It’s all over for another year and there are quite a few sleeps till the 2011 VNZMA’s… but media and industry peeps are saying it was the best VNZMA’s event ever!
It really was action packed from start to finish, with the incredible mash-up opening number putting Dane Rumble, Stan Walker and J Williams on stage together. From head-spins to back-flips those three really started the night with a bang!
Ben Hurley kept the audience entertained with his wit and co-presenter Shannon Ryan looked stunning in her dress by Stitch ministry. Getting down by the Mosh Pit and involving the audience was a nice touch also.
Stan Walker and Gin Wigmore both took home 4 awards each including; Album of the Year, Breakthrough Artist of the Year, Best Pop Album, and Highest Selling NZ Album going to Gin and Highest Selling NZ Single (Little Black Box), Airplay Record of the Year, Vodafone People’s Choice and International Achievement going to Stan Walker.
There were lots of other winners on the night with Kids Of 88 taking out Single Of The Year for ‘Just a Little Bit’, The Phoenix Foundation winning Best Group, Dane Rumble nabbing Best Male Solo Artist and Anika Moa taking home the Tui for Best Female Solo Artist.
Anika Moa and her band (including Julia Deans) performed ‘Running Through The Fire’ with some stunning visuals and as always, a nice touch of humour and fun from Anika.
David Dallas and The Phoenix Foundation also performed, followed by Kids Of 88 to mix things up. With an abundance of smoke and lasers these guys went down a treat and had the audience cheering.
Gin Wigmore delivered an awesome live performance and then it was time for Luger Boa and his crew to pay homage to Shihad, who received the NZ Herald Legacy Award. They rocked out while Shihad stood to the side and watched appreciatively.
But an awards night would never be complete without an array of celebrity presenters and this year didn’t disappoint. From sports stars such as Winston Reid and Lance HoHaia to TV stars like Robyn Malcom, Kate Rodger and Samantha Hayes.
There was a healthy dose of muso’s amongst the presenters including Brooke Fraser, Liam Finn, Don McGlashan and even Ronan Keating. Ronan Keating actually said the VNZMA’s was the best Awards he’s ever been to, have a read here!
So an incredibly successful night once again and not without plenty of hard work behind the scenes during the months and weeks leading up to the event.
For me it was an absolute privilege to get such an interesting look into the awards and so much fun to rove around and report back to all you amazing fans… because you’re what the VNZMA
’s is all about. Without you guys and your support for the artists there wouldn’t be any need for an awards night.
So keep doing what you’re doing, keep supporting Kiwi music and the talented people out there doing it!
Ren x
p.s. to see all the winners just click here, if you’d like to see lots more photos click here, and to check out any of the performances click here 
