The 2018 J Awards Winners Have Been Announced

The winners of the 2018 J Awards have been unveiled, with Middle Kids, Gurrumul, Kwame and Mojo Juju beating some tough competition to take home accolades.

Just a quick glance at this year’s nominees paints a picture of Australia's thriving local music scene; a powerful force today celebrated at Howler in Melbourne as part of the 14th annual J Awards

The winners of this year’s awards were recognised for their “outstanding originality, creativity, technical excellence and contribution to Australian music”, with Middle Kids scoring Australian Album of the Year for their acclaimed Lost Friends release, while Gurrumul’s final album saw him named the Double J Artist of the Year.

Emerging Sydney rapper Kwame scored Unearthed Artist of the Year following the release of his latest single, WOW, and Mojo Juju’s “raw, vulnerable, and fiercely powerful” clip for Native Tongue, directed by Claudia Sangiorgi Dalimore, picked up Australian Music Video of the Year.

 Claudia Sangiorgi Dalimore @ the 2018 J Awards

“I don’t think any of us in that field on that day thought it would have this kind of impact, so it’s quite overwhelming to see what it’s done in the broader public," Claudia Sangiorgi Dalimore said upon receiving the award.

Speaking of Middle Kids’ Lost Friends, triple j Music Director Nick Findlay said:

“From Middle Kids first Unearthed upload through to their incredible debut album and beyond, their songwriting is instantly familiar while being refreshingly original.

“This is nowhere more evident than on their J Award winning album Lost Friends. Most records have peaks and troughs, but it’s all peaks on this release.

“At the heart of every song is Hannah Joy’s golden voice; combined with Hannah, Tim and Harry’s instrumentation it creates a rich sonic palette that traverses anthemic rock, alt-country and bittersweet indie ballads.”