the devastating effects the COVID-19 shutdowns and restrictions have had on the music industry.

In response to the impacts of COVID-19 on the music industry, the prize has been redesigned to offer support to more artists across Australia and New Zealand and change focus from international touring to national projects, skills development and supporting the well-being of artists.

The new Levi’s® Music Relief Fund in partnership with BIGSOUND has awarded five winners $4,500 cash to go towards their music career plus a BLOCKS by Bolstr. customised online workshop, an online course with The Indigo Project to support self-development, insight and personal growth, and an outfit from Levi’s®.

The updated fund criteria will see New Zealand musician(s) – the first-ever in the history of

Levi’s® and BIGSOUND’s partnership – among the first five winners.

The first five winners are:

• The Beths (NZ)
• Tkay Maidza (SA)
• Miiesha (QLD)
• Haiku Hands (NSW)
• Jaguar Jonze (QLD)

Head of Marketing at Levi’s® Australia and New Zealand, Trent Bos is excited to announce the first five winners of the Levi’s® Music Relief Fund.

“Levi’s® is deeply connected to the music industry, and over the past four years we’ve seen Australian music legends make it big overseas through the support of the Levi’s® Music Prize. Today we celebrate the passion, creativity and music of our first five winners of the newly created Levi’s® Music Relief Fund” said Mr Bos.

“Our people at Levi’s® and BIGSOUND understand how hard the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted the music industry and its artists, so together we created the idea to support more Australian and New Zealand musicians to get through this challenging period by going beyond just funding, and investing in their professional and emotional needs” said Mr Bos.

Music CEO and BIGSOUND Executive Producer, Angela Samut said the refreshed prize is a great initiative and thanks Levi’s® for opening the prize up to support more artists and help them through a time when income is zero for most.

“Congratulations to The Beths, Tkay Maidza, Miiesha, Haiku Hands and Jaguar Jonze,” said Ms Samut.

“And thank you to Levi’s® for continuing to invest in our Australian and New Zealand artists. Levi’s support of our industry through BIGSOUND has seen almost $300,000 go towards 10 artists who have gone on to become great Australian music exports,” said Ms Samut.

“We are also thankful to our other supporters coming on board to provide upskilling and wellbeing support for this creative and tenacious group of musicians,” said Ms Samut.

Now in its fourth year, the quarterly Levi’s® Music Prize, which is the largest single music prize in Australasia, was awarded to artists that have built significant initial career momentum via their BIGSOUND experience, but who need a financial “leg-up” to keep moving forward on the international stage.

Administered by QMusic, producer of BIGSOUND, in collaboration with Levi’s®, the prize provides multiple opportunities for BIGSOUND artists as they build their global careers.

Applications for the final Levi’s® Music Relief Fund round are open now and close at midnight Sunday 5 July. To find out more go to https://www.bigsound.org.au/music-festival/levis-music-prize.

Previous winners of the Levi’s® Music Prize include G Flip, Gordon Koang, Ecca Vandal, The Teskey Brothers, Amyl & The Sniffers, Stella Donnelly, Alex Lahey, Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever, Hatchie and Emerson Snowe.

#BIGSOUND

www.bigsound.org.au

www.qmusic.com.au

The Levi’s® Music Relief Fund is administered by BIGSOUND through QMusic, and

presented by Levi’s® Australia, with support from Bolstr., The Indigo Project and OzTix.

Band/artist biographies

• The Beths (NZ)

The Beths are lead vocalist/guitarist and two-time APRA Silver Scroll Award finalist Elizabeth Stokes (nominated 2018 & 2019), guitarist/vocalist Jonathan Pearce and bassist/vocalist Benjamin Sinclair. The three long-time friends studied jazz at university together, resulting in a toolkit of deft instrumental chops and tricked-out arrangements that operate on a level rarely found in guitar-pop. Live, the line-up also includes drummer/vocalist Tristan Deck, whom they also studied with.

Website: https://thebeths.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thebethsnz/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lizstokedstokes/?hl=en

Twitter: https://twitter.com/lizstokedstokes?lang=en

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/7DjwIxbe8kpw4pqnzAMoin?si=MI_4qw7kSj2liOJlxZncBQ

Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/thebethsnz

Triple J Unearthed: https://www.triplejunearthed.com/artist/beths

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMo6PPZgIo_txKJ6kesgXLQ

Apple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/the-beths/1110150231

• Tkay Maidza (SA)

Tkay Maidza is undeniably one of the most recognised names, faces and sounds in Australian music. Despite her age the Zimbabwean-born rapper, singer, songwriter and designer has already been in the music business for the best part of a decade. She exploded onto the scene in 2014 as a teenager fresh out of Adelaide, and discovered there was a world ready and waiting to hear the versatility of her voice.

Website: www.tkaymaidza.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TkayMaidzaMusic/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tkaymaidza/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/tkaymaidza

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1kMPdZQVdUhMDKDWOJM5iK?si=3YwB-rNdRgyOG6uKIvJs1Q

Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/tkaymaidza

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCVuG15mrDK86CYrpYabEJAg

• Miiesha (QLD)

From the small Aboriginal community of Woorabinda in Central Queensland comes a 20 year old with a voice ready to be heard. A strong, proud Pitjantjatjara/Torres Strait Islander woman, Miiesha (Pronounced My-ee-sha) seeks to use her R&B/Soul laced voice and music to bring people together, helping educate and inspire.

Having supported the likes of Baker Boy, Briggs, Adrian Eagle and Thelma Plum and playing Falls, Party in the Paddock and Laneway Festivals, Miiesha is using her voice and her message to bring her community to the world.

Website: https://miiesha.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/miiesha

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/miieshaofficial/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/miieshaofficial

Triple J Unearthed: http://triplejunearthed.com/miiesha

Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/artist/1ehGGQnc7E28DNwhvnFuyL?si=IOC8_5AATJKPUW_wZUlffA

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGT7kE-kSwmQ6x0mtJaadFA

Dropbox: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/5sxf3l8dybsfrmd/AACrCsI3I_h9mKVHFMv7-p5ea?dl=0

• Haiku Hands (NSW)

Haiku Hands are the energetic, multi-disciplinary, anti-establishment answer to all your dance floor dreams. Known for their fusion of hi-energy electro-pop-rap music, and an unquenchable thirst for good times, they quickly command their room, whipping crowds into a frenzy of movement and madness.

Website:http://haikuhands.com.au

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/haikuhands

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/haikuhands/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/haiku_hands

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3QX8CTn1znpY0HF3hbnNye

Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/haikuhands

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrHs-1At9hWvrcUAEEkmEVQ

• Jaguar Jonze (QLD)

Jaguar Jonze crafts songs of melancholic beauty woven with gunslinging guitar lines and a strikingly rich, yet intimate voice. Born in Japan to a Taiwanese mother and Australian father, Jaguar Jonze is as eclectic as her cultural upbringing, enrapturing those who have crossed her path deep into her spacey cowgirl universe.

With only 4 singles in her pocket, she’s left lingering impressions on the blogger circuit, signed with Canadian label Nettwerk and has played with the likes of Ocean Alley, Hermitude, Lime Cordiale and Ali Barter, as well as being invited onto the Falls Festival Byron Bay lineup in 2019.

Website: www.jaguarjonze.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/jaguarjonze

Instagram: www.instagram.com/jaguarjonze

Twitter: www.twitter.com/jaguarjonze

Triple J Unearthed: https://www.triplejunearthed.com/artist/jaguar-jonze

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0QClnkSUCnc9chv8MLyTaR?si=p06R4gOYTgOuA9WeWcep7w

Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/jaguarjonze

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/jaguarjonze

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