ANNOUNCING THE TOP 30 SONGS OF THE YOUNG SONGWRITER 2023 COMPETITION #SAYS23
PRESS RELEASE
SAYS23 Star Judges include Fraser T Smith, Amy Wadge, Calum Scott, Plested, Miranda Cooper, GRACEY, Eg White, Jimmy Napes, Emily Phillips, Hannah V, Sodajerker, Sacha Skarbek, Dan Gillespie Sells, Janet Devlin & Simon Aldred.
Drumroll please! The top 30 songs of the hotly contested Song Academy Young Songwriter 2023 competition, in its 13th year, have now been revealed. This year’s competition attracted around 1,000 high quality entries from aspiring young songwriters aged 8-18 across the world, both experienced young songwriters and those who’ve written their first song. 62% of entrants were girls, 32% boys, 6% preferred not to say or had a unique gender identification. Entries were from across the entire UK/Ireland (71%) and around the world (29%). The future of music is bright and diverse!
Emily Phillips, songwriter and lead judge of The Young Songwriter 2023 competition said “Another swift year has passed since the last Song Academy Young Songwriter Competition and nearly 1,000 songs for the 2023 entry have been listened to. This years entries cover an enormous variety of sounds, styles, and lyrical invention. Unrequited love, family relations, social media, self identity and nature are common themes in the lyrics. The songs vary from a simple guitar or piano accompaniment to full on production. My job is to discern the song beyond the performance and beyond the soundscape, which can be very difficult if the song is wrapped up in an irresistible way, and also hard if the presentation is poor. There is no doubt that some great songs are inextricably bound to their sound which gives them the identity we gravitate to, so I hope the judges can be forgiven for loving a song partly because it sounds great.
I can only say that the judging process is not an exact science, and that mistakes will and can be made. In much the same way that the Beatles were turned down by 4 record companies, I will no doubt have inadvertently overlooked a great song. This may be because, some songs require many listens before you realise their secret magic. Anyway, I’m trying to say that no writer in the competition should feel disheartened. A song writer needs to write as many songs as possible, as often times, it’s in the proliferation that greatness comes. I also want to stress that the standard of some of the songwriting is astonishing, there is no match for the hubris of youth!
Song Academy and the judges encourage all young songwriters to collaborate. It’s fun, and can be a great way to connect with other like-minded young people. Collaboration builds confidence and opens up a world of possibilities. Song Academy is helping to build a community of the next generation of songwriters in the UK and around the world. What a fantastic organisation, I am very proud to be part of it.”
Listen to the top 30 songs on the Song Academy SoundCloud account! Plus the top 30 songs and young songwriters are SHOWN BELOW. The International 8-12 year olds category will wait until the top 10 announcements as they had fewer entries.
The top 10 finalists of all categories will be announced on the 12th May. The top 3 finalists will be announced on the 13th June. The UK/Ireland winners will be announced on Saturday 23rd September 2023 at The Young Songwriter 2023 live showcase held at The Tabernacle, Notting Hill, London. The International winners will be announced at the online showcase on Sunday 24th September at 2pm GMT. Stay tuned to our social channels to hear the announcements first!
Fraser T Smith (songwriter, producer and SAYS23 judge) said “With so much going on in the world, it’s never been more vital for young people to be able to channel their energy and emotions into something positive, which is what The Young Songwriter competition encourages and facilitates through songwriting. Every young person has something to say, a story to tell, or a message to share – that’s why Song Academy is so important to our community.”
Rowena Atkins, Founder of Song Academy said: “The Young Songwriter competition stands for the craft and art of songwriting in its purest form, enabling young songwriters to aspire to the very best melody, lyric, structure, concept, harmony, mood and impact a song can have. We are looking for originality, creativity and musical bravery. We’re a supportive community where young people express themselves freely, get their songs heard and connect to like-minded young people. The benefits from this unique community are far reaching, especially the positive boost to mental health.”
The next opportunity for young songwriters aged 11-18 in the UK/Ireland is our new residential Summer songwriting camp from 9th to 12th August 2023, near Guildford, UK. There are a limited number of places available so please contact us soon.
Next opportunities for schools are for Song Academy to run songwriting workshops for Leavers (academic years 6 and 13) to write a song about their time at school & looking ahead to the future. In addition to the positive experience of writing a song together encapsulating their time at school & thoughts of the future, we can create a backing track and full track for schools to use for promotions and Leavers to have as a memento!
Official sponsors of The Song Academy Young Songwriter 2023 competition are YouTube Music, Yamaha, Soundtrap, Focusrite, PRS for Music and ICMP.
CATEGORY: UK/IRELAND, 16-18 YEAR OLDS * TOP 30
A HUNDRED YEARS – LILY CLARKE
A THERAPY SESSION IN NORTH CAROLINA – ISLA MAE
ARE YOU OKAY? – MAGGIE WAKELING
BEAUTY – MATT JONES
CRYSTAL CHANDELIERS – AMITY MILLER
DEAREST ONE – SEAN TRELFORD
HARP – SHAAN BHASKAR
HEARTBREAK? – FAITH LOUISE
HOMETOWN – ROSE MOLYNEUX & OWEN FRANCIS BLACK
HYMN FOR THE HOMESICK KIDS – TAMARA HENDIN
I’M NOT ALONE – THOMAS WIGLEY
IT’S NOT TOO LATE – RALPH BISHOP
JUST YOU AND ME – COLE LAM
LAZY – SOPHIE FERIANI
LITTLE GIRL – RUBE
MILESAWAY – CHINKZ
PEOPLE MADE FROM STARS – SASHA FORD
SELF ESTEEM – JOE GOODALL
SET ME ON FIRE – ROE BYRNE
SPARE ROOM – LILLY MAE CHANDLER
STARRY – RAINE HARLA
TESCO – EVE COLE
TTF – JS STARZ
UNTITLED – MANGSAM SENEHANG
VILLAIN ERA – EVA DONOGHUE
WATCHING – SIRINE
WHAT YOU’D WANT – ABBIE GORDON
WHO AM I TO TELL – ERIN O’SULLIVAN & OLLIE
WILD OUT AT SEA – ELIZA LOVISE
YOU ARE THE LIGHT – ADAM O’CONNOR, ARLO REDMAN
CATEGORY: UK/IRELAND, 13-15 YEAR OLDS * TOP 30
ANOTHER TIME – IOLA CAMPBELL
BACKGROUND GIRL – MADDIE INSTONE
BE WHO YOU WANNA BE – LOIS BROOKS
BY YOUR SIDE – ARNAV MERVE, RAVI KAMATH, ARJUN RAMANI
CENTRAL LINE TO TOWN – MIA WILKS
DOING IT FOR CLOUT – KACIA
DOORS – CHARLIE RYAN
DRIVING SEAT – ELI CROSSLEY
FINE TOTALLY – ROWAN ADDY
FOURTEEN – SKYE BISHOP
FRAUD – DANIEL MACKIN
HONEYSIDE – TITO WILEY
IF YOU WERE… – MAYONNAISE
INSIDE AND OUT – NEVAEH
JOHNNY SOMEONE – WOODY COLLINS
LAST TRAIN TO THE COAST – JOSEPH DAVIS
LITTLE GIRL – EMILY GASKELL
LOST IN THOUGHTS – MAYA MARTIN
LOVE RAMPAGE – MACY O
OCTOBER BOY – BAILEY BRITT
ONE OF A KIND – SAMUEL KHANNA
PATHOLOGICAL LIAR – ELIZABETH EHINFUN
PROMISES AND REGRETS – STUART VEITCH
PURPLE – LUCY HANSON
SILVER BIRCH – JEANNE MARIE MARAIS
TAKE ME HOME – SHANELLE RUDRIGO
THE LETTER – BRADÁN PEACOCK
THERE’S THIS PLACE – JOHNNY BEAU
THESE DAYS – ECHO
WALKING IN THE RAIN – BEN GUTHRIE
CATEGORY: UK/IRELAND 8-12 YEAR OLDS * TOP 30
10 RULES – KIDS OF ORION
ANY OTHER DAY – MAX MARNHAM
BACKSTAGE GUY – HALLUCINATIONS
BRAND NEW – SHOLTO
CAT LAWS – AGNES BULL
CRYSTAL CLEAR – CRYSTALS
DAYDREAMS – ROBYN JONES
GROWING UP IS EASY – FLORENCE
H.O.P.E – ISLA HANNETT
HOLD ONTO YOUR BRANCHES – 12 DEERS
I AM FREE – OTTILIE WALLACE
I’LL GO ON AN ADVENTURE – ELISA MCEVOY
JUST THE WAY IT IS – THEA WARD
KING FOR A DAY – FRANKIE MORLAND
KNEBWORTH – KIT BOTTOMLEY
LONDONERS – BLACK SHEEP BLUES
MONDAY – LIZZIE
MY SONG – GEORGIA RUSSELL
REACH FOR THE STARS – WILLIAM TYNDALE PRIMARY SCHOOL
ROCKET SHIP – ROBBIE HOPE
SHY FELLOW – HENRY MARNHAM
STRANGER – MILO DELLAL, NIKOLAI GRLICA, ERIK LANGRAN
SUNFLOWER – ELEANOR ROSE HANSON
THAT’S WHERE I’LL BE – EMILY FINE
THE FUTURE’S HAPPENING – OREGON
TRIAL OF TRUST – ALEXANDER YIJIAN WANG
UNFORGIVABE – REBECCA ALESHA AND MADELINE
WAIT – OLGA FITZPATRICK
WHAT A DAY – FINN CRABTREE
WORDS – EVIE MITCHELL
CATEGORY: INTERNATIONAL, 13-18 YEAR OLDS * TOP 30
(I LIKE YOUR) GREEN EYES BABY – ANDREI SERBAN
AIR – JESSI JOY VILLA
ARE YOU GONNA LOVE ME? NOAH ROBERTSON
ASHES – AVA GRACE
BEE-SIDE – JAKE MURDOCH
BILLBOARD CITY – SUMMER BRENNAN
BLESSING – JOSH DIONISIO
BURNIN UP – CLAUDIA MATEOS
COINCIDENCE – LINDSAY LIEBRO
CYAN – PEDRO GIOMO
DECEMBER – CLAIRE KETELHOHN
FIRE – MIA BENITA
HAND – FREDERIC THESIGER
JELLYMAN – SWAGSOCKS
KEEP MOVING – MIA MASSY AND FAYE JOHNSON
LAST DAY BEING 17 – VICKY GAO
OAK TREE – JAYDEN POPE
OCTOBER – JOEY WILBUR
PUPPY LOVE – RAE
SHIVER – RUBY ARCHER
SLIP AWAY – SCARLETT ELISE
SO HARD – LINA SKALLI
START AND END – XINTIAN (DIANA) JI
THAT TINY HOUSE IN MY BRAIN – SOFIA KEMPA
THIN ICE – FELICIA HOLMEN
THIS – UNA ROULSTON
TOXIC – HARRY TOWBIN
WAITING IN LINE – SEASIDE FEELS
WHITE LIE – SOUTH
YOU DON’T KNOW ME – MALAIKA WAINWRIGHT
NOTES TO THE EDITORS – SONG ACADEMY OVERVIEW
Founded 14 years ago, Song Academy is dedicated to the future of music and the wellbeing of young people aged 8-18. Our mission is to help children from all backgrounds find their voice and find their tribe, through writing their own original songs at a formative time of their life. We nurture young writers, artists, musicians, producers and creative thinkers, empowering young people to achieve their full potential and shape their future.
Our focus is on the craft of songwriting, creating lyrics and music. We believe that songwriting and music can transform the lives of young people. Young people are growing up in a competitive, fast-changing and potentially isolating environment, leaving them vulnerable to various pressures and issues with their mental health. Songwriting enables young people to communicate their thoughts and feelings and connect to others. Through this creative and therapeutic process, they can discover their identity, overcome challenges, feel empowered, and advance their general writing and social skills. Not only can the songs they write advance potential musical careers, but also spark debate, build connection with peers and shape their future.
Song Academy runs after-school clubs, holiday workshops, school workshops, birthday parties, a Summer residential songwriting camp and an annual international Young Songwriter competition. As a result of our programmes, we have seen an increase in confidence, self-esteem, creativity, motivation, well-being and technical songwriting ability of our members.
Email: rowena@songacademy.co.uk. Tel: 07710 023743
