The Robert Stigwood Fellowship Program provides mentorship and professional development to local musicians and industry entrepreneurs.
The annual program, named after South Australian expat Robert Stigwood, provides local musicians and industry entrepreneurs with mentoring and personalised professional development from project deliverers Stu MacQueen and Dan Crannitch of Wonderlick (behind some of the industry’s big names including Amy Shark, Japanese Wallpaper, Holy Holy and The Paper Kites).
Applications for 2025 Fellowships are now closed.
The program offers intensive 12-month mentorship and professional development to South Australian artists and music industry entrepreneurs with the intent to raise the profile of, and build capacity in, the local music industry.
Applications for the 2026 Fellowship will open in September 2025.
2024 Key dates
| Milestone | Date |
|---|---|
| Round opens for applications | Friday 20 September 2024 |
| Closing date for applications | Sunday 13 October 2024 |
| Notification of results | Early December 2024 |
| Fellowship period / Funding period | 1 January 2025 – 31 December 2025 |
Artist Fellowship
Tailored to the needs of participating artists, mentoring may include songwriting, production, business skills, marketing and public relations, and attendance at conferences and high-level industry meetings. The arrangement is akin to a surrogate record label/management team.
Industry Fellowship
Offers mentoring for emerging South Australian music industry entrepreneurs who are working in music management or other areas of artist representation. Focus areas include identifying strengths, weaknesses and ambitions for the future. Each fellow will receive one on-one help developing and achieving a business plan for the following 12 months.
Through the service the fellowship provides to the local music community, Stigwood alumni are well on their way to long and fruitful careers in the industry.
All applications are assessed by an industry formed panel. Successful Artist Fellowship recipients receive up to $25,000 in grants with Industry Fellowship recipients receiving up to $5,000 in grants to use during the mentorship.
Established in 2014, the program has played a significant role in helping South Australian artists develop both creatively and professionally, with many securing recording, publishing and management deals.
Previous Stigwood Fellows include: Teenage Joans, East Av3, George Alice, Towns, Jess Day, West Thebarton, Tkay Maidza, Electric Fields, Bad Dreems and Stellie.
This program is a key initiative from the South Australian Government’s Music Development Office.
Congratulations to the 2024 Robert Stigwood Fellows
Artists
- Alexander Flood – live dance music fusing nu-jazz, house, drum and bass
- Coldwave - post-punk featuring horns and buzz-saw guitars
- Nathan May - country songwriting imbued with First Nations culture and language
- Oscar The Wild - Australian grunge by all girl rock band
- The Tullamarines - male/female vocals creating a unique take on modern indie pop
- Twine – experimental melodious noise rock
- Dem Mob - multiple South Australian Music Award winning First Nations hip-hop artists
Industry
- Tayla Carlaw, Pretty Good Thanks – an artist management and PR agency
- Josh Morphett, Space Jams – a regional touring festival promoter
- Susan Evans, On the Flip Side – a music event promoter and curator