Lorde has been topping charts in New Zealand and abroad but she never really won any awards yet... That is until Tuesday night when she took home her first official award, the APRA Silver Scroll songwriters gong for her hit song “Royals.”

Along with co-songwriter and co-winner Joel Little, the 16-year-old Kiwi student personally received the award at the ceremony at the Vector Arena in Auckland. They were voted by over 10,000 New Zealand songwriter members of the Australasian Performing Rights Association.

“What’s cool about this is I’m so new to this, and everyone has really kind of accepted me, which is awesome,” the rising international superstar said on stage.

“Ella and Joel have created a song that has quite rightfully taken the world by storm. It is a testament to the quality of song that it should gain such widespread support, but also be chosen as the best song of the past year by their songwriter peers,” Anthony Healy, director of NZ operations of APRA, said.

Lorde and 30-year-old Little’s “Royals” was up against “Bird in Hand” by Anna Coddington, “Complicated Man” by Cy Winstanley, “Thames Soup” by The Phoenix Foundations, and “Wake Up by Aaradhna.

Considered the most prestigious songwriter award in New Zealand, the Silver Scroll Awards pick winners based on their songs’ merits and not on sales.

Other awards presented on the same night are:

APRA Maioha Award, which celebrates contemporary Maori music, and which was won by Maisey Rika, Te Kahautu Maxwell, and Mahuia Bridgman-Cooper for “Ruaimoko”;

SOUNZ Contemporary Award, which recognises creative excellence by a contemporary composer, which Karlo Margetic for “Lightbox” has received;

Most Performed New Zealand Work in New Zealand, which was won by “Something in the Water” by Brooke Fraser AND Scott Ligertwood; and

Most Perofrmed New Zealand Work Overseas, which, again, was given to Fraser and Ligertwood for “Something in the Water.”

The awards group also inducted Dave Dobbyn into the New Zealand Music Hall of Fame.

Related:
Lorde Shortlisted In Silver Scroll Awards [READ]

Lorde’s ‘Royals’ Called Racist By U.S. Blogger [READ]

Lorde Impresses Ellen DeGeneres With ‘Royals’ Performance [READ]

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