The 2nd annual City of Music Awards is coming up October 6th at Showbox Market, and the Seattle Music Commission is seeking your nominations. There will be three honors given out, including 1) an Award for Outstanding Achievement, 2) a Breakthrough Award, and 3) an Impact Award. Make your nominations by reading the categories and criteria below and email us at filmandmusicoffice@seattle.gov with your suggestions by August 4th. Tell us who you are nominating and why they should be considered an award recipient in a selected category. All of your submissions will be carefully considered by a committee of music commissioners and made public in September.

The annual awards and celebration event has been developed to build continued awareness of the City of Music initiative, to honor individuals and organizations who truly make Seattle a great music city and to act as a building block toward a larger vision of converging broader events for the public and music industry. It also serves as the kickoff for a whole month of music activity. Looking forward to hearing your ideas and mark your calendars.

Here is the selection criteria you will be making your decision from:


Seattle City of Music Award for Outstanding Achievement

This is the premier award of the event; it honors an artist, business or organization for extraordinary accomplishments. There is no timeline associated with the award - it can salute a lifetime of work, or an incredibly successful past year. The honoree's achievements should extend beyond the Emerald City, out to the nation and even the world. Indeed, winners should be thought of as helping "put Seattle on the map" as the City of Music. The winner may or may not be a current resident -- if the winner is not a current resident, he or she must have been born and raised here, or lived here during a significant period of a career. The winner need not be present (or alive) to receive the award. Recipients might include: multiplatinum artists, world-renowned producers, culture-shaping record labels, or influential bands that have left a mark on artists around the globe for many years.


Seattle City of Music Breakthrough Award

This award salutes an artist, business or organization that has raised the bar and cleared it over the past year (approximately). Examples could include: a local artist that has broken into the national culture; a music label that had its strongest sales ever; a radio station that invented a new format that has been adopted elsewhere; a school music group that has earned national recognition; or a website that has captured the broad, cultural imagination.


Seattle City of Music Impact Award

The Impact Award honors a person, business or organization for work related to music that has made our community a better place. Saluted efforts could include: projects to bring live music to more or to underserved communities; work to improve the lives of working musicians; initiatives to put instruments in the hands of students; or endeavors to bring lost music or musicians to light. Potential honorees might include nonprofits, philanthropists, educators, researchers, radio stations, activists, attorneys, musicians themselves, or event organizers.


Last year's award recipients included:

1. Quincy Jones received the SEATTLE CITY OF MUSIC Outstanding Achievement Award. This is the premier award of the event. Mr. Jones was honored for a lifetime of accomplishments that have helped put Seattle on the map as the CITY OF MUSIC.


2. Fleet Foxes received the SEATTLE CITY OF MUSIC Breakthrough Award, which honors an artist for overwhelming success in the past year.


3. KEXP received the SEATTLE CITY OF MUSIC Impact Award for service related to music that has made the community a better place.

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