Coronavirus: Hilltop Hoods reach the summit at APRA awards

At the online-only 2020 APRA Music Awards, Hilltop Hoods won songwriter of the year.

Adelaide hip-hip trio Hilltop Hoods, from left, Baz Francis (DJ Debris), Matt Lambert (MC Suffa) and Dan Smith (MC Pressure). Picture: Hollie Adams.

On a night when the annual celebration of excellence in songwriting was forced to move to an online-only event because of corona­virus, a hip-hop act won the songwriter of the year award for the second time in the 38-year history of the APRA Music Awards.

Two years ago, Hilltop Hoods presented the genre’s first award to hip-hop duo A.B. Original; on Monday, the Adelaide trio was named as the recipient of the Australian music industry’s highest honour for songwriters.

“I think it’s nice A.B. Original and us have had this opportunity to win this award, because to a ­degree it does lend some respectability and integrity to the local hip-hop scene,” rapper and producer Matt Lambert said.

“It strengthens the fact that this is a real movement, and it’s here to stay,” said Lambert, who performs as MC Suffa alongside bandmates Dan Smith (MC Pressure) and Baz Francis (DJ Debris).

With six ARIA No 1 albums to its name since 2006, this newest award — for its eighth album, The Great Expanse — further cements its extensive contribution to popular Australian music, given that previous recipients include the likes of Paul Kelly, Kasey Chambers, Nick Cave and three-time winner Sia Furler, with whom Hilltop Hoods has collaborated.

As well, the trio won most performed urban work for Leave Me Lonely, one of two songs from The Great Expanse nominated in that category.

Pop singer-songwriter Toni Watson, who performs as Tones and I, was the other big winner on Monday night. Her global smash hit Dance Monkey was the peer-voted APRA song of the year, with Watson also named breakthrough songwriter of the year. “As an artist, we don’t get recognised, a lot of the time, as songwriters; but as an artist that does write my music, I want to say thank you,” said Watson in her ­acceptance speech for breakthrough songwriter.

The award for most performed Australian work went to 17-year-old singer-songwriter Kian Brown­­­field for Waiting. If that result raised a few eyebrows given the utter dominance of Dance Monkey since its release in May last year, it’s worth noting that nominees and winners for each category are determined by performance activity reflected by royalty earnings between July 1, 2018, and September 30, 2019.

In other words: next year, Watson is all but guaranteed to win that category.