Meet the Winners of Berklees Songs for Social Change Contest Presented by Berklees Songwriting Department and Songs for Social Change initiative, the annual contest encourages students to write songs that promote positive change.By
Eugene Ahn
May 4, 2021
Mart n Guas
Image by Ashley Yu
Berklee's Songwriting Department and Songs for Social Change initiative recently held a virtual showcase of songs recognized in the 2021 Songs for Social Change Contest. The open-themed annual contest, held for more than a decade, encourages Berklee students to write songs expressing their convictions about social issues and promoting positive social change. Songwriters who won awards or were recognized in this years contest hail from 12 U.S. states and Argentina, Canada, Cyprus, England, Guatemala, India, Iran, Jordan, Mexico, Singapore, and Spain.
Mart n Guas Mart n Guas B.M. '20, a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist from La Plata, Argentina, won first place for his song CREO, which addresses corruption, racism, sexism, and injustice in the world and specifically Latin America. A postgraduate studies student at Berklee, Guas's music and lyric-writing style are rooted in Latin America's folk tradition with contemporary influences. He has shared stages and/or recorded with John Legend, Natalia Lafourcade, Kurt Elling, Alejandro Lerner, and others.
Watch the video for CREO by Mart n Guas:
I started writing songs when I was a kid, almost unconsciously, but trying to express things that I couldnt say with words, said Guas. Later on I understood that music had the power to change and inspire not only ourselves, but also people around us. I strongly believe that social change comes from different environments and perspectives, but definitely cultural expression is one of them, and we have to speak out for the injustice around us every day to be able to dream of a better world.
Mel Fine
Mel Fine
Image courtesy of artist
Second-place winner Mel Fine, a 20-year-old singer-songwriter out of Sharon, Massachusetts, performed their song In Between, a hauntingly honest and raw self-love anthem detailing their journey growing up outside the gender binary. Fine has performed extensively throughout the Northeast, was nominated for New Act of the Year at the 2019 New England Music Awards, and was awarded the 2021 Performance Division Voice Award by the Berklee Voice Department. As vice president of the Berklee Songwriters Club, they help other songwriters to connect and reach their fullest potential. Nonbinary representation is few and far between in media, said Fine. I submitted this song to share a slice of my experience, celebrate queer identities, and hopefully help others feel less alone.
Watch the video for In Between by Mel Fine:
Aashna Gupta
Aashna Gupta
Image courtesy of the artist
The showcase was held virtually, as the students performed their original songs from various locations around the globe. Third-place winner Aashna Gupta performed her song Choke from her hometown in Gurgaon, India. A songwriting major at Berklee, she sang about the air pollution in her hometown and the need for environmental change. I think we needed the contest this year, now more than ever, said Gupta. I wanted to bring attention to the climate change in my city and how it affects us, especially as singers-every vocalist here that I know is suffering greatly with their voice, and I wanted to write a song that made our voices heard (ironically) in some way. I'm extremely honored to be one of the award winners.
Watch the video for Choke by Aashna Gupta:
About the Contest The contest, originally established by a gift from the Luongo family, has received endowed funding from Kevin Block-Schwenk, associate professor in the Liberal Arts and Sciences Department. Block-Schwenk has donated more than $300,000 to the contest, as well as an additional $200,000 for various other social justice initiatives at the college, making him Berklee's most generous living faculty donor. The endowed fund will permanently yield the student award money for the contest: $1,500 for the first-place song, $1,250 for second place, $1,000 for third place, a $500 honorarium for each song performed in the showcase, and a smaller honoraria for songs featured on the contests SoundCloud playlist. Through December 2021, Block-Schwenk is offering to match every dollar donated to the Songs for Social Change Fund, up to $15,000.
Though I've been involved with Berklee's Songs for Social Change Contest and Showcase for more than a decade, this year was raised to a new level, with a record number of submissions, even amidst this pandemic and after a year of remote learning, said Mark Simos, professor in the Songwriting Department and faculty contest coordinator. Our entries this year reflected the creative alchemy of Berklee's diverse community-of musical styles, cultural backgrounds, social perspectives. And in our new virtual showcase format, student writers also spoke eloquently about their writing process and the creative challenges of writing songs that-we all still believe-might just change the world: a world more in need than ever of these songs, and these talented, passionate, brave, and dedicated young songwriters.
The contest and showcase were organized by Simos, with the production team of Joe Bennett, professor in the Professional Music Department, and Dan Cantor, associate professor in the Songwriting Department. Ten faculty from across the college served as judges for the more than 130 entries. Also supporting the initiative are Bonnie Hayes, chair of the Songwriting Department, Amer Koudsi, coordinator in the Songwriting Department, Jessica Halton, senior director of Institutional Advancement, and Sharon Bernanke, business administrator in the Professional Writing an
