Dear Aspiring Songwriters: Josh Pyke & APRA Want To Give You $7500

Veteran singer-songwriter Josh Pyke is no stranger to the trials and tribulations of pursuing a career in music, and so the But For All These Shrinking Hearts scribe has once again teamed up with APRA AMCOS to help ease the burden for one lucky troubadour with the third Josh Pyke Partnership grant.

"Bringing back the JP Partnership for the third year is really exciting," Pyke said in a statement.

"There's so much great music being made and it's always a challenging thing when you're starting out, so it's great to know that with APRA's help we are making a small difference," he continued.

Worth $7500 in cash, the grant — now in its third year — also includes hands-on mentorship from Pyke as well as quality facetime with titans of industry Gregg Donovan (of Wonderlick Entertainment) and Stephen Wade (of Select Music). From there the winning artist will be able to design and implement a business plan to further their career prospects and progression at the conclusion of the partnership.

It's a framework that yields real results — 2015 winner Gordi has seen a marked upswing in success since taking out last year's partnership, having picked up a J Award nomination for Unearthed Artist Of The Year and reaching the #1 spot for most-played on triple j's Unearthed platform, along with putting on well received showings at both Brisbane's BIGSOUND showcase and New York's CMJ. She's also recently signed international booking deals in the US and UK, and is putting the finishing touches on an international record deal, so it's safe to say that the Josh Pyke Partnership contributed some significant legs-up, with Gordi acknowledging the muso as "a fantastic mentor".

"I was incredibly fortunate to be the recipient of the JP Partnership in 2015," she said in a statement. "The sort of financial support it provides for a musician starting out goes a very long way and, for me, meant a lot more time in the studio that I otherwise wouldn't have been able to afford."

There are some simple stipulations to applying; namely, applicants must not be signed to a recording or publishing company, and must submit a business plan outlining how they would use the $7500 should they be successful.

Entries are open now through 31 March; see Pyke's website for further information on entry and conditions.

Pyke will be on the road through this month and next on his But For All These Shrinking Hearts national album tour — he gets under way at Twilight At Taronga on Friday 29 January. See theGuide or check The Music App for full details.