Queensland Music Awards – best of the Gold Coast
When QMusic rolls out the pink carpet next month for its annual awards ceremony, you can rest assured Gold Coast will be well-represented.
Gold Coast boasts a whopping 11 finalists across 9 categories in the 2024 Queensland Music Awards, now in their 18th year, which showcase diversity in music with genre-specific awards like Heavy and World Music sitting alongside more commercial genres such as Pop.
What started as a prayer-like poem evolved into a rich blues, love-ballad for Karl S Williams as he penned Built This Way – a finalist for Blue and Roots Song of The Year. Karl says it’s a song about devotion and the inertia of the heart, “both a celebration of and a reckoning with the life that must be lived when you’re built this way.”
He says he’s honoured to have the recognition of being a finalist.
“I really respect and value my peers in this corner of the music world and I feel privileged indeed to be making music in Queensland – for quite some time now. It feels particularly poignant with this album as it was a really humble and personal endeavour,” Karl said.
“I didn’t really know if such sparse recordings could live, or travel very far in the world – so I’m immensely grateful for each recognition, it’s like a breath of wind into the wings.”
Like Karl, Eleea is thrilled at being a finalist. Her song ‘Just Friends’ is up for the Indigenous category. She wrote the track while stuck in Tasmania for two weeks of hotel quarantine at the height of the pandemic.
Originally written as an acoustic, finger-picked ballad, Eleea recorded Just Friends with Gold Coast’s 2022 Producer of the Year Brad Hosking at Blind Boy Studios, elevating it to the indie-pop track you hear today.
“This state is filled to the brim with incredible talent, so it’s always a huge honour to have my music recognised by the Queensland Music Awards,” Eleea said.
“To be in the same category as some of my favourite artists like Busby Marou and Tia Gostelow gives me a lot of confidence that I’m moving in the right direction as an independent artist.”
Sue Ferrers is a finalist in the World Music category for a song, composed in the 20th century by Emelius Lundberg. This award nomination follows on from her recent finalist selection in the Australian Folk Music Awards under the category of Instrumentalist of the Year.
Sue has returned to the Gold Coast after spending the last two decades releasing albums, touring stadiums and performing at festivals throughout Europe such as Kieler Woche, Amphi Festival, and the Gewandhaus in Leipzig.
This track ‘Vitterpolskan (composed by Emelius Lundberg)’ was recorded by Gold Coast production legend and one of the newest additions to the Gold Coast Music Awards judging panel Benny D Williams. Sue joins Benny regularly on stage in Gold Coast folk supergroup ‘These Idle Hands’, you can feel the comradery that an emotionally influential track like this deserves.
“I am super honoured and excited that QMusic and the Queensland Music Awards have chosen this tune as a finalist,” Sue said. “It is heart-warming that an instrument unknown like nyckelharpa can be so highly regarded. I’m overjoyed about it!”
Here’s what some of the other finalists had to say about this tremendous Queensland Music Awards nod:
Atticus Chimps – finalist for Rock category for ‘High At The Sight of You’
“We’ve been trying to get our music recognised locally for many years now and we very much feel seen and appreciated with this nomination. Hopefully the ceremony will allow us to expose our music to people within the industry that may want to work with us.”
These Four Walls – finalist for Heavy category for ‘Carousel’
“We are incredibly appreciative of being selected as a finalist, and want to wish the best of luck to all of the other nominees. Three of us are originally from New Zealand, but we made Queensland our home over 10 years ago and feel very privileged to not just be a part of the talented music scene here, but to be recognised for what we are contributing to it. Also, huge thanks to Luke Palmer, who produced, engineered and mixed ‘Carousel’.”
Karl S Williams – finalist for Folk category for ‘A Heart Is Not An Anvil’
“I’m very grateful for each day I get to still be making music, and I’m wishing well to everyone who is working in this field. It’s not an easy road but it’s times like the QMAs where we get to gather and collectively celebrate music – and remind ourselves how essential and meaningful this task is.”
Junior Burger – finalist for Children’s category for Bin Night
“Considering we only just released the EP as our first effort in kids music we’re absolutely blown away at how well it’s been received and the amount of parents who are sending us videos of their kids singing our songs is crazy – To be a finalist for an award like this is next level and something we wouldn’t have imagined when we penned these songs. We are beyond stoked that people are liking it”
“We’d just like to thank everyone for jumping on the Junior Burger train – We can’t wait to keep playing these songs, and its great to have the opportunity to pass on our moto to kids all around the country which is ‘Always be nice, and use your manners”
Full list of Gold Coast finalists in the 2024 Queensland Music Awards
BLUES AND ROOTS AWARD:
Busby Marou – Conversation
Karl S Williams – Built This Way
ROCK AWARD:
Atticus Chimps – High At The Sight Of You
INDIGENOUS AWARD:
Busby Marou – Conversation
Eleea – Just Friends
HEAVY AWARD:
These Four Walls – Carousel
Wildheart – Sacred Ground
FOLK AWARD:
Karl S Williams – A Heart Is Not An Anvil
CHILDREN’S AWARD:
Junior Burger – Bin Night
YOUTH AWARD:
Parker – Sofa Bed
WORLD MUSIC AWARD:
Sue Ferrers – Vitterpolskan (composed by Emelius Lundberg)
PEOPLE’S CHOICE: REGIONAL VENUE
Mo’s Desert Clubhouse
Miami Marketta