After receiving 176 original song entries from Year 9-11 students across Aotearoa, Play It Strange is thrilled to announce the winners and finalists of the 2026 Junior Songwriting Competition.

Taking out first place this year is Luke Van Wyk, artist name 104, a Year 11 student from Rolleston College in Canterbury, for his song ‘PAY LATER’. Luke receives a prize package including a 1:1 mentoring session with a competition judge, a $500 MusicWorks voucher, a JBL Bandbox Trio valued at $899, an artist development session with SOLE Music Academy founder Sacha Vee, radio interview and airplay on 95bFM, a performance slot at the Play It Strange Annual Showcase including flights and accommodation, plus music workshops held in the lead-up to the showcase.

Judges were deeply impressed by the originality and maturity of Luke’s songwriting. Musician and competition judge Frankie Venter praised the winning track, saying: “This is insanely good. I am beyond impressed! Incredible. In my opinion this should win”.

‍Luke is already making waves as a young musician, having independently released his debut EP hi at just 10 years old. On the track, Luke says: “‘PAY LATER’ is meant to be about the price of consumerism - it’s like an ad break in my album ‘Consumer Effect’ so it sounds flashy and polished like a real commercial, but the lyrics are about the greed of capitalism and what you actually end up paying for it.”

Second place was awarded to Sienna Fitzgerald, a Year 11 student from Northcote College in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, for her song ‘Clarity’. Sienna receives a $300 MusicWorks voucher. No stranger to Play It Strange, Sienna won the Junior Songwriting Competition in 2025 and has now been a finalist four times at just 15 years old. Last year, she also recorded one of her finalist songs with judge Boh Runga at Old North Studios.

Third place goes to Dornia Silupe-Ulumanithe, artist name Dornia, a Year 11 student from Onehunga High School, for her song ‘Home of the gone’. Dornia receives a $200 MusicWorks voucher. This was Dornia’s first year entering Play It Strange, after Play It Strange competition judges Paige and Sam V visited her school recently.

In total, 48 finalist songs have been selected to be professionally recorded in studios across Aotearoa. Each finalist receives a $50 MusicWorks voucher and the opportunity to spend an entire day in a professional recording studio of their choice, bringing their original song to life in an industry-standard environment.

Guest judge and There’s A Tuesday frontwoman Nat Hutton says the competition highlighted the incredible depth of emerging songwriting talent in Aotearoa.“I’ve been so inspired by the talent and creativity shown in this year’s Play It Strange Junior Competition. The raw authenticity and lyricism these rangatahi bring to their songwriting is incredibly powerful, and it’s been such a privilege to hear so many unique young voices. I’ve been deeply impressed by the artistry, honesty, and emotion woven through these songs.”

‍Play It Strange CEO Stephanie Brown says this year’s entries reflected not only musical growth, but an increasing fearlessness from young songwriters exploring difficult and complex topics.

‍“Every year we are blown away not just by the quality of the songwriting, but by how diverse the songs are becoming. This year’s entries explored themes like grief, identity, friendship, mental health, but also capitalism and war. Musically we’re hearing more experimental sounds and genre-crossing every year. The calibre of musicians judging our competitions and supporting Play It Strange this year really reflects how passionate the music industry in Aotearoa is about backing and nurturing the next generation of emerging talent.”

‍All 48 finalists will now become part of the wider Play It Strange alumni community, gaining access to performance opportunities, mentoring, ticket giveaways, backstage experiences, artist development opportunities and more throughout the year.See the full list of finalists for the 2026 Play It Strange Junior Songwriter Competition HERE.

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Established in 2003, Play it Strange runs annual national songwriting competitions for high school students, with finalists awarded a day in a recording studio to professionally record their songs. Play It Strange releases these songs on digital albums and provide mentorship and performance opportunities. Their alumni list includes Kimbra, Georgia Nott of Broods, Liz Stokes of The Beths, Frankie Venter, Annah Mac, Louis Baker, CHAII, Luca George, Ratbag and so many more.

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