The Australian Music Prize (often shortened to the AMP) is an annual award of $50,000 ($30,000 from 2005 to 2023) given to an Australian band or solo artist in recognition of the merit of an album released during the year of award. The award was made by Australian Music Prize Ltd, a sole-purpose entity sponsored by a variety of music industry figures and record companies. The AMP was established in 2005.

Unlike the more mainstream ARIA Music Awards, the AMP aims to encourage Australian music of excellence – the prize's stated aim is to "financially reward and increase exposure for an Australian artist (or group of artists) who have produced and commercially released what specially appointed judges vote is the best contemporary music album in any one calendar year". In this sense, the AMP is broadly comparable to the UK's Mercury Music Prize.

The prize typically launches at the start of October each year and accepts entries (must be new Australian artist albums commercially released in that year) in October and November. A shortlist is announced the following February and then a winner at an event in Sydney in March.

In 2023, the nominations were revealed in late November with the award announcement scheduled for early December.

Past winners and short list nominees

YearWinnerShortlisted nomineesRef(s)2005 (1st)The Drones – Wait Long by the River and the Bodies of Your Enemies Will Float By Ben Lee – Awake Is the New Sleep The Devastations – Coal The Go-Betweens – Oceans Apart The Mess Hall – Notes From A Ceiling Tex, Don and Charlie – All is Forgiven TZU – Smiling at Strangers Wolfmother – Wolfmother2006 (2nd)Augie March – Moo, You Bloody Choir Bob Evans – Suburban Songbook Gotye – Like Drawing Blood Howling Bells – Howling Bells Jackie Marshall – Fight n'Flight Lisa Gerrard – The Silver Tree Sarah Blasko – What The Sea Wants, The Sea Will Have The Drones – Gala Mill The Grates – Gravity Won't Get You High2007 (3rd)The Mess Hall – Devils Elbow Architecture in Helsinki – Places Like This Bluejuice – Problems Dardanelles – Mirror Mirror The Devastations – Yes U Lisa Miller – Morning in the Bowl of Night Midnight Juggernauts – Dystopia New Buffalo – Somewhere, Anywhere Perry Keyes – Last Ghost Train Home Urthboy – The Signal2008 (4th)Eddy Current Suppression Ring – Primary Colours The Presets – Apocalypso Beaches – Beaches The Drones – Havilah Cut Copy – In Ghost Colours C. W. Stoneking – Jungle Blues Jack Ladder – Love Is Gone Tom Cooney – Presque Vu Ross McLennan – For the New World2009 (5th)Lisa Mitchell – Wonder Bertie Blackman – Secrets and Lies Black Cab – Call Signs Kid Sam – Kid Sam Lucie Thorne – Black Across the Field Oh Mercy – Privileged Woes Sarah Blasko – As Day Follows Night The Mess Hall – For The Birds Urthboy – Spitshine2010 (6th)Cloud Control – Bliss Release The Holidays – Post Paradise Dan Kelly – Dan Kelly's Dream Eddy Current Suppression Ring – Rush To Relax Gareth Liddiard – Strange Tourist Pikelet – Stem Richard in Your Mind – My Volcano Sally Seltmann – Heart That's Pounding Tame Impala – Innerspeaker2011 (7th)The Jezabels – Prisoner Abbe May – Design Desire Adalita – Adalita Boy & Bear – Moonfire Gotye – Making Mirrors Gurrumul – Rrakala Jack Ladder & the Dreamlanders – Hurtsville Kimbra – Vows The Middle East – I Want That You Are Always Happy2012 (8th)Hermitude – HyperParadise Flume – Flume Tame Impala – Lonerism The Presets – Pacifica Grand Salvo – Slay Me in My Sleep Jess Ribeiro & the Bone Collectors – My Little River Liz Stringer – Warm in the Darkness Daily Meds – Happy Daze Urthboy – Smokey's Haunt2013 (9th)Big Scary – Not Art Jen Cloher – In Blood Memory Dialectrix – The Cold Light of Day Kirin J. Callinan – Embracism Beaches – She Beats Horrorshow – King Amongst Many Jagwar Ma – Howlin' Cloud Control – Dream Cave Jimblah – Phoenix2014 (10th)Remi – Raw x Infinity #1 Dads – About Face Blank Realm – Grassed Inn C. W. Stoneking – Gon' Boogaloo Caitlin Park – The Sleeper Chet Faker – Built on Glass Laura Jean – Laura Jean The Peep Tempel – Tales Total Control – Typical System2015 (11th)Courtney Barnett – Sometimes I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit Dan Kelly – Leisure Dick Diver – Melbourne, Florida Gold Class – It's Jess Ribeiro – Kill It Yourself Methyl Ethel – Oh Inhuman Spectacle My Disco – Severe Royal Headache – High Sarah Blasko – Eternal Return Tame Impala – Currents2016 (12th)A.B. Original – Reclaim Australia The Avalanches – Wildflower Big Scary – Animal Camp Cope – Camp Cope D.D Dumbo – Utopia Defeated King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard – Nonagon Infinity Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds – Skeleton Tree Olympia – Self Talk The Peep Tempel – Joy2017 (13th)Sampa the Great – Birds and the BEE9 Beaches – Second of Spring Darcy Baylis – Intimacy & Isolation HTMLflowers – Chrome Halo Jen Cloher – Jen Cloher Jordan Rakei – Wallflower Liars – TFCF Paul Kelly – Life Is Fine The Vampires – The Vampires Meet Lionel Loueke2018 (14th)Gurrumul – Djarimirri Abbe May – Fruit Courtney Barnett – Tell Me How You Really Feel Dead Can Dance – Dionysus Grand Salvo – Sea Glass Laura Jean – Devotion The Presets – Hi Viz Rolling Blackouts Coastal Fever – Hope Downs Sam Anning – Across A Field As Vast As One2019 (15th)Sampa the Great – The Return Ainslie Wills – All You Have Is All You Need Amyl and the Sniffers – Amyl and the Sniffers Dispossessed – Warpath Never Ended Julia Jacklin – Crushing Methyl Ethel – Triage Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds – Ghosteen Sleep D – Rebel Force Thelma Plum – Better in Blak2020 (16th)The Avalanches – We Will Always Love You Alice Ivy – Don't Sleep Blake Scott – Niscitam Emma Donovan & the Putbacks – Crossover Fanny Lumsden – Fallow Gordon Koang – Unity Miiesha – Nyaaringu Tame Impala – The Slow Rush Ziggy Ramo – Black ThoughtsThe Avalanches' 'We Will Always Love You' Wins SoundMerch Australian Music Prize. Tyler Jenke, Rolling Stone Australia, 03 March 2021. Retrieved 03 March 2021.2021 (17th)Genesis Owusu – Smiling with No Teeth Amyl and the Sniffers – Comfort to Me Baker Boy – Gela Emma Donovan & the Putbacks – Under These Streets Hiatus Kaiyote – Mood Valiant King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard – Butterfly 3000 Martha Marlow – Medicine Man Nick Cave & Warren Ellis – Carnage Odette – Herald2022 (18th)King Stingray – King Stingray 1300 – Foreign Language Body Type – Everything Is Dangerous but Nothing's Surprising Camp Cope – Running with the Hurricane Julia Jacklin – Pre Pleasure Laura Jean – Amateurs Party Dozen – The Real Work Sampa The Great – As Above, So Below Tasman Keith – A Colour Undone 2023 (19th)RVG – Brain Worms Angie McMahon – Light, Dark, Light Again Floodlights – Painting of My Time Genesis Owusu – Struggler Gretta Ray – Positive Spin Jen Cloher – I Am the River, the River Is Me Mo'Ju – Oro, Plata, Mata Polaris – Fatalism Troye Sivan – Something to Give Each Other2024 (20th) Kankawa Nagarra – Wirlmarni Audrey Powne – From the Fire Amyl and the Sniffers – Cartoon Darkness Dobby – Warrangu: River Story Grace Cummings – Ramona Hiatus Kaiyote – Love Heart Cheat Code Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – Wild God Rowena Wise – Senseless Acts of Beauty The Dirty Three – Love Changes Everything2025 (21st) Ninajirachi – I Love My Computer Bleak Squad – Strange Love Divide and Dissolve – Insatiable Floodlights – Underneath Folk Bitch Trio – Now Would Be a Good Time Mudrat – Social Cohesion Mia Wray – Hi, It's Nice to Meet Me Ruby Gill – Some Kind of Control Tropical Fuck Storm – Fairyland Codex

See also Choice Music Prize (Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland) Mercury Prize (United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland) Nordic Music Prize (Nordic countries) Polaris Music Prize (Canada) Prix Constantin (France) Shortlist Music Prize (United States)

References

External links