Honors & Awards
CNM Writing Grant (2023)
Allyson Ezell was the recipient of a creative grant from the French National Center for Music (CNM) for the research and elaboration of a songwriting project.
With this grant, Ezell was able to return to central Iowa where she was born and lived until the age of 19. Her creative objective was to confront past versions of herself with the current version and observe how they reacted and evolved in that environment. Video footage and diary writings from this three-month period have been, and continue to be, transformed into a docu-series entitled The Future of Beautiful Things as reflections on hope and the things that keep us going.
The music that accompanies the series was written and produced by Allyson Ezell.
Le FAIR Laureate (2021)
Created in 1989 as an initiative of the French Bureau of Cultural Affairs, Le FAIR is a dispositive for young and developing artists. Each year a committee of industry professionals select a handful of promising projects to support both financially and structurally in their creative endeavors. It is viewed as the most prestigious award for developing artists in France.
Coco Bans was selected as a 2021 le FAIR laureate and mentored by Pierre Pauly, A&R of the Francofolies Festival.
Pernod Ricard France Live Music Finalist (2021)
Pernod Ricard France Live Music Finalist in 2021, Coco Bans was selected as a live artist to watch and participated in the livestream concert series at the Gaïté Lyrique in Paris, France.
CNC Video Grant (2020 & 2021)
Allyson Ezell’s artistic project, Coco Bans, was the recipient of two creative grants from the French National Center for Cinema (CNC) for the production of music videos. The video for “Mon Amour” was filmed and directed by Thibaut Louvrier (alias NLCTL) and produced by Coco Bans’ own independent label Straight Up Nomad and Au Pays des Merveilles.
The video for “Being Brave is Stupid” was animated by acclaimed illustrator, Simon Landrein, and produced by Au Pays des Merveilles.
SACEM Independent Production Grant (2019 & 2021)
Twice awarded the SACEM Independent Production Grant for success as an independent producer of Coco Bans’ albums Fantasy & Parables (EP) and Chronicles of an Altered Life (LP).
The artwork for both albums was created by Allyson Ezell.
ADAMI 3D Award (2020)
The ADAMI is the organization in France responsible for the collection and distribution of the performance rights of actors, dancers and soloists within the music industry, as well as the the recorded work of singers, soloists and conductors.
Coco Bans was selected by a committee of her peers and industry professionals as the 2020 recipient of the 3D Artistic Award. The goal of this award was to support the entire process of creation of her debut LP, Chronicles of an Altered Life, starting from the recording stages and all the way through the marketing and communication phases as well as the physical and digital distribution.
