A resident of Vining, Iowa emerged victorious at the 2023 Storyteller/Songwriter Award presented by the International Singer Songwriters Association. The ceremony took place in Atlanta on August 5th.

The association, which boasts a membership of over 16,000 independent singer/songwriters from across the globe, revealed that Todd Apfel clinched the award through member nominations and selection. The current year’s awardee is chosen by the past two years’ winners after nominations are gathered.

Apfel, the sole nominee from Iowa, recently unveiled his third album, titled “Whiskey.” And, as you can imagine, this nomination was against a lot of competition. With over 16,000 songwriters, this means that it’s not exactly easy to come out victorious. Nonetheless, this is a good example of persistence. Apfel isn’t the youngest artist ever and has been around for some time.

In a press release, the association conveyed, “Todd expressed his complete surprise and gratitude as an artist hailing from Iowa, upon being designated the world’s premier songwriter by his fellow peers.”

Notably, Apfel, who had been serving as the Zoning Administrator for Tama and Marshall Counties, recently retired from his role. This shows just how talented Iowa is when it comes to making high quality music, and it’s not just Slipknot who are known Iowan hit makers either!