The peer-voted APRA Silver Scroll Award has reached its 61st year of being passed through the hands of Aotearoa’s finest songwriters, with the 2026 winning song to be announced and celebrated at the multi-awards ceremony (also celebrating 100 years of APRA) in Tāmaki Makaurau on October 14.

Determined by the votes of APRA NZ’s songwriting membership, there are five finalists still in the running, representing a range of genres and artists from across the motu. As has become tradition, each of the 2026 APRA Silver Scroll Award finalist songs will be covered by other musicians, a live performance way of publicly verifying the inherent strength of the songwriting involved. Music educator and composer Jeff Wragg gives a quick rundown on each song and takes a shot at picking a winner from the pool of excellence.

Click on the poster image at right to listen to each of the Top 5 tracks on your preferred platform via MixMates

Troy Kingi feat. MĀ – Afters

Northland musician Troy Kingi is already known for his genre hopping across multiple albums, and his stylistic multiplicity is on full display on Afters. Despite the relative short length of just over three minutes, the track has a strong narrative feel to it and comes across like a musical journey through a number of different sound worlds.

It opens with a laid-back, roots-flavoured drum groove and sparse guitar stabs with an attention-grabbing im to bII chord progression. The accompanying melodic bass line brings just the right amount of swagger to the groove and allows MĀ plenty of freedom to deliver her spoken word verses with lots of rhythmic variety. The sung chorus contrasts beautifully with the spoken verses, and the second half of the song introduces more electroacoustic sound design with creative use of reverbs to highlight the production aesthetics.

The track takes a stark turn after the second chorus, bringing in a psychedelic flavour with heavy flange on the drums, prominent bass riffs, and layers of electric guitars outlining a modal chord progression. Vocal ad-libs help to build the texture and tension before another stark change occurs and the texture drops out to vocals, light percussion and a spacious clean guitar, before ramping back up to the final chorus. The ending is abrupt and unexpected, giving the impression the journey is unfinished and there is more yet to come. A great track demonstrating Kingi’s broad and skillful approach to composition.

Aldous Harding – One Stop

Hailing from Lyttelton, Aldous Harding delivers up a tasteful offering with One Stop. The track features eclectic stylistic influences and enigmatic lyrical themes and offers up a few surprises in both its composition and arrangement. A repeating bass ostinato provides the only music bed for most of the song, drawing the listener’s attention to the strongly shaped melody and introspective lyrics. The ostinato outlines an Em6 D6 progression with an G6 to A turnaround, giving the song a strong Dorian flavour.

The relentless bass line plays continuous eighth notes, propelling the song forward like a train through the first two verses and choruses. The vocal melody is also rhythmically dense and leaves little verbal space, holding the listener’s attention despite the limited instrumentation and consistent texture. After the second chorus drums and acoustic guitar appear and we get a new harmonic progression of Em7 to F#m7 replacing the ostinato. The vocal ad-libs provide the only linking references to earlier in the song and the changing instruments, melody, harmony, and texture create the impression of an entirely new song that was tacked onto the first. It’s a lovely gem of a surprise that brings the song to an end in an unexpected way.

LEAO – Lalelei 

Based in Tāmaki Makaurau, LEAO deliver a beautiful fusion of indie-pop and Pasifika musical spirit in Lalelei. The track has a wonderfully nostalgic feel to it and comes across as deeply impassioned, and it’s impossible not to be swayed by the Pacific vibe and strong imagery created by the laid-back groove, pedal steel guitar, and mellifluous singing. While the harmony is predominantly based on a simple V to I progression there is some lovely use of chromatic passing chords, secondary dominants and added tensions to provide a colourful harmonic palette.

The lush vocal harmonies also add further richness to the track while the slide guitar fills out the verbal space in nuanced call and response patterns. Some gentle phasing effects towards the end of the song also bring in a slight psychedelic vibe and add further genre pollination. The very roomy sound of the drums and generally unmediated electric guitar gives a great ‘jamming’ vibe to the song and the entire track has a strong communal feel to it with no signs of being over-produced. Sung entirely in Gagana Samoa, the song comes across as a heartfelt homage to the group’s heritage. Absolutely gorgeous track. 

Fazed on a Pony – Wrong Party

Tāmaki Makaurau group Fazed on a Pony deliver a high energy indie pop track with Wrong Party. The track has a tight and polished sheen to it and demonstrates strong production values that incorporate both live instrumentation and synth pads and countermelodies. Much of the song is based on an 8-bar harmonic loop using I IV V and vi chords and the driving bass and incessant drum groove keep the song chugging forward for the full five minutes of the track while layers of jangly guitars flesh out the arrangement. Additional guitar parts come and go which, along with the keyboard lines and vocal harmonies, add subtle changes to the texture as the song progresses.

As the title suggests, the music has an upbeat party kind of vibe to it, which offers a contrast to the slightly confessional tone of the lyrics and intimate vocal delivery. It’s an interesting example of musical incongruence where the lyrics suggest one thing and the music suggests something else, inviting deeper reflection on the lyrical themes and offering a wider range of interpretations for the listener.

Deva Mahal – Someone’s Daughter

Wellington singer Deva Mahal delivers a stunning vocal performance on Someone’s Daughter that not only showcases her incredible voice but also her craft and emotional depth as a songwriter. At its core, the song is one of loss and heartbreak yet there is an undeniable beauty to it.

The harmony is simple but solid, mostly using a I vi ii V progression, and the delicate yet colourful piano playing brings a good deal of nuance and subtlety to the track. The choice of a major key is an interesting one as it provides a sense of hope to what are emotionally fraught lyrics. Putting her powerful vocal delivery to one side, for me the star of the song is the incredible melody. Subtle melodic variations and vocal inflections keep the listener engaged and the dramatic leaps in register land at just the right moments, drawing attention to key lyrical phrases and heightening the emotional impact of the song.

Mahal also transitions through a wide array of vocal personas on the track, shifting from direct and intimate expression to powerful and public belting, all of which makes for an emotionally engaging performance that draws you into the song. The production on the track is minimalist and tasteful and perfectly supports the lyrical narrative and vocal expression. In a stand out group of finalists my money is on this one.

Jeff Wragg composes popular and classical music, and also composes for film, television and theatre. He teaches classes in songwriting, audio production, and music production at SAE. Jeff can be contacted at www.jeffwragg.com