In a ceremony held on October 8 at Te Whanganui-A-Tara Wellington’s St James Theatre, APRA AMCOS Aotearoa announced the winners of the 2024 APRA Silver Scroll Awards | Kaitito Kaiaka.

2024 APRA Silver Scroll Winners

• APRA Silver Scroll Award | Kaitito Kaiaka: Kātuarehe, written by Anna Coddington, Noema Te Hau III, Ruth Smith, Kawiti Waetford
• APRA Maioha Award | Tohu Maioha: He Rei Niho, written by Jordyn Rapana, Ruth Smith, Dan Martin, Kawiti Waetford, performed by Jordyn with a Why
• SOUNZ Contemporary Award | Te Tohu Auaha: The Convergence Of Oceans by Nathaniel Otley
• APRA Best Original Music In A Series Award | Tohu Paerangi: Karl Sölve Steven and Rob Thorne for Black Coast Vanishings
• APRA Best Original Music In A Film Award | Tohu Pūmanawa: Karl Sölve Steven and Jason Smith for Never Look Away
• NZ Music Hall of Fame | Te Whare Taonga Puoro o Aotearoa inductee: Mike Nock (ONZM)

Ngāti Tūwharetoa and Te Arawa singer-songwriter Anna Coddington has been involved with the Silver Scroll Awards for many years as a performer, presenter, nominee, and finalist. She earned a top five spot in 2013 for Bird In Hand, has been in the top 20 four times since 2010, and performed six times since 2001 when she first appeared the awards as part of her early band Handsome Geoffrey.

Winning the peer-voted award for her bilingual waiata is a fitting recognition of her recent exploration of writing waiata reo rua and waiata reo Māori, as well as reflecting her song’s hook-filled narrative expressing the sentiment of ‘kātuarehe’ – meaning ‘to be outstanding / marvellous’. It’s a song that lifts spirits and confidence.

As well as being part of the Kātuarehe win Ruth Smith and Kawiti Waetford were also both co-winners of the 2024 APRA Maioha Award | Tohu Maioha for their co-writing alongside Jordyn Rapana and Dan Martin for Jordyn with a Why’s He Rei Niho.

Jordyn with a Why’s soulful work weaves stories of language reclamation, identity, and cultural heritage throughout her music, often featuring bilingual lyricism. The waiata is a reflection of Jordyn’s journey to reconnect with her roots in Whāingaroa Raglan. The song is a celebration of tāera Māori, or ‘Māori style’, and is intended to get the party started. In 2022 Jordyn was selected to participate in Reo Māori SongHubs and it was there, alongside Smith, Waetford and Dan Martin, she wrote He Rei Niho. (Coddington was a guest at the same writing camp – and it’s also where Kātuarehe was born.)

Jazz performer and composer Mike Nock was recognised for his continuing achievements as a celebrated performer, collaborator, musician, pianist, composer, and educator. In his honour music director Ben Lemi commissioned a reimagining of Nock’s composition Land of the Long White Cloud, performed by Leonardo Coghini and the Virtuoso Strings.