As the Gold Coast’s premier music industry event - the Gold Coast Music Awards - heads towards its eighth anniversary, highlighting a smorgasbord of talent along the coastline, and celebrating the resilience of artists in the wake of challenging times, we’re taking a look at ten Gold Coast artists you need to have on your radar in 2022:

Buttered

Although ‘yellow, silky, smooth, soft and reliable’ are more commonly associated with the dairy product made from the fat and protein components of cream, they could just as easily be linked with Gold Coast soul-pop duo Buttered. Made up of longtime best friends Scott Dalton and Jackson James Smith, Buttered have been churning out lush, heart-melting tracks of Gold for just under two years, and have already managed to capture the attention of fans for their unique blend of Winston Surfshirt meets D’Angelo style. Despite their short run together, the duo have managed to score themselves four nominations at this year Gold Coast Music Awards, including Artist, Breakout Artist, Live Act and Song of the year for their track ‘Love’. They’ll also be taking center stage at SPRINGTIME Festival this year, for FREE!

Casey Barnes

If you’re a country music fan in Australia, it would be virtually impossible to be unfamiliar with the stadium-ready, pop-country sounds of Gold Coast artist Casey Barnes - who graced the cover of The Music back in February - unless you live under a rock. In the past few years, Barnes - who has no relation to Jimmy - has set country radio alight. His streak of airplay chart-toppers continued with latest album ‘Light It Up’s first single ‘Come Turn Me On’, which became 2021’s most-played song on country radio. With a swag of ARIA and Tamworth Country Music Award nod’s under his belt, it’s easy to see why Barnes has snagged himself three nominations at this year GC Music Awards!

Lily Papas

Despite being born in Melbourne and raised on the Gold Coast, you’d be forgiven for thinking that the euphoric, larger than life, indie-pop sounds of Lily Papas aren’t a byproduct of growing up in London or Los Angeles. Rich in texture and mature well beyond her years, Papas manages to balance the fine line between borrowing influences from her diverse catalog of favorites (which include David Bowie, Lana Del Ray, Johnny Cash and Prince to name a few) and producing something that is totally and uniquely her own; a kind of fantasy that amplifies a quixotic lyrical style while breathing life into grounded works. Do yourself a favor and check out her debut album HERE before Lily performs at the Gold Coast Music Awards.

Wildheart

Relative newcomers to the music scene, Wildheart managed to take out first place for the most number of nominations at this year’s Gold Coast Music Awards, securing slots for Live Act, Release, Song, Live Act and Video of the Year. Fronted by proud Yugambeh man, vocalist Axel Best, Wildheart’s music carries strong social justice messages wild straddling the best parts of borderline muted melodic-hardcore and straight laced hardcore. Wildheart have always been a band to push boundaries, and their EP "We Are" showcases their prowess to create vastly contrasting music, whist also enforcing a strong message that is rooted at the 'heart' of what they do. Check out their latest single HERE.

Girl and Girl

Boy oh Boy, if you haven’t heard of Girl and Girl, you’re in for a treat. Sitting somewhere between the rooted, dullwave sounds of acclaimed band Parquet Courts and Together Pangea, with a splash of The Cure and a dash of White Lies, Girl and Girl have quickly become a local favorite. Sell out shows across the state, as well as numerous festival slots have placed their unique blend of moody indie pop in front out countless punters since the release of 2022’s single ‘Garden Song’. Just now entering the early stage of their career, the gold coast four piece alternative-garage-rock outfit have just picked themselves up a tasty FOUR nominations at this years GCMA's! Check out their latest efforts HERE before they take the stage at SPRINGTIME for Free and hit the award ceremony!

Peach Fur

Rarely do you come across a band bio that’s going to be ten times better than anything you can pull together from numerous sources across the internet, but Peach Fur have managed to sum up everything - and maybe nothing? - in their band outline, perfectly; A sandy stoked spaceship wizard has embarked on a journey to Planet Earth. His excelled wisdom and musical taste has delivered him to the Gold Coast, Australia - home to Peach Fur.

Upon touch down he meets up with the 4 furry fellaz Denny Hilder, Liam Ward, Ben Crichton & Mikey Woodworth. Naturally a new friendship is formed. They walk up the stairs of one thousand dreams, over the ever changing groove cubes of light and find themselves amongst a sea of dancing dazzlers. The show's about to begin... What is this sorcery the Wizard wondered as the sonic waves moved his body and expanded his consciousness?

A spell concoction entered his mind; 1kg of rock 'n roll, 1 cup of funk, 2 tablespoons of blues and a sprinkle of reggae, stirred thoroughly in a litre of psychedelic juice and left to cure in a jazzy jar. Badda Bing Badda Boom! The sound of Peach Fur.

If you want to check out Peach Furs unique concoction, head along to the GCMAs or go see them for Free at SPRINGTIME Festival this year.

Hinterland

If you’re an Australian music fan, you’ll know the name Hinterland for one of only three reasons; as an area behind a coast or the shoreline of a river, a TV series you might have binged during lockdown, or one of the most refreshing pop-country acts to land on our soil in years. Based on the Gold Coast, Hinterland are Rachel Bostock, her brother Robbie Bostock Jesse Emmanuel; all 3 members are award-winning songwriters for previous projects and now front acclaimed and multi-award winning act Hinterland. Their sound is one of a kind – an eclectic blend of the band’s strongest influences such as The Corrs, Fleetwood Mac, The Chicks, Brad Paisley and Zac Brown Band – always showcasing the incredible talents of these amazing musicians…oh and they’ve just been nominated for Breakout Artist of the Year at the GCMA’s - no biggy!

Euca

EUCA; once considered the most powerful of all household cleaning products, now revered as one of the Gold Coast’s most beloved lyricist whose storytelling highlights her deep-rooted folk influences. Toing the line between Middle Kids and Julia Jacklin. Having recently having relocated from the Gold Coast to Melbourne, EUCA is best known for her take-no-shit emotional integrity twisted into heavenly melodies, creating a powerful yet homely discography. A self proclaimed over-sharer, her lyricism thrives in brutal realism married into perfect metaphors. Check out Euca’s beautifully soulful sounds HERE before she hits SPRINGTIME Festival and the GC Music Awards this September.

Eliza and the Delusionals

Triple j’s Claire Mooney summed up North Coast indie-darling’s Eliza and the Delusions best when she stated that the four piece were a ‘Sparkly, dreamy pop [act] that'll sweep you right up, whilst everything else melts away’. There’s a twinge of 90’s indie pop mixed in with stadium sized euphoria; the musical baby equivalent of ‘Ten Things I Hate About You’ and ‘Empire Records’. Swirling vocals filter through a dream haze of an arrangement beautifully, producing a sense of yearning that’s irresistible to listen to. Do yourself a favor and check out the latest efforts from Eliza and the Delusions before they land at the GCMA's this September!

GENIIE BOY

Gold Coast duo GENIIE BOY have been producing genre-defying magic for the past few years. Self described as ‘a couple of weirdos who live to create’, their latest efforts have seen them compared to everyone from HAIM to St. Lucia, creatively mixing elements of anthemic pop and indie with broader, more obscure sounds that have seen them sweep across the festival market since lockdowns were finally eased. Alisha's silky vocal is at the centre of it all, dancing around topics of human existence and complete fantasy, while Scott French’s multi-instrumental experiments and slyly sophisticated production style completes the GENIIE BOY sound…easy to see how they’ve managed to score themselves a nod at this year’s GC Awards, as well as a slot on SPRINGTIME.

The Gold Coast Music Awards ceremony will take place on Saturday 3 September from 12:00pm-3:00pm at HOTA, Home of the Arts. To check out the full list of finalists for the evening, head HERE.

This year the awards are held alongside SPRINGTIME Festival, a brand new, three day festival taking place in Surfers Paradise for FREE, where you can catch Gold Coast Music Award nominees Buttered, Girl & Girl, Peach Fur, Euca and Geniie Boy performing alongside Thelma Plum, Hermitude, Alex The Astronaut, Teen Jesus & The Jean Teases, Ninajirachi, Skegss and more.

Tickets for the Gold Coast Music Awards can be purchased HERE.