Awards program launched to recognise creative talent in Essex
The first edition of the KeepIt100 Essex Awards will take place in September, to coincide with the visit of the Knife Angel statue to the county
KeepIt100, an organisation that aims to empower young people away from crime and exploitation through creative engagement, is hosting the first edition of its annual Essex Awards program on September 26th.
Honours can be won across ten categories including: Artist, Beat Maker, Digital/Tech, DJ, Entrepreneur, Film Producer, Photographer, Lyricist, Songwriter and the Knife Angel Award (for outstanding contribution).
Nominations for these categories close today.
The criteria for nomination are only that the person is under-25 years and lives/studies/works in Essex.
Luisa Di Marco is the founder of KeepIt100.
She says the awards are meant to celebrate talent that falls outside the traditional academic construct.
"If you're not academically inclined, then its easy to feel like you're not worth anything. But there should be some hope out there so if someone says I want to be a singer, where do I go?, we can support that", she says.
The winners in these ten categories are rewarded with a year of business support from a specialist mentor to hone and promote their work.
Some of the mentors include MC Bushkin from the Heartless Crew (to mentor the songwriter and lyricist awardees), former royal photographer Mauro Carraro, one of the first drum and bass innovators in the UK, Grooverider and Alfie Bradley, the creator of the Knife Angel Statue.
These awards also coincide with the arrival of the Knife Angel statue in Essex.
It is an iron statue made from 100,000 knives, and it tours the country raising awareness about starting conversations around knife crime and youth violence.
The winners will also have a chance to showcase their work through launch events and slots in their radio and video programs, to give them hands-on experience and an entry into their field.
"The creative industry is renowned to be difficult to get into. This is what makes this a unique opportunity", Ms. Di Marco says. A creative professional herself, she notably designed Rio Ferdinand's charity boots in 2016 that went on to become the world's most expensive football shoes.
"These kind of opportunities can do wonders in terms of opening doors to young artists that normally wouldn't be", she adds.