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<\/p>\nMUSICIAN Dan Phipps won first prize at the Art of the Mind Surf Coast Song Contest with his song \u2018Sweet Ocean View\u2019.
\nThe sold-out event featured 10 finalists showcasing their songs at Bells Beach Brewing in front of friends, family and punters.<\/p>\n
The brief for the contest was \u2018songs of hope and wellbeing\u2019 and the response from the community exceeded expectation with three times more entrants than last year.<\/p>\n
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Mr Phipps, 39, said he wasn\u2019t expecting to win the contest.<\/p>\n
\u201cI felt that I had a song that fit the criteria quite well, one that was personal to me. I entered and thought, \u2018Oh \u2013 I hope I make the top 10 \u2013 that\u2019d be nice\u2019, when I hadn\u2019t heard anything for a while I didn\u2019t think I\u2019d made it \u2013 I was stoked to win and just happy to be playing the song live,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The artist is currently working on his debut EP with a producer who has worked with Powderfinger.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s got a positive-surfer vibe. I\u2019ve got two singles on Spotify and the EP will be rele<\/p>\n
ased at the end of this year or start of next,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Art of the Minds Festival president Jules Haddock commended each artist for their entry.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf there\u2019s one thing we know about song writing, there\u2019s no telling when and where the inspiration will strike,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t thank all entrants enough for their participation and for having placed their trust in our Song Contest.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a very close contest due to the very strong quality from all 30 entrants.<\/p>\n
\u201cCongratulations to all who participated and of course Dan Phipps, who came first!\u201d<\/p>\n
Ms Haddock said the positive relationship between music, emotions, memories and thoughts couldn\u2019t be underestimated, \u201cparticularly when we talk about mental health and wellbeing\u201d.<\/p>\n
The winning song will now feature in next years festival program.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe hope Dan\u2019s song will be heard and his personal story of recovery told when we meet at the 2021 festival next October. See you all there!\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
MUSICIAN Dan Phipps won first prize at the Art of the Mind Surf Coast Song Contest with his song \u2018Sweet Ocean View\u2019. The sold-out event featured 10 finalists showcasing their songs at Bells Beach Brewing in front of friends, family and punters. The brief for the contest was \u2018songs of hope and wellbeing\u2019 and the […]<\/p>\n