Hilton Sydney's iconic Marble Bar has discovered its latest resident "Larger Than Lions" who has won a coveted Wednesday night residency valued at $10,000.

Hosted by DJ, international model and actress Georgia Sinclair and judged by a panel of experts including Matt Coyte, editor, Rolling Stone Magazine, Drew Michel, director of programming, MTV networks Australia and New Zealand, Chris Moss, managing director, Entertainment Marketing Group and Deni D, manager, Brown Sugar Entertainment. The "Discovered at Marble" finale saw five talented acts battle it out in front of the general public and the music and entertainment industry.

The event was streamed live through the Marble Bar Facebook page where the judges and general public and viewers were encouraged to vote for their favourite act through the Marble Bar Facebook page, those votes in conjunction with the judges determined "Larger than Lions" as the winners.

Matt Coyte, editor, Rolling Stone Magazine said "Discovered at Marble was a pleasant surprise for me. I saw a handful of acts that really knocked my socks off, and I think some of them have the potential to be in the next wave of big Australian artists."

"Larger Than Lions" vocalist Penny Pettrigrew said "winning this amazing competition is huge for us. We love Marble Bar and winning a residency at one of Sydney's most prestigious venues motivates and pushes us further to achieve our dreams and is an amazing reward and achievement for our hard work in our musical journey as "Larger Than Lions". This accolade definitely rewards us for all our late nights and annoyed neighbours!"

"Larger than Lions" will begin their residency from Wednesday 3 April from 7pm and will perform through to June.

The inaugural "Discovered at Marble" campaign was conceived to support Sydney's live music community and highlight the incredible talent in the city. Marble Bar in its 120 year history has been a renowned hot spot for live music. Campaigns such as "Discovered at Marble" aims to further highlight the importance of live music and supporting the local community. The bar is aiming to support live music through a program of showcasing local undiscovered talent. 

Drew Michel, director of programming, MTV Networks Australia and New Zealand went on to say, "Discovered At Marble" at the Hilton was a fantastic night showcasing some of the best live musicians going around. Congratulations to "Larger Than Lions" for their win, they were definitely standouts on the night.

The social media based competition commenced in January and ended March 2013.  30 eclectic entries were received through Marble Bar's Facebook page with the music genres ranging from pop, rock, soul, R&B, swing, jazz and lounge. The general public were encouraged to vote for their favourite acts with almost 6000 votes received.

The top five Sydney based finalists as voted by the public were:

Neil Noble - solo acoustic performer
Larger Than Lions - pop rock trio
Night School  - neo-soul quartet
Souled Out Performers -  funk, rock quartet  
G. C. O'Connor and the Loveless Children -  jazz, soul and R&B trio

"Discovered at Marble" was supported by Rolling Stone Magazine Australia, MTV Australia, The Music Network, Corona, Santa Vittoria and Staging Connections.

Steeped in rich history Marble Bar is one of Sydney's oldest and most historic landmarks. Built in 1893 behind The Lord Nelson Pub and Kirribilli House Marble Bar has survived the test of time as one of Sydney's most lively music hubs. In its 120 extraordinary years Marble Bar's stage has, played host to acts who have gone on to perform on The Voice and become international stars including UK songstress Duffy. Marble Bar's stage has played host to an eclectic mix of local and international stars including LMFAO, Cold Chisel, Wycleaf Jean, Eric Bonet, Jake Shears from the Scissor Sisters, Eve, The Veronicas, Slash and Liza Minnelli -  to name a few!

Media can access additional information about Hilton Sydney at

http://news.hilton.com/Sydney


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Kimberley Roberts
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