Kristie McCarthy wins the 2026 Lighthouse Award

The award was announced at the Association of Artist Manager Awards in Sydney

McCarthy receives a $5,000 grant to support her business and professional pursuits

The Lighthouse Award exists to support forward-thinking managers who are dedicated to Australian music

Founding Director of Neon Tiger Mgmt, Kristie McCarthy, is the recipient of this year’s Lighthouse Award, announced at the Association of Artist Managers (AAM) Awards in Sydney today (Wednesday 29 April).

McCarthy runs boutique artist management and services company, Neon Tiger Mgmt, looking after artists such as Riebl Tedesco McGill and The Cat Empire. She was previously Head of Artist Management at Lemon Tree Music, managing stars including Garrett Kato, Maddy Jane, Riley Pearce and Tash Sultana.

In addition to the award, McCarthy receives a $5,000 grant to support her business and professional pursuits.

On receiving the award, she said: "Receiving the Lighthouse Award at this point in my management career feels incredibly special - just days before my daughter’s first birthday and only a month after launching my own business.

“Like many first-time mothers, I was apprehensive about how I would manage maternity leave, especially as an artist manager. I’m so grateful to my former teammates for looking after The Cat Empire while I was away, and to Felix and Ollie for taking this next step with me as I begin Neon Tiger Mgmt.

“A huge thank you to APRA and Linda’s family for this award. It’s an honour and genuine pleasure to be recognised among the passionate women and non-binary managers who have come before me."

The Lighthouse Award exists to support a forward-thinking manager who is dedicated to Australian music. It was established to encourage women and gender diverse artist managers in memory of pioneering artist manger and mentor, Linda Gebar, who died tragically in 2008. 

Previous recipients of the award have included Ash Hills, Bonnie Dalton, Charlotte Abroms, Hayley Ayres, Jen Cloher, Kristy Gostelow, Lorrae McKenna, Maggie Collins and Simone Ubaldi. 

Karen Don, Head of Membership at APRA AMCOS, concludes: “We’re so proud to honour Kristie with this award in recognition of the meaningful contribution she’s made to the artists she manages and to the music community more broadly.

“Awards like this are essential to recognise and support women and gender diverse people in the music industry, encouraging more people like Kristie to enter the industry in the first place, and then sustain long, successful careers.”