King Gizzard & The Lizard WizardThe Environmental Music Prize has today revealed that If Not Now, Then When by King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard has won the inaugural $20,000 publicly-voted award.
The prize aims to amplify the voices of artists who inspire action for climate and conservation.
The cult adored Australian band are world renowned for their psychedelic rock which links concepts of character with themes of climate change and futurism. Their 2020 single, If Not Now, Then When? was set in a post-eco apocalyptic time, questioning the inaction of our leaders and calls for immediate action on climate change.
The band are donating the prize money to The Wilderness Society to further conversation and climate action in Australia.
Stu Mackenzie, the band’s singer and main songwriter says, “We’re so humbled to have won the inaugural Environmental Music Prize! It’s fantastic and deeply important for initiatives like this one, to help build community around the fight against the climate crisis.
"I’ve written quite a few songs about climate change, but after the black summer bushfires in 2019-2020, shit started to feel dire. It still feels dire – more dire. We need actual, real, tangible action from our leaders, otherwise what are they there for? Why are we not doing everything we humanly can to right our wrongs? When we’re literally on fire, why not now? If not now, then when?
"This song is part of a larger idea, a thread and a collection of narratives that extend through all of our music. Exploring themes of climate destruction and what that might look like, is an important exploration for us. A window of what reality could be, if we fail to take real action.”
Environmental Music Prize Founder, Edwina Floch says of the winner, “Music has the power to capture our imagination, touch us deeply, and enable us to dream big."
