When the country's most prestigious songwriting awards are handed out at Sydney's Hordern Pavilion on April 29, three Western Australian acts will be in the thick of it: Tame Impala, Spacey Jane, and Old Mervs — a psychedelic titan, a Fremantle indie powerhouse, and two mates from a farm outside Kojonup who named their band after a working dog.

Kevin Parker — the one-man studio force behind Tame Impala — has landed a nomination for the Peer-Voted APRA Song of the Year for "Loser," a standout track from his 2025 album Deadbeat. The nomination puts him in a final five alongside Keli Holiday's "Dancing2," Ninajirachi's "iPod Touch," Amyl and The Sniffers' "Jerkin'," and Paul Kelly's "Rita Wrote A Letter." That's rarefied company, and Parker belongs there. The man won two APRA awards just last year — Most Performed Australian Work and Most Performed Pop Work — for his co-writing work on Dua Lipa's global smash "Houdini."

Spacey Jane, the quartet who turned Fremantle share houses into a launching pad for national domination, have been nominated for Most Performed Alternative Work with "All the Noise" — the first single off their album If That Makes Sense. They're up against Royel Otis, Keli Holiday, Mallrat, and Ball Park Music. For a band that went from Mojos to selling out arenas, the APRA recognition is the industry's way of saying what Perth already knew: these songs stick.

Then there's Old Mervs. Henry Carrington-Jones and David House grew up on neighbouring farms outside Kojonup — population roughly 1,500 — and cleared out a stable to rehearse in as teenagers. Now their song "Everyone Will See It" is nominated for Most Performed Rock Work, putting them toe-to-toe with Jimmy Barnes ("Defiant"), Amyl and The Sniffers ("Jerkin'"), King Stingray ("Southerly"), and Ocean Alley ("Tangerine"). Not bad for two blokes from three hours south of Perth.

The ceremony marks APRA's centenary — 100 years since the organisation was founded in 1926 to ensure Australian music creators actually got paid for their work. The first awards ceremony wasn't held until 1982, when Little River Band's Glenn Shorrock hosted and took home the Gold Award for "Cool Change." This year's milestone edition will be hosted by Julia Zemiro, with guest presenters including Bernard Fanning, Jessica Mauboy, Mark Coles Smith, and — another WA connection — Stella Donnelly.

Other nominees worth watching include Hilltop Hoods featuring Marlon for "The Gift" in the Hip Hop/Rap category, and Sia alongside David Guetta for "Beautiful People" in the Electronic/Dance category. Sia remains APRA's most decorated member.

The prestigious Ted Albert Award for Outstanding Services to Australian Music will be announced on April 14, ahead of the main ceremony.

Last year's big winners included Amyl and The Sniffers, who took out Song of the Year for "U Should Not Be Doing That," and Troye Sivan, who was named Songwriter of the Year.

But this year, the WA contingent isn't just showing up. They're showing out.