Technical Finalists Announced

The first round of finalists in the 45^th installment of the Vodafone New Zealand Music Awards (VNZMA) has been announced.

Wellington’s Phoenix Foundation leads the charge with the band’s album Buffalo nabbing three finals spots in the Technical Awards section.


Meanwhile, the engineer behind Buffalo, Lee Prebble, grabs two finals berths in the Best Engineer category, the second for Fly My Pretties’ A Story and a third nod in the Best Producer category.

The country’s best engineers, producers and album cover artists are set to be honoured on September 1 when the three Technical Awards will be presented - Best Album Cover, MAINZ Best Engineer and MAINZ Best Producer.

The finalists in the Best Album Cover category are: Paul Johnson for Buffalo (The Phoenix Foundation); Rebekah Atkins, Kieran Rynhart, Mikee Tucker and Anita Liu for A Story (Fly My Pretties); and Ryan Marx for Everything (P-Money).

In the MAINZ Best Engineer category, the finalists are: Andre Upston for Magnetic (Miriam Clancy); Lee Prebble for Buffalo (The Phoenix Foundation); and Lee Prebble for A Story (Fly My Pretties)

The finalists for MAINZ Best Producer are: Jeremy Toy for Standing In The Rain (Opensouls); Lee Prebble and Barnaby Weir for A Story (Fly My Pretties); and The Phoenix Foundation for Buffalo (The Phoenix Foundation).

RIANZ CEO Campbell Smith says: “We are gearing up for another exciting year for the music awards, and it’s always great to kick things off by honouring those who do  crucial behind-the-scenes work..

“The hours of work in the studio from recording engineers and producers, and creativity from artists who design amazing covers, give our music releases that special polish – and it’s great to award these efforts.”

The winners of the technical awards will be announced at the Langham Hotel in Auckland where RIANZ hosts the Vodafone New Zealand Music Awards Finalists’ Announcement and Technical Awards presentation.

The recipient of the fourth annual New Zealand Herald Legacy Award will also be also announced at the event and honoured at the main awards on October 7. That artist will also be also inducted by RIANZ and APRA into the New Zealand Music Hall of Fame.

The finalists for the main awards – now in their 45^th year - will be revealed at the same function in Auckland on September 1.  The main awards categories are:

Album of the Year

Vodafone Single of the Year

Steinlager Pure Best Group

Best Male Solo Artist

Mazda Best Female Solo Artist

Pacific Blue Breakthrough Artist of the Year

C4 Best Music Video

PPNZ Best Rock Album

Best Pop Album

Best Urban / Hip Hop Album

Best Electronica Album

Kiwi FM Best Aotearoa Roots Album

Best Gospel / Christian Album

Best Classical Album

International Achievement Award

Vodafone Peoples’ Choice Award

New Zealand Herald Legacy Award

Highest Selling Album

Highest Selling Single

NZ on Air Radio Airplay of the Year

No finalists are announced for the Highest Selling NZ Single, Highest Selling NZ Album and the New Zealand on Air Radio Airplay Record of the Year awards. These, along with the International Achievement award – which is judged by the RIANZ Board and awarded at the Board’s discretion – will be announced at the main awards on October 7.

Head to our Triple A Blog for a chance to win one of three Technical Awards prize packs...