Musician Andy Mason wins two music awards

STAFF REPORT

link Courtesy photo: Andy Mason

Andy Mason won two awards from the New Mexico Music Awards show held Saturday at Sandia Resort and Casino in Albuquerque. Mason has been a musician for 20 years and is getting ready to headline a 57-stop tour this summer.

Portales musician Andy Mason took home two prizes Saturday from the annual New Mexico Music Awards.

“I’ve submitted work and been nominated before, but this is the first time I’ve won,” Mason said. “It feels nice to get recognition for all of the hard work.”

Mason’s composition, “Empty,” won in two categories for Best Children’s Song and Best Overall Video at the NMMA, which recognizes excellence for recorded music from New Mexico artists, songwriters, producers and engineers that has been produced in the previous calendar year.

Mason said he wasn’t able to attend the show Saturday at the Sandia Resort and Casino in Albuquerque because he was in Europe with his family.

He said he will be giving the awards to the engineer and filmmaker who helped him bring the song and video to fruition.

“Mike Davidson, who was the engineer on the song, really deserves the credit for making the song sound like it does,” Mason said. “I had some creative input on the video, but Dusty Deen, the filmmaker, was really the one who put it all together.”

Mason also credited Keora Flanary, Roger Gatchet, Kew Mason, Johnny Mulhair and David Strong for their work on the song.

“It was a total team effort,” he said. “You need to have people who can do what you can’t do, and I had a great team.”

Mason, who has been involved with music for 20 years, said the song is based on a children’s book written by his friend Joshua Belter.

“I thought the book was great and it inspired me to write the song with Joshua,” Mason said. “The message in the song is to accept yourself, be who you are, and don’t worry about what other people think.”

Mason said the song is available for free download on his website, andymasonmusic.org.