COMPETITIONS

Competition Summary:

For Year 9-11 students, this competition encourages young songwriters to explore their identity through the connections and experiences that shape who they are, regardless of genre, language, or style.

‍This year's competition will be judged by a panel of judges. The recording quality of the entry is not taken into account in the judging process.

1st place wins: 

1:1 mentor session with a competition judge

Performance at our Annual Awards

Artist Development session with Sacha Vee

Lots more to be announced!

ALL finalists will have their song recorded in a professional recording studio (one day up to the value of $850+GST) to go on one of the 2026 Junior Songwriting Competition digital albums.

Competition Summary:

The Peace Project is a collective songwriting initiative inviting rangatahi across Aotearoa to create original works exploring what peace means to them. The focus is on purpose: using songwriting to respond to the times we are living in and contribute something meaningful through your art.

For your entry, we encourage you to write lyrics that reflect your perspective on peace – this could be personal wellbeing, relationships, communal unity, cultural identity, or global issues. Think about why peace matters right now, what it looks like in your world, and how your song can add to the wider project, regardless of genre, language, or style.

This year's competition will be judged by a panel of judges. The recording quality of the entry is not taken into account in the judging process.

1st place wins: 

1:1 mentor session with a competition judge

Performance at our Annual Awards

Artist Development session with Sacha Vee

Lots more to be announced!

ALL finalists will have their song recorded in a professional recording studio (one day up to the value of $850+GST) to go on one of the 2026 Peace Project digital albums.

Competition Summary: 
This competition invites Year 9-13 secondary school students to share their kōrero and bring reo rangatira to life through waiata. The waiata must incorporate te reo Māori – whether it’s a few kupu (words) or the entire waiata.

This year's competition will be judged by a panel of judges. The recording quality of the entry is not taken into account in the judging process.

1st place wins: 

1:1 mentor session with a competition judge

Performance at our Annual Awards

Artist Development session with Sacha Vee

Lots more to be announced!

ALL finalists will have their song recorded in a professional recording studio (one day up to the value of $850+GST) to go on the 2026 Waiata Māori Competition digital album.

Competition Summary:

Open to NZ secondary school students in Years 9-13, this flagship competition encourages rangatahi songwriters to creatively express themselves no matter the theme, genre, language or style.

This year's competition will be judged by a panel of judges. The recording quality of the entry is not taken into account in the judging process.

1st place wins: 

$10,000 music video promo package thanks to NZ On Air

1:1 mentor session with a competition judge

Performance at our Annual Awards

Artist Development session with Sacha Vee

Lots more to be announced!

ALL finalists will have their song recorded in a professional recording studio (one day up to the value of $850+GST) to go on one of the 2026 National Songwriting Competition digital albums.

Competition Summary:

This competition seeks 4 artworks to feature as the cover art for each 2026 Play It Strange competition albums. Your submission could feature as the cover art for our Junior Songwriting Competition, Peace Project, National Songwriting Competition or the Waiata Māori Competition.

This competition is open to anyone aged 13-19.

How to enter: 

Submit your details and a digital file (jpeg or png) of your artwork. Artwork should be in a square format, with space for logos and the album title.

You can submit more than one artwork.