Maggie Collins Wins The Lighthouse Award & $10,000 Grant

Maggie Collins has been named this year's winner for The Lighthouse Award. 

The award, which was founded in honour of artist manager Linda Gebar and is presented by APRA AMCOS, goes to a woman working in artist management and includes Charlotte Abroms, Jen Cloher, Bonnie Dalton, Bernadette Ryan, Sabrina Robertson and Lorrae McKenna as previous recipients. 

Collins, who is the founder of Morning Belle, has been awarded $10,000 as part of the award, with the cash prize having doubled from last year. 

Collins is the manager for DZ Deathrays and Donny Benet, is the programmer for BIGSOUND, recently co-founded the Sound Of Silence initiative and was a presenter/producer for triple j for ten years. 

Two weeks ago, Collins was named as part of The Power 50 list, which recognises the 50 most influential people in the Australian music industry. Read her profile here.

"Heading into this year, I was apprehensive about what was to come next for my career. I had so many ideas that I couldn’t sleep at night, but the fear of being bold and taking action - like for many women - was holding me back. Then COVID-19 hit," said Collins of her Lighthouse Award win.

"I’ve had so much time to think about the future of our industry and I’ve been yearning for the prospect that our industry doesn’t go back to how it was; that it in fact becomes so much better. My dream is to lead that change. To receive The Lighthouse Award at such a time, is so beyond exciting and humbling for me, as it will give me the resources to audit, expand and solidify my leadership skills, and then give it all back to my beloved music community."

“This privilege is something I don’t take for granted, and I acknowledge the privileges I’ve benefited from to get to this point, as a white person on Indigenous land. I acknowledge and thank the family of Linda Gebar, and hope I can do her name justice through this Award."

"Maggie is a passionate and well-respected member of the Australian and International music community who couldn’t be more deserving of this year’s Lighthouse Award," added Lighthouse Award judge/Collective Artists’ Rebecca Young. 

"She is a natural leader who is always willing to share her knowledge and expertise with others, whilst also pushing herself to continue to learn and grow professionally. Congratulations Maggie!"