Music Basel Pop Prize 2024 goes to the Basel drum'n'bass duo QTB
Basel drum'n'bass duo QZB were awarded the 20,000 Swiss franc Basel Pop Prize 2024 on Friday evening. Only vaguely known to the jury, QZB slipped into their focus as a public nomination, as the Basel Music Office announced on Friday.
15.11.2024, 23:01
SDA
The expert jury had picked four nominations for the prize winner from a long catalog of suggestions submitted by music fans. The winners were artists who were described as "representatives of a niche and at the same time prospering genre", according to the statement.
In addition to the award-winning duo, the four nominees included the folk-pop trio Malummi, the five-piece band Moonpools and the six-piece formation Zeal & Ardor led by metal-gospel star Manuel Gagneux, who had already won the pop award in 2020. They all received a nomination fee of CHF 4,000.
In addition to the Basel Pop Prize, two other prizes were awarded on Friday. The recognition prize, worth CHF 6,000, went to Swiss-British dual citizen Baschi Hausmann, who became famous as co-founder of the Britpop band Lovebugs and the glam rock band Fucking Beautiful. And the musician and cultural activist Jeroen van Vulpen will be honored with the Spotlight Prize, which is endowed with 2,000 francs.
Created in 2009, the Basel Pop Prize honors bands and musicians from the pop/rock sector who have achieved outstanding results on a national and international level and are relevant to the pop scene in the Basel region. It is awarded every two years by Musikbüro Basel, which has been promoting regional pop music on behalf of the two Basel cantons since 1994.
