Tim Minchin’s Controversial Charity Single Come Home (cardinal Pell) up for Apra Song of the Year

By Kathy McCabe
news.com.au
March 15, 2017

http://www.news.com.au/entertainment/music/tim-minchins-controversial-charity-single-come-home-cardinal-pell-up-for-apra-song-of-the-year/news-story/08591a8b77548267618373312432fe67

COMEDIAN and composer Tim Minchin is up for Song of the Year with his controversial, fundraising, viral hit Come Home (Cardinal Pell) at the annual APRA Music awards for songwriters.

Minchin’s song was written to raise funds to send survivors to Rome to witness Cardinal Pell’s evidence before the Royal Commission into child sexual abuse.

It has been nominated alongside master craftsman Nick Cave’s haunting Skeleton Key and the works of breakthrough young artists including Hottest 100 hero Amy Shark (Adore), DD Dumbo (Satan) and Julia Jacklin (Pool Party).

Will Flume add an APRA to his collection of Grammy and ARIA awards?Source:AFP

Flume has again scored the most nominations for an Australian awards show, with his smash hits Never Be Like You (featuring Kai) and Say It, with Tove Lo, both up for Most Played Australian Work and Dance Work of the Year.

Our most successful songwriter on the world stage in the past decade, Sia, again features prominently on the nominations roll call with her songs Cheap Thrills and Alive.

Artists who have scored two nominations for the 2017 APRAs include The Veronicas with In My Blood, Nick Murphy (formerly known as Chet Faker) and Hilltop Hoods, who have two songs, 1955 and Higher Up, against each other in Urban Work of the Year.

Sia’s songwriting genius gets the thumbs up for the APRA awards again this year.Source:AFP

Australia’s reigning pop prince Troye Sivan was also recognised for his big debut year and scored a nomination for Breakthrough Songwriter of the Year and Pop Work of the Year.

Minchin said he was working on his own musical when The Project’s Gorgi Coghlan asked for his help, which resulted in the charity single.

“I was meant to be writing music for my musical and I just kept wanting to go back to this song,” he said.

“And so I spent the whole day writing it and I went and played it for (his wife) Sarah and she said ‘You have to finish this one’.”

Pop chart-toppers The Veronicas scored two APRA Music Awards nominations.Source:News Corp Australia

The song’s irreverent lyrics drew strong criticism from outraged supporters of the Cardinal, yet it quickly went viral as it was shared by Minchin’s fans.

“It managed to be funny about something that’s incredibly painful,” Minchin said.

“It will probably be the most impactful single thing I ever do.”

Current Australian tourist Justin Bieber has also scored two nominations for Love Yourself and Sorry in International Work of the Year, alongside Adele with Hello.

The APRA awards will be announced on April 3 in Sydney.