The ANCHOR – Reeperbahn Festival International Music Award is an accolade for the most promising emerging musicians established in 2016. Awarded every year in September at Reeperbahn Festival in Hamburg, Germany, ANCHOR serves as a guide for fans and the music industry in search of the best new music and as a jump start for the nominated artists’ international careers. This year’s Anchor Award is the sixth edition of the award. For the first time, two Austrian artists are among the nominees: Florence Arman and OSKA!
THE ANCHOR 2021 Jury
A distinguished jury panel will attend the nominees’ concerts at Reeperbahn Festival 2021 on two evenings (Thursday, 23.09., and Friday, 24.09.) before announcing the ANCHOR 2021 winners at a gala ceremony at the St. Pauli Theater on the Saturday of the festival (25.09.). Among previous ANCHOR contenders were Shame (GBR), Jade Bird (GBR) (winner in 2017), Alice Merton (DEU), Celeste (GBR) and ÄTNA (GER) (winners in 2020).
The international ANCHOR 2021 jury brings together representatives from different spheres of the music world who provide important input and inspiration for a diverse and sustainable pop culture, both in terms of their musical orientation and their work on and off-stage. It consists of Emeli Sandé, Tom Odell and Jacob Banks, Tayla Parx and Yvonne Catterfeld. Producer legend Tony Visconti will bring his warm and unifying style to the role of Jury President again this year, as “the expert’s expert”, respected by everyone.
THE ANCHOR 2021 NOMINEES
The nominees for this year’s award are:
Singer-songwriter Florence Arman (AUT/GBR), whose talent for creating uncomplicated, effective harmonies delivers fresh pop songs that mix melancholy and euphoria and has made her one of the best-known newcomers in her adopted country, Austria.
Songwriter OSKA (AUT) and her melancholic pop with soul and folk elements elaborates her own experiences into universal messages that speak from the soul to her listeners.
With a sound that spans r’n’b, soul and pop, May The Muse (DEU) has a more than strong case to make it on the international stage thanks to her incredible vocal presence and musical emotionality.
The savvy and danceable post-punk of Yard Act (GBR) makes the quartet one of the hottest names on the British music scene right now.
The same goes for the London trio PVA (GBR), who celebrate dance as a form of release with their mix of new wave, post-punk and rave.
Singer, dancer, actor, photographer and director Lie Ning (DEU) gives us all a dose of optimism in these times we’re living in with his smooth soul-pop and message of positivity and empathy.
Ultimately, there can only be one ANCHOR winner, but just taking part in the competition will expose all the acts mentioned here to a wider audience and the international music industry.
(Press release Reeperbahn Festival / Anchor Award 08/2021)