Adrien H. Tillmann earned the 2024 Jazz: The Rebirth of Cool Award for photographing American saxophonist Billy Harper – The award run by the Iconic recording studios received 22,000 entries from 28 countries.
Thursday 3 October, Abbey Road Studios has unveiled the winners of the 2024 Abbey Road Music Photography Awards, during a celebratory event across the iconic Studios One and Two. Hosted by Edith Bowman, the evening included incendiary live performances from Maverick Sabre’s YOURS collective, JNR Williams and Aziya, while recognising the winners and finalists from this year’s MPAs. The 2024 competition saw a remarkable rise in submissions, with entries increasing by over 50% from last year. Showcasing a range of global talent, over 22,000 images from 28 different countries were submitted, across six open categories.
Speaking about the winning images at this year’s Abbey Road Music Photography Awards, Abbey Road’s MD Sally Davies says: “I’m continually amazed by the incredible standard of photography that we see, and this year’s selection truly stands out as our best yet! The remarkable growth of the MPAs in just three short years highlights the awards’ prestige, and the heartfelt enthusiasm from the artistic community reflects the richness of music photography as an art form. At Abbey Road, we are passionate about recognising, nurturing, and celebrating talent in this vital area, and we can’t wait to see what next year will bring!”
MPAs lead Judge Rankin adds: “The work this year has surpassed my expectations, it’s really elevating the standard to new heights. While last year’s submissions were impressive, this year’s entries have been extraordinary. We’ve received an overwhelming 22,000 images, making the selection process both challenging and inspiring. After much deliberation, we’ve chosen some truly outstanding pieces that represent the very best of what the music photography community has to offer. All the nominees and winners should be incredibly proud of themselves!”
In the awards’ open categories, Andreia Lemos took home the Undiscovered Photographer of the Year award, supported by adidas, for her image of Amyl and the Sniffers. Speaking about working with the band, Andreia says, ‘No one comes close to bursting my heart open in anticipation as Amy does – finger restlessly hovering over the trigger’. The Music Moment of the Year category, supported by Outernet London, was decided by public vote, with Tom Pallant winning for his shot of Blur at the band’s second Wembley Stadium show in July 2023. Tom says ‘Knowing Graham would launch his guitar 20 feet in the air, I was ready to capture the exact moment… It’s the only time I’ve ever shouted “YES!” out loud after getting a shot’.
Francis Mancini won the Live Music category for his captivating photo of Darren Styles, while Lemphek secured the Underground Scenes Award with an image of BBQ frontman Hui Zu and Bad Tailor guitarist Chen Hongmin, sharing a shoey on stage at Hard Stick Festival VII, a music festival geared towards remote cities. Lauren Harris earned the Making Music Award with her shot of Joesef. Lauren says of the photo – ‘Small, intimate, quiet moments like this are why I shoot – giving an insight into life off-stage’. Adrien H. Tillman secured the Jazz: The Rebirth of Cool award with his photo of legendary American saxophone player Billy Harper – a fixture of the New York jazz scene for decades. In the invited categories Alexa Viscius won the Editorial award with a portrait of bnny and Bolade Banjo was awarded the Portrait category for his photo of Jamaican artist Popcaan.
