Tāmaki talent shines as winners of Auckland Council’s Stand Up Stand Out announced

The winners of Auckland Council’s Stand Up Stand Out (SUSO) competition have been announced!

This weekend’s SUSO Finals Showcase saw 26 diverse acts give it their all in front of a sold-out Auckland Town Hall across five categories: dance, solo instrumental, group vocal, solo vocal and bands.

Councillor Richard Hills, Chair of Planning, Environment and Parks Committee, is proud of the opportunity SUSO provides to Auckland rangatahi / teenagers to showcase their talent.

“Whakamihi / congratulations to all winners! It’s fantastic Tāmaki Makaurau has so many exceptional young artists, many who graced the stage during this year’s SUSO competition, and we eagerly anticipate their continued growth and success,” he says.

“I’d like to thank the entire SUSO team for their commitment in bringing another phenomenal show to life and their continued support to uplift the next generation of Auckland artistry. Arts, culture and performance add to our city’s vibrancy.”

Stand Up Stand Out (SUSO) is Auckland’s premier music, and dance competition, featuring secondary-school talent from across Tāmaki Makaurau. From 1200 students representing 25 secondary schools, seven outstanding acts claimed top honours in their respective categories.

De La Salle College took home two major awards with Psalms Vaotuua taking out the solo instrumental category, while soul/R&B band Encore proved to be the best of the bands.

Two new awards were given out in 2023, Best Original Composition went to Rumpus Machine of Long Bay College for their song ‘Summer Daze’. Best Artist was awarded to Charles Lia of Manurewa High School, a composer, producer, singer and songwriter whose talent was described as “from another planet” by SUSO’s vocal judges.

SUSO judge and recent Pacific Music Awards winner Sam V is proud of the winners announced at this weekend’s Finals Showcase.

“‘I’m so fortunate to have been able to witness so many of our young talented tamariki do their thing”, he says.

“A huge congratulations to our winners (and all participants) for showcasing and sharing their artistry with everyone. I’ll be eagerly following their journeys!”

Stand Up Stand Out is an Auckland Council initiative, in partnership with Auckland Live, Rockshop and Auckland UNESCO City of Music. The programme is an important development pathway, promoting songwriting, dance performance excellence and a culture of music within Auckland schools.

The total pool of prizes is split between acts placing first and second in each of the five categories and the ‘Best Artist’ and ‘Best Original Composition’, as decided by a panel of judges.

The prize pool consists of gear and vouchers from Rockshop, mentoring from industry professionals, studio hire, and time with music producers to record a track. 

The full list of winners and runners-up for Stand Up Stand Out 2023:

Solo Vocal Finalists

Band Finalists

Dance Finalists

Solo Instrumental Finalists

Group Vocal Finalists

Best Artist

Best Original Composition