Singer-songwriter duo Madison Violet has been announced as the winner of the Maxell Song of the Year Award from the 2010 John Lennon Songwriting Contest (JLSC) for their original song "The Ransom,” taken from the band’s Juno Award-nominated album No Fool for Trying.

The Toronto-based duo of Brenley MacEachern and Lisa MacIsaac was chosen from a field of more than 1,000 entries, and will be awarded $20,000 courtesy of Maxell, in addition to other prizes.

“Just having Madison Violet and John Lennon in the same sentence is an achievement in itself,” said MacEachern. “Winning the prize for this particular song is incredibly rewarding and we're elated. When we wrote 'The Ransom,' we were in the midst of a long and arduous tour and even with the support of our fans, we were both feeling a little road-weary, so the song truly speaks to a moment we endured... The JLSC and Maxell have turned our low moment into a high one.”