Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

Berklee Announces 2024 Songs for Social Change Contest Winners

10/05/2024

Berklee Announces 2024 Songs for Social Change Contest Winners Student songwriters shine in the annual contest that recognizes music with a socially conscious message.

By

Callista Chan

May 10, 2024

Talya Ozsardas

Image courtesy of the artist

Goz Asai

Image courtesy of the artist

Deven Kamra Lyons

Image courtesy of the artist

Caroline Moledor

Image courtesy of the artist

Berklees Songwriting Department has released the 2024 Songs for Social Change Contest results. The awarded songwriters, participants in the content contest showcase, and those featured on SoundCloud playlist selections or given special mention by the judges come from 12 U.S. states in addition to Ukraine, Kenya, Norway, China, Colombia, Israel, South Korea, Spain, the United Kingdom, and Canada.

Since 2008, this annual contest has inspired Berklee students to craft songs that reflect their beliefs on social issues and advocate for positive social change. This year, a select group of students performed their entries at the Songs for Social Change showcase held at the Red Room at Cafe 939 on April 18. The songs recognized in the contest can also be heard on the annual SoundCloud playlist, which is organized by the Songwriting Department.

Talya Ozsardas, First PlaceTalya Ozsardas, a double major in songwriting and independent recording and production from both Istanbul, Turkey, and Holon, Israel, secured first place in this year's contest with her song Bir Yer Vardi Sanki. The song addresses the themes of war and conflict between communities, and Bir Yer Vardi Sanki' was inspired by all the hate my community and I have been suffering from, for almost eight months. It was my way of dealing with all the painful and tragic things that are happening back home, Ozsardas explained. This song started as a single sentence that I couldn't stop singing for two weeks. I didn't know what it meant but I kept singing it, until one day I realized how I was longing for the old days . . . back when, in my mind, life was peaceful and beautiful . . . where there was no hate or fear. I really needed to remind myself of those memories to give myself hope for better days.

Goz Asai and Deven Kamra Lyons, Second PlaceGoz Asai and Deven Kamra Lyons, the writers of the song For Better for Worse, share a deep connection with evolving technology and its impact on society. Goz Asai, hailing from Redwood City, California, is a songwriting major at Berklee. His writing partner, Deven Kamra Lyons, who goes by Dayvin, comes from Oakville, Ontario, Canada, and is double majoring in songwriting and electronic production and design. Together, they are venturing into the international music scene, writing music for Chinese and Korean artists. For Better for Worse' is a song encapsulating our feelings about the way AI is going, specifically its development and how its still morally grey in conversation, explained Asai. Their collaboration reflects a thoughtful engagement with pressing global issues, mirroring the complexity of the world's shift toward digital integration.

Caroline Moledor, Third PlaceOriginating from Roanoke, Virginia, Caroline Moledor, a piano principal majoring in contemporary writing and production, is the third-place winner in this year's contest. She has been crafting songs for five years, drawing inspiration from Carole King, Ben Folds, and Death Cab for Cutie. Moledor's entry, Coat, addresses the mental health issues prevalent among LGBTQ+ youth. I wanted [the song] to tell an important story and cause listeners to realize that we all play a part in it, she explained. The song urges them to consider, How am I, through my silence or actions, part of the problem? And how can I be better?

About the ContestThe Songs for Social Change contest, originally established through a gift from the Luongo family, has received endowed funding from Kevin Block-Schwenk, a professor in the Liberal Arts and Sciences Department and at Berklee Online. Block-Schwenk's contribution of over $300,000 represents the largest donation from a current faculty member. His endowment has augmented the prize amounts, offering $1,800 in 2024 for the first-place winner, $1,500 for second place, $1,200 for third place, as well as a $600 award for showcase performances and a $225 award for songs featured in the SoundCloud playlist. Annually, the contest distributes over $14,000 to nearly 30 student songwriters, through a detailed adjudication process by volunteer faculty judges from across the college, who reviewed more than 140 submissions this year. A cross-departmental faculty team oversees the contest, including contest facilitator Mark Simos (professor, songwriting), showcase coordinator Daniel Cantor (associate professor, music production and engineering), and formsmeister Joe Bennett (professor, professional music, liberal arts and sciences, songwriting).

I've been involved with the Songs for Social Change contest since its beginnings in 2008. Each year, themes of social change and social justice speak more strongly to our student songwriters, said Simos. The influence of the annual showcases, the recognition provided by the awards, and steady faculty support-such as incorporating projects into classes for feedback and discussion-has helped increase the quality, depth, and diversity of each year's roster of songs.

A unique aspect of this contest is that it is open-themed: students write about the topics that speak to them, whether from their personal, lived experience or from engaging with empathy for the situations and struggles of others, Simos continued. So each year's showcase offers a kind of time capsule, reflecting shifting currents of issues and concerns, always approached from a diversity of perspectives, songwriting styles, and personal voices. That makes the task of
LINK: https://www.berklee.edu/berklee-now/news/berklee-announces-2024-songs-...
See more stories from berklee

Most recent headlines

21/01/2025

Leading journalists offer unique insights in war and conflict training course

Two senior war reporters from the BBC and Sky News have joined an outstanding array of experts in a unique series of training courses for journalists covering p...

21/01/2025

Set a Course of Self-Improvement With Spotify; Plus, a Special Offer From adidas

If you're looking to introduce better habits in the year ahead, Spotify is the perfect place to start. Beginning with a special offer for new Spotify Premiu...

21/01/2025

L3Harris Names New Aerojet Rocketdyne President, Expands Leadership Roles

MELBOURNE, Fla., Jan. 21, 2025 - L3Harris Technologies (NYSE: LHX) today announced Ken Bedingfield, 52, has been appointed President, Aerojet Rocketdyne, effect...

21/01/2025

US Army Awards L3Harris Second Full-Scale ENVG-B Production Order

LONDONDERRY, N.H., Jan. 21, 2025 - L3Harris Technologies (NYSE: LHX) has received a $263 million order from the U.S. Army for continued production of the Enhanc...

21/01/2025

L3Harris Adds Electronic Warfare Capabilities to T7 Robot at Vanguard

T7 robot with electronic warfare effects enables signals to be sensed and detected a few kilometres ahead of troops, keeping them out of harm's way....

21/01/2025

Holidays, Football and Blockbusters Drive Record Highs for YouTube, Netflix and Amazon Prime Video in December, according to The Gauge

Four days in December interval exceed 100 billion viewing minutes of TV. Netfli...

21/01/2025

Brendan Carr Thanks Trump for FCC Chair Designation

WASHINGTON Brendan Carr expressed gratitude and eagerness to move forward on a range of issues in a statement Jan. 20 upon President Donald Trump's order na...

21/01/2025

Nexstar, Altice USA End Blackout

IRVING, Texas, and NEW YORK After exchanging increasingly pointed barbs in recent weeks, Nexstar Media Group, Inc. and Altice USA (NYSE: ATUS) reached a new dis...

21/01/2025

G&D Merges With VuWall

Private-equity firm Naxicap has acquired VuWall, a provider of IP video walls, and will merge it with keyboard video mouse switch (KVM) provider Guntermann & Dr...

21/01/2025

For-A America Hires Joe Paryzek as Director, Solutions Development

CYPRESS, Calif. Industry veteran Joe Paryzek has joined video and audio systems distributor For-A America as director, solutions development....

21/01/2025

FCC Chair Carr Names Key Staffers

WASHINGTON, D.C. FCC Chairman Brendan Carr announced a number of key staff appointments to the Office of the Chairman and to the FCC....

21/01/2025

Happy New Fusion Macro

Happy New Fusion Macro Simon Ubsdell January 21, 2025 0 Comments Quick overview of the new entirely FREE Resolve Fusion macro that gives you a sexy be...

21/01/2025

Did You Know? Redshift for Cinema 4D: Falloff Shader

Did You Know? Redshift for Cinema 4D: Falloff Shader Marc Potocnik January 21, 2025 0 Comments The Did You Know? Redshift for Cinema 4D series provi...

21/01/2025

The devil's in the detail': industry reacts to UK DCMS funding boost

Media and entertainment business leaders across the UK have cautiously welcomed the announcement, while calling for continuing support By Matthew Corrigan Pu...

21/01/2025

RE:Vision Effects: Introducing Twixtor Standalone

RE:Vision Effects: Introducing Twixtor Standalone Brie Clayton January 21, 2025 0 Comments RE:Vision Effects, visual effects and video processing indu...

21/01/2025

Animating Starry Night using Curl Noise in After Effects

Animating Starry Night using Curl Noise in After Effects Graham Quince January 21, 2025 0 Comments Create vortex like patterns with an old plugin. Fo...

21/01/2025

Sonnet Announces Industry's First to Ship Thunderbolt 5 Dock With Integrated PCIe 4.0 NVMe SSD Storage

Sonnet Announces Industry's First to Ship Thunderbolt 5 Dock With Integrated...

21/01/2025

Franchise Projects Shouldn't be a Makeover

Franchise Projects Shouldn't be a Makeover Andy Marken January 20, 2025 0 Comments I'm going to tell you a story. It's going to sound rid...

21/01/2025

Program Productions' Bob Carzoli on Industry Vets Joining the Company, Expanding Through Acquisition

Program Productions' Bob Carzoli on Industry Vets Joining the Company, Expan...

21/01/2025

Former NESN EP Howard Zalkowitz Launches SportsZalk Media Consulting Company

Former NESN EP Howard Zalkowitz Launches SportsZalk Media Consulting Company Taps into storytelling skills developed during 30-year career working at NESN, Turn...

21/01/2025

Deutsche Fuball Liga Trials Moving Main Camera During Bundesliga Match

Deutsche Fu ball Liga Trials Moving Main Camera During Bundesliga Match By George Bevir, SVG Europe Editorial Director Tuesday, January 21, 2025 - 9:45 am ...

21/01/2025

SVG Sit-Down: Deloitte's John Footen and Art Wong Offer Deep Look at Sports Media Solutions Practice

SVG Sit-Down: Deloitte's John Footen and Art Wong Offer Deep Look at Sports ...

21/01/2025

SVG All-Stars: Danny Kopilnick, Director, Remote Operations, CBS Sports

SVG All-Stars: Danny Kopilnick, Director, Remote Operations, CBS Sports The Ithaca College grad has emerged as a key leader on CBS Sports' golf team By Bra...

21/01/2025

Industry Veteran Joe Paryzek Joins FOR-A America as Director, Solution Development

Paryzek Brings Expertise in Systems Integration, Technical Support, and Customer...

21/01/2025

Proximic by Comscore Releases 2025 State of Programmatic Report

Proximic by Comscore Releases 2025 State of Programmatic ReportKey Findings Highlight Continued Growth in Programmatic Advertising, Shift from Linear TV to CTV,...

21/01/2025

NoTraffic Reduces Road Delays, Carbon Emissions With NVIDIA AI and Accelerated Computing

More than 90 million new vehicles are introduced to roads across the globe every...

21/01/2025

Ahead of France's AI Action Summit, Thales unveils its latest innovations in trusted AI for critical systems

Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Thales is a global technology leader in the defe...

21/01/2025

Second Act for Eurosong Announced

Singer-songwriter Reylta been announced as the second act bidding to represent Ireland at the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest. Reylta is the second of six acts hop...

21/01/2025

RT and Virgin Media Television announce Six Nations coverage with every game live and free-to-air

Coverage includes the Men's, Women's and Under 20's Six Nations RT ...

20/01/2025

FAA Trial Shows L3Harris' SafeRoute+ Boosting Airspace Capacity

L3Harris Commercial Aviation Solutions (CAS) today announced the promising results of its first-year participation in a landmark FAA trial that demonstrates the...

20/01/2025

MIP LONDON

Heading to MIP LONDON this February? So are we! We'd love to meet you at London's biggest content week. Get in touch to discover how Blue Lucy's sol...

20/01/2025

Netflix approves Blackmagic URSA Cine 12K LF digital film camera

To qualify, cameras must meet capture requirements including dynamic range, codec, resolution and workflow compatibility By Matthew Corrigan Published: Janua...

20/01/2025

Best of Show at ISE 2025 deadline extended

Companies now have until January 24th to submit products for the annual awards By TVBEurope Staff Published: January 20, 2025 Updated: January 21, 2025 ...

20/01/2025

TVBEurope January/February 2025 issue now available

Focusing on streaming and OTT, the issue features an interview with Channel 4s director of technology and distribution, Grace Boswood; finds out how BTs infrast...

20/01/2025

Tiffen Intros Dual Purpose Fusion Filters

The Tiffen Company introduces new Fusion Filters, designed to combine the industry's most sought-after, original Tiffen diffusion effects with high quality ...

20/01/2025

kicker deploys the Bitmovin Player to power a winning spo...

Bitmovin, a leading provider of video streaming solutions, announces that kicker, a leading German digital sports publisher, has chosen the Bitmovin Player for ...

20/01/2025

Forderer ASC BVK Uses Astera to Recreate 70s Look on Sept...

Behind the Scenes on September 5 Summer 1972 marked just the second time the Olympics were televised live across the globe. Little did anyone anticipate the ...

20/01/2025

NAMM Show 2025, Part 2: Pro Audio Will Make Its Presence Felt on Exhibit Floor

NAMM Show 2025, Part 2: Pro Audio Will Make Its Presence Felt on Exhibit Floor Major categories will be represented by wide variety of brands By Dan Daley, Aud...

20/01/2025

CFP National Championship 2025: ESPN's MegaCast Menu Highlighted by REMI Production of Field Pass With The Pat McAfee Show

CFP National Championship 2025: ESPN's MegaCast Menu Highlighted by REMI Pro...

20/01/2025

CFP National Championship 2025: Van Wagner To Hype Up Buckeyes, Fighting Irish Fans From New IP-Based Control Room

CFP National Championship 2025: Van Wagner To Hype Up Buckeyes, Fighting Irish F...

20/01/2025

CFP National Championship 2025: ESPN To Deliver Main Game Telecast in 4K for the First Time

CFP National Championship 2025: ESPN To Deliver Main Game Telecast in 4K for the...

20/01/2025

CFP National Championship 2025: It's All Hands on Deck for ESPN's Massive Production in Atlanta

CFP National Championship 2025: It's All Hands on Deck for ESPN's Massiv...

20/01/2025

NAMM Show 2025, Part 1: The Expo Has Become Pro Audio's Main Showcase

NAMM Show 2025, Part 1: The Expo Has Become Pro Audio's Main Showcase Moving beyond its music roots, the show begins to address broadcast's complex need...

20/01/2025

Sky to air definitive portrait of F1 champion Damon Hill

Sky to air definitive portrait of F1 champion Damon HillSky Exclusive documentary Hill will be available on Sky and streaming service NOW in 2025Monday 20 Janu...

20/01/2025

Rohde & Schwarz presents new wideband modulated load pull solution based on the R&S RTP oscilloscope

Rohde & Schwarz presents new wideband modulated load pull solution based on the ...

20/01/2025

Take a Wild Ride from the Mandap into Total Madness: Dhoom Dhaam' Launches on Netflix on February 14

Back to All News Take a Wild Ride from the Mandap into Total Madness: Dhoom Dh...

20/01/2025

Arqiva to deploy 1 million smart meters for United Utilities

Arqivas network already supports over 2m smart meters for some of the UKs largest water companies January 20, 2025 Winchester, UK Arqiva, a leading provide...

20/01/2025

Bobbi Arlo hoping to represent Ireland at Eurovision 2025 First listen and interview on today's Ray D'Arcy Show on RT Radio 1

Bobbi Arlo has today been announced as the first act bidding to represent Irelan...