Kimbra Takes $25,000 Prize As Australians Dominate International Song Comp Again

Kimbra has been awarded the $25,000 Grand Prize for the 2011 International Songwriting Competition, which has, again, been dominated by a strong contingency of Australian artists.

Last year the competition's grand prize was won by Kasey Chambers, while Kate Miller-Heidke won the competition in 2008 and New Zealand's Gin Wigmore in 2004.

Announced today, the New Zealand born adopted Australian has taken the top prize of the competition, which is voted upon by a range of industry professionals ranging from the likes of Tom Waits, Kelly Clarkson, Lucinda Williams, Tori Amos, Robert Smith to industry executives.

As well as $25,000, Kimbra takes home a swag of gear including a Lowden F50 Guitar (worth over $11,000), Sennheiser headphones, guitar strings and more.

Each year there is one grand prize winner and three ranked winners for each genre/category, who takes home gear packages for first, second and third.

Local winners in the genre categories included Missy Higgins in folk/singer-songwriter, where Emma Louise came third (Louise also came second in pop/top 40), and Jebediah in rock, a category where all three winners were Australian - Eskimo Joe second and The Living End third.

In Americana, Shane Nicholson was first and Catherine Britt, Rory Feek second (Canadian Scott Nolan even came third as the Americans were locked out of their own genre).

Little known teenager from Western Sydney's Glenmore Park, Natasha Duarte won the teen category while Michael Paynter, Gary Clarkand, David Mead won the unsigned only category.

Dallas Frasca was third in the AAA category, Oh Mercy third in adult contemporary, Children Collide's video for Loveless second in the music video category and Wes Carr and Don Walker came second in performance.

Australian artists enjoyed a number of honourable mentions.

There was also plenty of glory for New Zealand beyond Kimbra, with Annah Mac winning AAA, Ruby Frost third in pop/top 40, Opetaia Foai - Te Vaka second in world and a number of artists with honourable mentions.

Entries for the 2012 edition are now open.