$25,000 Winners Announced

Grand Prize Awarded To New Zealand Artist Kimbra
For The Song “Cameo Lover”

Established in 2002, ISC honors amateur and professional songwriters around the
world and awards more than $150,000 in cash and prizes. This year, ISC received
over 16,000 entries from 112 countries throughout the world, representing all genres
of contemporary music. With an esteemed panel of judges including luminaries Tom Waits,
Kelly Clarkson, Wynonna, Jeff Beck, McCoy Tyner, Ozzy Osbourne, Lucinda Williams, Keane,
and many more, winning the ISC Grand Prize is an extraordinary accomplishment that
recognizes excellence in the craft of songwriting.

Kimbra

Winning ISC’s highest honor is New Zealand’s latest export, the quirky and wonderfully eclectic artist Kimbra. Last year’s Pop/Top 40 winner, Kimbra has recently exploded onto the international music charts as the featured singer on Australian artist Gotye’s current #1 hit song, “Somebody That I Used To Know.” Her recent TV performances with Gotye on Jimmy Kimmel Live and Saturday Night Live were electrifying and introduced her to the US public, fortifying her meteoric rise to fame. Only 22 years old, Kimbra began writing songs and performing at the age of 10. Spending her early years gigging around her native New Zealand, it was only once Kimbra borrowed a small eight-track recorder from her school’s music department that her songwriting blossomed in earnest. Since then, she has made enormous strides in her career. Her debut album, Vows, was released in 2011 in New Zealand and Australia, and in its first week of release the album charted at #3 in New Zealand and #5 in Australia (peaking at #4 on the ARIA Charts). The album will be released in the US and Canada on May 22. Accolades include winning the 2011 NZ Critics’ Choice awards and also the Best Female Artist for “Cameo Lover” at the 2011 ARIA awards. Even at such a young age, Kimbra already possesses the maturity and musical sophistication of the mavericks she is so often compared to – from vocal legends Nina Simone and Jeff Buckley, to radicals the likes of Prince, and contemporary artists such as Björk and Janelle Monaé. With her distinctive vocals and hook-laden creative songwriting, Kimbra is rapidly establishing herself as a significant talent and a fresh and exciting new voice on the international music scene.

For more information on Kimbra, click here.

To hear the winning songs and view the complete list of winners, go to: www.songwritingcompetition.com/winners

Congratulations to all winners!

2011 Judges

Recording Artists: Tom Waits; Tori Amos; Jeff Beck; Lucinda Williams;
My Morning Jacket; Kelly Clarkson; Ozzy Osbourne; Keane; McCoy Tyner; Wynonna; Francesca
Battistelli; Janelle Monae; Billy Currington; Tegan and Sara; Massive Attack; Simon Le
Bon and Roger Taylor (Duran Duran); Michael W. Smith; Alejandro Sanz; Johnny Clegg;
Jeremy Camp; Ray Wylie Hubbard; John Mayall; Craig Morgan; Basement Jaxx; James Cotton;
Sandra Bernhard; Trombone Shorty; Robert Earl Keen; Black Francis (The Pixies); Mose
Allison; Robert Smith (The Cure); Amadou & Mariam; Darryl McDaniels (Run D.M.C.);
Toots Hibbert (Toots & The Maytals); and Matt Thiessen (Relient K)

Industry Executives: Monte Lipman (President, Universal Republic Records);
David Massey (President, Mercury Records); Brian Malouf (VP A&R, Walt Disney Records);
Bruce Iglauer (Founder/President, Alligator Records); Angel Carrasco (Sr. VP A&R,
Latin America, Sony/BMG); Ric Arboit (President, Nettwerk Music Group); Anastasia Brown
(Music Supervisor, FORMAT); Dr. Demento (Radio Host, The Dr. Demento Show); Allison Jones
(VP of A&R, Big Machine Label Group); Steve Lillywhite (Producer); Dan Storper (President,
Putamayo World Music Records and Putumayo Kids); Kim Buie (A&R and Artist Manager,
Thirty Tigers); Douglas C. Cohn (Sr. VP, Music Marketing & Talent, Nickelodeon); Trevor
Jerideau (VP of A&R, RCA Records); Antony Bland (Co-Owner, CandyShop Management); Steve
Smith (VP of A&R, Aware Records); Leib Ostrow (Founder/CEO, Music For Little People);
and Cory Robbins (Founder/President, Robbins Entertainment)

2011 Sponsors

Presonus, Lowden Guitars, Sennheiser, Posse, Mrs. Fields Cookies, ASCAP, Berklee College Of Music, D’Addario, Thayers, Onlinegigs, SongU.com, The Music Business Registry, SongTrust, Independent Mastering, Indie Venue Bible, George Stein Esq., Sonicbids, Taxi, and music Submit

Winning ISC isn’t just about the cash and prizes. The recognition, exposure, and
kudos of winning ISC add to the reasons to enter and the benefits of winning. ISC
is looking for great songs and songwriters – so, whether you’re a professional
songwriter or just starting out, ISC welcomes your entries.

It’s very easy to submit your songs. You can enter online (mp3) or mail your songs
(CD, tape, or DVD for music video entries). You can also enter through MySpace –
which is really easy because ISC will go to your page and listen to your songs there
(you don’t even need to send us your songs!). Click
here to enter.

Categories
AAA (Adult Album Alternative), Adult Contemporary (AC), Americana, Blues, Children’s
Music, Comedy/Novelty, Country, Dance/Electronica, Folk/Singer-Songwriter,
Gospel/Christian, Instrumental, Jazz, Latin Music, Lyrics Only, Music Video, Performance,
Pop/Top 40, R&B/Hip-Hop, Rock, Teen, Unsigned Only (this category is open to unsigned
songwriters and artists only), and World Music. Entrants may submit as many songs as they
wish – in the same category or in multiple categories.

2012 Judges
ISC’s judging panel includes many of your favorite past judges as well as many new judges.
Here is the list to date, but we will be adding many more, so stay tuned for updates.

Recording Artists: Tom Waits, Nas, Jeff Beck, Bruce Hornsby, Martina McBride,
Keane, McCoy Tyner, Wynonna, Michael W. Smith, Bill Evans, Billy Currington, Robert Earl Keen,
Janelle Monae, Baement Jaxx, Duran Duran, Robert Smith (The Cure), Alejandro Sanz, Matt Thiessen
(Relient K), Toots Hibbert (Toots & The Maytals), John Mayall, Jeremy Camp, James Cotton,
Black Francis (The Pixies), Craig Morgan, Darryl McDaniels (Run DMC), Tegan and Sara, Sandra
Bernhard, and more to be announced…

Industry Executives: Monte Lipman (President, Universal Republic Records),
Brian Malouf (VP A&R, Walt Disney Records); Bruce Iglauer (Founder/President, Alligator
Records); Angel Carrasco (Sr. VP A&R, Latin America, Sony/BMG); Cory Robbins
(Founder/President, Robbins Entertainment); Steve Smith (VP of A&R, Aware Records), Dr.
Demento (Radio Host, The Dr. Demento Show); Anastasia Brown (Music Supervisor, FORMAT), Steve
Lillywhite (Producer); Allison Jones (VP of A&R, Big Machine Label Group); Kim Buie
(A&R and Artist Manager, Thirty Tigers); Leib Ostrow (CEO, Music For Little People);
Douglas C. Cohn (Sr. VP, Music Marketing & Promotion, Nickelodeon); and more to be
announced…