International Songwriting Competition (ISC) Announces 2019 Winners!

The International Songwriting Competition (ISC) is pleased to announce its 2019 winners. Established in 2002, ISC is the world’s largest international songwriting competition, receiving over 18,000 entries from 140 countries in 2019.

More than $150,000 in cash and merchandise is awarded to 71 winners in 23 categories covering all genres of music.

Winning ISC is an honor awarded to many artists whose careers have been successful.

Previous winners have included: Illenium; Vance Joy; Bastille; Gotye; Lindsey Stirling; Kimbra; The Band Perry; Kehlani; Faouzia; Gregory Porter; Fantastic Negrito; Passenger; Lupe Fiasco; Gin Wigmore; Missy Higgins; For King and Country; Dean Lewis; and many more.

ARTIST JUDGES

COLDPLAY		DUA LIPA		TOM WAITS		KEVIN GATES		CAM
THE SCRIPT		KRISTIAN BUSH Sugarland		FLEET FOXES		TANYA TUCKER		AMERICAN AUTHORS
LONNIE LISTON SMITH		JEREMIH		LUKAS NELSON		SARA EVANS		SIDEWALK PROPHETS
KARI JOBE		IRMA THOMAS		ANUEL AA		NANCY WILSON Heart		KREWELLA
DANILO PEREZ		RAKIM Eric B. & Rakim		CAMILA		ABOVE & BEYOND		MATTHEW WEST
ROBERT RANDOLPH Robert Randolph & The Family Band		TIM RICE-OXLEY Keane		EASTON CORBIN		MANDOLIN ORANGE		JAMES MCNALLY Afro Celt Sound System
TED NASH		CEDRIC THE ENTERTAINER		JOHN MAYALL		GORDON GOODWIN		JOE LOUIS WALKER
ASHWIN BATISH		JOHN TIBBS		NICHOLAS GUNN Limelght		MICAH TYLER		WALTER TROUT
JIMMY PARDO

INDUSTRY JUDGES
AVERY LIPMAN Founder / President, Republic Records		SYLVIA RHONE Chairwoman / CEO, Epic Records		DANIEL GLASS President, Glassnote Records		JO CHARRINGTON Co-President, Capitol Music Group (UK)		MARK MITCHELL Co-President, Parlophone Records
MIKE EASTERLIN Co-President, Elektra Music Group		JOHN BURK President, Concord Music Group		BRUCE IGLAUER Founder / President, Alligator Records		RICHARD STUMPF CEO, Atlas Music Publishing		ED VETRI President, Wind-Up Records
DALLAS MARTIN Sr. VP of A&R, Atlantic Records		NATE ALBERT EVP of A&R, Capitol Records		KIM BUIE VP of A&R, New West Records		GOLNAR KHOSROWSHAHI President, Reservoir Media Management		KATE LABREL VP of A&R, Warner Records
JOSH BAILEY Sr. VP of A&R, Word Entertainment		CARLETTA HIGGINSON Global Head of Music Publishing, YouTube		JACOB EDGAR Founder, Cumbancha		CORY ROBBINS Founder / President, Robbins Entertainment		JULIE KERTES Editor/General Manager, Hot Diggity Media
LAURA MARGOLIN Publishing, Glassnote Records		RANDY FRISCH Founder, LoveCat Music		MARNI GREENBERG Head of Music Communications, YouTube		DAVID WAXMAN General Manager / Senior VP of A&R, Ultra Music		LEIB OSTROW Founder / CEO, Music For Little People
KATHERINE DINES Chair of the Advisory Board, The Children’s Music Network		CLAIRE S. GREEN President, Parents’ Choice Foundation		AJ TOBEY Head of A&R, Rough Trade Publishing		BENJAMIN GROFF Owner, Brill Building Modern Copyrights		TAMARA CONNIFF EVP, Roc Nation Music Publishing
CARL CAPRIOGLIO Founder & CEO, Oglio Entertainment		ELENA EPSTEIN Director, National Parenting Product Awards

It is with great pleasure that ISC bestows its highest honor to Australian artist and songwriter Tones And I for the song “Dance Monkey.” The Grand Prize consists of $25,000 in cash (USD) and almost $45,000 in additional prizes.

“This song has taken the world by storm, and it is undeniable that it has propelled Tones And I to massive superstardom,” said Candace Avery, Founder and Director of ISC. “Prior to ‘Dance Monkey,’ Tones And I was an indie artist struggling to get her voice heard.

This is such a great example of how just the right song can change an artist’s life and should inspire up-and-coming songwriters to keep on following their dream.”

Australian singer and songwriter Toni Watson (known as Tones And I) grew up in Mornington Peninsula but moved to Byron Bay in 2017 to busk on the streets, where she lived out of her van for the year.

In 2019, she made history when she became the first artist to spend 24 weeks at #1 on the ARIA singles charts with her global smash “Dance Monkey,” which she says took her only a little more than 30 minutes to write.

Since its release in May 2019, the hit single has reached #1 in 30 countries; amassed more than seven billion streams; became the highest streamed song ever by a female artist on Spotify and the most Shazamed song of all time; and is now the longest ever running #1 song on the Spotify global charts.

She made her US television debut in November 2019 on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon (her performance has generated over 80 million views on YouTube to date). The accolades, awards, and universal love of this song have vaulted Tones And I to the global stage.

This is quite a remarkable achievement for someone who was busking and living out of a van at the end of 2018, and this young Aussie artist will no doubt continue to make history.

“My life has been a rollercoaster since releasing this song, and to get this recognition is an honor,” said Tones And I. ”I wrote this song on my own and for my friends, and I never imagined it would have become as big as it has. Thank you so much, I’m very proud to have written this song.”

ISC is renowned for its panel of iconic judges that includes celebrity artists and high-profile music industry executives.

Included are: Coldplay; Kevin Gates; Tom Waits; Cam; American Authors; The Script; Tanya Tucker; Nancy Wilson (Heart); Kristian Bush (Sugarland); Kari Jobe; Danilo Perez; Camila; Krewella; Sidewalk Prophets; Irma Thomas; Lonnie Liston Smith; Above & Beyond; Avery Lipman (Founder/President, Republic Records); Daniel Glass (President, Glassnote Records); Mike Easterlin (Co-President, Elektra Music Group); Bruce Iglauer (Founder/President, Alligator Records); Kate Craig (VP of A&R, Warner Records); Nate Albert (Exec. VP of A&R, Capitol Records); Josh Bailey (Senior VP of A&R, Word Entertainment); and many more.

In addition to the Grand Prize winner, many other deserving songwriters also share in the prestige and kudos of winning their respective categories in ISC. These winners hail from all over the world (63% of this year’s winners come from outside the USA) and represent diverse cultures while ranging from talented amateurs to seasoned songwriting veterans.

The 23 categories include all genres of contemporary music, from Pop/Top 40 to Jazz to Country to Hip-Hop, and more.

For a complete list of 2019 winners and to hear the winning songs go HERE

AAA (ADULT ALBUM ALTERNATIVE)

AC (ADULT CONTEMPORARY)

AMERICANA

BLUES

CHILDREN’S MUSIC

CHRISTIAN

COMEDY/NOVELTY

COUNTRY

EDM (ELECTRONIC DANCE MUSIC)

FOLK/SINGER-SONGWRITER

INSTRUMENTAL

JAZZ

LATIN

LYRICS ONLY

MUSIC VIDEO

PERFORMANCE

POP/TOP 40

R&B/HIP-HOP

ROCK

TEEN

UNPUBLISHED

UNSIGNED ONLY

WORLD

PEOPLES’ VOICE