SUNSHINE COAST MUSIC AWARDS •
SUNSHINE COAST MUSIC AWARDS
GUIDELINES & ELIGIBILITY
AWARD GUIDELINES & ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA
WHO CAN NOMINATE?
Anyone is eligible to nominate themselves for an award, or via the SCMIC website invite someone else to nominate for an award. The nomination forms, however, will only be accepted from the nominee themselves (artist, band, venue etc) or their manager, publicist or agent.
If you would like your favourite artist, venue or punter to win please encourage them with an invitation to nominate.
CATEGORY SPECIFIC CRITERIA
Category-specific nomination criteria & award descriptions for individual awards is available on the nomination page for each award.
Get started by accessing the award categories here.
Choose a category to view the award info, nomination criteria, and application form
✅ The winner of the Artist of the Year cannot be the winner of Rising Star of the Year.
✅ Each artist may not submit more than 2 songs for Song of the Year.
✅ Artwork of the year is for a single piece of visual art that propels a musical piece or artist.
✅ Young Artist of the year can be an individual artist or a band, where the majority (over half) of the band is over 16 & under 21 during the eligibility time frame. Please note, that people under the age of 16 are unable to attend the event.
WHAT IS THE ELIGIBILITY PERIOD?
Nominees are eligible if the work was released between 1 March 2025 - 28 February 2026
HOW MUCH DOES IT COST?
There is an AUD$20 fee per nomination.
Each finalist will be provided with one free GA ticket to the Sunshine Coast Music Awards.
DO I HAVE TO LIVE ON THE SUNSHINE COAST?
To be eligible to nominate you must have a strong connection to the Sunshine Coast:
✅ The nominee (or more than half of the act, if a band) must live on the Sunshine Coast OR
✅ The nominee (or more than half of the nominated act) may have grown up and established their career on the Sunshine Coast but might currently live elsewhere
FOR THE PURPOSE OF THE SCMAs, THE 'SUNSHINE COAST' REFERS TO THE AREAS COVERED BY THE SUNSHINE COAST COUNCIL & NOOSA COUNCIL.
ALL APPLICATIONS WILL BE CHECKED FOR ELIGIBILITY
WHAT DO I NEED TO NOMINATE?
To apply you must be able to submit:
✅ A current biography - no longer than 150 words, that is cleared for our marketing team to use.
✅ Two press shots, and where applicable a logo, in an online folder that has no passwords, also cleared for our marketing team to use.
✅ Links to relevant Social media, Online listening/viewing of the artwork.
✅ Contact details.
AI GENERATED MUSIC & ART
After lengthy deliberations about the role of AI in music, and in a bid to maintain originality and human-led integrity, the SCMIC committee concluded these guidelines should be adhered to when making creative contributions to the Sunshine Coast Music Awards.
Please make sure you have addressed these guidelines when submitting your work:
✅ The project must be creatively led by a human.
✅ Any use of AI must be fully disclosed, specifying where and how it was used (e.g.lyrics, production, chord progression).
✅ Applicants must also declare the percentage of AI used for their work and its specific function.
✅ Non-disclosure of AI involvement may lead to disqualification.
✅ These guidelines also apply to visual art and branding.
THE JUDGING PROCESS
✅ Judges will be selected and invited to participate by the SCMIC Committee, with focus on diversity across gender, background & profession.
✅ No member of the Committee will participate in the initial judging process. However, all finalists will be reviewed and endorsed by the Committee as fit and proper representatives of the Sunshine Coast in their respective categories.
✅ Judging will be finalised in April
CAN'T FIND WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW?
Please email us: hello@scmic.org