The 20-year-old has won the 2017 Apra Silver Scroll Award for her international hit song Green Light.
Ella Yelich O’Connor (Lorde), along with her co-writers Jack Antonoff and Joel Little, were unable to be at the ceremony held at the Dunedin Town Hall last night, but were thrilled to win the award.
From the United States, Lorde sent a message thanking the industry for "honouring" her song.
"I can’t believe it. I really wanted to win the Silver Scroll Award. I just feel like it’s so prestigious and important.
"I always love and respect the songs that end up in the Silver Scrolls.
"Thank you for honouring Green Light, which is a song I love so much, and am so proud of. The second it came out, I knew it felt like a bit of my heart, right in the song."
It is the third time Lorde has been a finalist in her short career, and her second win with co-writer Joel Little, after being awarded the trophy for Royals in 2013.
The award acknowledges excellence in songwriting and has been given to some of the most recognisable names and songs in New Zealand music during its 52-year history.
Apra New Zealand operations head Anthony Healey said Green Light "instantly hit its mark".
"Ella has captured that moment in her life and shared it beautifully with us all. Along with Joel and Jack, she’s crafted something that’s been critically acclaimed all over the world.
"But the acclaim of your peers is special. It’s the highest praise and in this case a well-deserved accolade."
One of the other highlights of the evening was the induction of Dunedin band The Clean (Hamish Kilgour, David Kilgour, Robert Scott and Peter Gutteridge) into the New Zealand Music Hall of Fame. A colourful tribute was given to the band by poet David Merritt, film-maker Stuart Page, and musicians Astro Children and Billy TK.
Newcomers Alien Weaponry (Henry de Jong, Lewis de Jong and Ethan Trembath), of Waipu, won the Apra Maioha Award for their heavy metal anthem Raupatu.
The award recognises exceptional songwriting featuring te reo Maori. The song raised awareness of land confiscations by the colonial government with a startling performance.
Wellington composer and violinist Salina Fisher won the Sounz Contemporary Award for the second year in a row, with her haunting composition Torino, which was inspired by the work of taonga puoro artist Rob Thorne. Thorne accepted the award on Fisher’s behalf because she is now based in New York, studying at the Manhattan School of Music.
First-time finalist Claire Cowan won the Apra award for the best original music in a series, with her rich and colourful soundtrack for mini-series Hillary which celebrated the life of Sir Edmund Hillary.
The Apra best original music in a feature film award was won by Tim Prebble for his emotive work on independent film One Thousand Ropes.
