Music Contests - Song Contests - Talent Searches
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National and International Music Contests

Briggs & Stratton Battle of the Bands Contest - now through April 16, 2010, upload a song for users to vote on. If they win, we'll pay their way to come party with us in Milwaukee. We'll fly the winning band out to Summerfest - the world's largest music festival held June 26, 2010, put em in a hotel and let em play their set on stage. Plus give them photos, video and a CD of their performance.

Colgate Country Showdown - Annual Country Music Talent Search begins each Spring with over 450 local talent contests sponsored by country music radio stations throughout the US. Winners advance to their respective State competitions held at leading fairs and expositions. Acts then compete for a $1,000 prize, the State Title and the opportunity to advance to one of five Regional Finals. It’s the last step before the prestigious National Final held at the historic Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, TN. The audience cheers on the Regional Winners, as they compete for the Grand Prize of $100,000 and the National Title. A uniform judging system is used at all levels of competition to ensure fairness.

Nashville International Song and Lyric Competition - "Over $100,000 cash & prizes awarded, multiple contests throughout the year (every year). We reward all kinds of songs and lyrics equally... including Traditional Country, Today's Hot Country, Contemporary Christian, Gospel, Pop, Rock, AAA, Alternative, Jazz and Blues."

Song of the Year 2010 - Song & Lyric Competition starts March 10, 2010. $100,000 cash and prizes, 600 monthly songwriting contest winners. Annual contest whose "primary focus is to find great songwriters while helping them network with professionals in the music industry. Monthly winners and finalists throughout the year will get their music sent to Record Labels, Music Publishers, management and more. Judges include numerous Grammy Award Winners, Major Record Labels, individuals from Rolling Stone Magazine, professional songwriters and individuals.

John Lennon Songwriting Contest and Maxell Song of the Year - Annual
Session I begins in January, Deadline in June.
Session II begins in June, Deadline in December.
International contest with over $275,000 in cash and prizes. The JLSC is open year-round, open to amateur and professional songwriters, and features two Sessions. Each Session has 12 Grand Prize Winners (one in each category) and 36 Finalists (three in each category). Your songs may be entered in any of the following 12 categories: Rock, Country, Jazz, Pop, World, Rhythm & Blues, Hip Hop, Gospel/Inspirational, Latin, Electronic, Folk, and Children's. Grand Prize Winners of Session I and Session II will compete head-to-head in an online voting battle to become the Lennon Award Winner in their respective category. The 12 Lennon Award Winners will compete for the Maxell Song of the Year.

International Songwriting Competition - ISC 2010 - "All Genres Accepted. Over $150,000 in cash and prizes shared by 65 winners. The International Songwriting Competition (ISC) is an annual song contest whose mission is to provide the opportunity for both aspiring and established songwriters to have their songs heard in a professional, international arena. ISC is designed to nurture the musical talent of songwriters on all levels, and promote excellence in the art of songwriting. Amateur and professional songwriters and musicians are invited to participate. ISC has the most prestigious panel of judges of all the songwriting and music contests in the world, offering exposure and the opportunity to have your songs heard by the most influential decision-makers in the music industry."

100% Music Songwriting Contest 2010 - will start in the last quarter of 2010. Several hundred thousand dollars worth of music prizes will be awarded to the winners. Music and songwriting competition open to all bands, musicians and songwriters, from any part of the world, whether you're an amateur or professional songwriter/musician/band. 45 category winners and 3 overall winners.

Great American Song Contest - Annual. $10,000 in cash plus other prizes. ALL categories offer awards to the Top 5 songwriters — for a total of 45 awards in 9 different songwriting categories. All participating songwriters receive written evaluations of their songs from contest judges who are experienced music-industry pros.

OurStage - ongoing monthly contest. upload your music and videos, fans vote, win prizes. OurStage is where music fans can discover, enjoy and reward the best emerging artists - and where the world's artists come to find their fans, get amazing gigs and launch their careers.

The Next Holiday Classic - Annual. Entry Deadline is in November. Beginning in late November, online voters will determine which songs will advance to the final. Cash prize and the opportunity to be presented to major label recording artists for inclusion on their future holiday projects. This is a free internet song contest for original holiday and seasonal songs. Potential additional contests are The Next Wedding Classic, The Next Children's Classic and The Next Patriotic Classic Song Contests.

27th International Blues Challenge - February 2-5, 2011 in Memphis, TN. "The IBC represents an international search by The Blues Foundation and its Affiliated Organizations (mostly blues societies) for the Blues Band and Solo/Duo Blues Act ready to perform on a national stage, but just need that extra break." It's the largest gathering of blues bands in the world.

NSAI/CMT Song Contest - Annual. Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) and Country Music Television (CMT). Submissions accepted August 1st through November 30th, voting starts February 1st and lasts till early March. No cash prizes. Prizes include 2 tickets to CMT Awards, private tour of CMT studios, one single-song publishing contract by a major publisher, Three-day trip to Nashville for one including airfare and hotel, etc.

Billboard World Songwriting Contest - Annual. Winners receive non-cash prizes.

American Accordionists' Association Competition and Festival - July 14-18, 2010 in Harrisburg, PA. Contestants from the U.S., China, Russia, Canada, Mexico, France and Italy compete for cash prizes and a grand prize. Annual event.

uPlaya Music Contests - various contest added throughout the year. non-cash prizes plus promotion through uPlaya.

Music Industry Artists Looking For Songs - ongoing, submit songs.

ISSA Song Contest - no info for 2010. Annual international songwriting competition, 9 categories. Independent Singer Songwriters Association (ISSA).

Music Nation Competitions - website not available on March 9, 2010 - an indie music artist site that has competitions from time to time.

American Idol - Annual Fox TV show & Pop Music singing competition.

America's Got Talent - Annual NBC TV show & Talent Search.

MTV Making The Band

Annual SXSW Showcase (South by Southwest Music Conference) - held in March. South by Southwest Music and Media Conference (SXSW), Austin Music Conference and Festival in Austin, Texas. This is HUGE. "Over 1400 acts showcased last year before more than 8000 registrants from all over the world. Pop, jazz, country, blues, reggae, hip hop, electronica - every imaginable style of music, from nearly every continent - is represented each night at over 50 of Austin's premier stages, many within walking distance of one another."

Fast Track To Fame TV - Internet Music Television for aspiring singers and bands.

Cover vs. Original - online voting site pitting original version songs against various cover versions.

2010 Music Competitions and Talent Contests in Michigan
These Local Listings are added/updated when information is received. TBA means To Be Announced

HOT NEWS → Detroit Music Awards 2010
Phase I - Submissions - now being accepted! (started September 28, 2009). Log on to DMA website and cast your submissions for the 2010 Detroit Music Awards ballot.
Phase II - Nominations - TBA
Phase III - Final Ballot and Voting for Winners - TBA

Great Lakes Songwriting Contest - TBA 2010, usually starts in late January. Annual Competition open to songwriters currently living in the eight Great Lakes states and the Province of Ontario. Contest welcomes all types of music. Country, rock, Christian and Gospel, blues, hip-hop, folk, instrumental, and all the hybrids. We don't make you pick a category when you enter your songs. Last Year: Grand Prize winner awarded $2,000 cash, two first-place winners get a $500 gift certificate for Elderly Instruments, four second-place winners each get a $200 Elderly Instruments gift certificate, and four third-place winners each get a $100 Elderly Instruments gift certificate, more prizes. All rights to songs remain with the entrants.

Sphinx Competition February 3-7, 2010 in Ann Arbor and Detroit.
Annual classical music competition. "Open to all Junior High, High School, and College age Black and Latino string players residing in the U.S., offering young Black and Latino classical string players a chance to compete under the guidance of an internationally renowned panel of judges and to perform with established professional musicians in a competition setting."

William C. Byrd Young Artist Competition - Finals March 6, 2010 in Flint.
"Young artists from throughout the world compete for a grand prize of $6,000 plus an opportunity to perform with the Flint Symphony Orchestra. Held annually on the first Saturday of March, competition is sponsored by the St. Cecilia Society in collaboration with the Flint Institute of Music and the Flint Symphony Orchestra." Competition rotates annually between four disciplines.

Detroit Blues Challenge 2010 - competition usually starts in March and runs to October when Finals take place and winners announced. Applications usually accepted in early November prior to upcoming year. As of Dec 10, 2009, almost all slots are filled for 2010.

Detroit Soundz Competition 2009 - 2010? - 3 rounds, March 19th, April 26th, May 7th, held at The Pike Room (inside the Crofoot) in Pontiac. Two Finals Winners (people's choice) get to hit the road in July to do a tour through the East Coast and Mid West.

"April in the D" 2010 song contest - Submit Songs by Feb 10, 2010. Winning song will become FOX Sports Detroit's April in the D theme song and will be used to promote Tigers, Wings and Pistons games all month long. The winner will also receive $5000.

Jazz Cafe Discovery Series 2009 - presents new and emerging Jazz talent from the metropolitan Detroit area on Tuesdays & Wednesdays. Performances are recorded for broadcast and bands have the opportunity for a $5,000 cash prize and a slot on the stage at the Jazz on the River Festival at Elizabeth Park in Trenton. Admission is free, performances begin at 7pm.

Hamburg Family Fun Fest – Talent Search 2009 - (Hamburg Twp is north of Ann Arbor)
"Hamburg's Got Talent" Finals on June 20th, preliminary rounds take place earlier.

All division winners will receive cash prizes, trophies and performance opportunities including an invitation to perform at the Michigan State Fair Talent Showcase in August! Registration and $20 entry fee is required. Contestants can register in advance or at a preliminary round starting at 6 PM. Registration forms and complete contest rules are available on the festival web site or contact Party Time Entertainment, (734) 620-0246 or by E-Mail

WDIV TV "4 The Best List" Metro Detroit, July through August 31st. Local Bands (in arts & entertainment), Bars (in nightlife), Music and DJs (in weddings). It's an annual online voting contest for "bragging rights" in Metro Detroit.

Riverfolk Old-Time Fiddle Contest - August 1, 2009 (sat). Part of the annual Riverfolk Music & Arts Festival held in Manchester (southwest of Ann Arbor). Fiddle Contest has three divisions, Registration Fees are Youth $5, Junior $10, Adult $15.

Kalamazoo County Fair Talent Search - August 15 (sat) in West MI. Open to all types of family friendly talent - 3 divisions of competition. Cash prizes and opportunity to perform in the Michigan State Fair Talent Showcase.

1st Annual Detroit Youth Blues Challenge - ENTRY DEADLINE IS AUGUST 31, 2009, main event in October of 2009 at Callahan's Music Hall (blues club) in Auburn Hills. The Detroit Blues Society, Callahan's Music Hall, No Cover Productions, 94.7 WCSX, and the Detroit Blues Challenge, will be staging this challenge. Winner of the main event will go to Memphis, Tennessee on January 22, 2010 to play at the 26th International Blues Challenge Youth Showcase.

Clinton Fall Festival Talent Search 2009 - in Lenawee County, Saturday September 26, 2009. Can you sing, dance or play an instrument? Show off your amazing talent and compete to win trophies, cash prizes and a professional studio recording session at Talent Live Studios in Canton. Contest is open to all types of family friendly entertainment, solo or groups. Two divisions of competition are offered: Juniors (ages 15 & under) at 3 PM, Adults (ages 16 & over) at 5 PM. Contestants must supply their own music / instruments. Sound and microphones will be provided. $20 entry fee required. Complete contest rules and registration forms are available on festival website or call Carla at Party Time Entertainment 734-620-0246, www.partytimemusic.net

24th Michigan State Championship Old-Time Fiddlers Contest - October 3, 2009 (sat). held in New Boston (southwest of Detroit). Contestants must play a waltz, a schottische, a jig and a reel in a manner suitable to Michigan old-time dancing. Contestants will be judged on tempo/timing, intonation, expression and repertoire. There is a non-refundable $10 entry fee. Annual contest is part of the Huron Township Applefest.

Michigan Competing Band Association State Championship Contest - TBA November 2009 (sat). Annually in November, held at Ford Field in Detroit. 40 High School Marching bands, Drum & Bugle Corps style bands in four MCBA Flights of Competition.

Music Awards Ceremonies in Michigan

2009 Inductees to Michigan Rock and Roll Legends - You can vote on-line starting in January, 2009. Website dedicated to the artists and music that are part of Michigan's rich and diverse rock and roll legacy. Legends now encourages all Michigan residents to participate.

DMA - Detroit Music Awards 2010 - at the Fillmore Detroit in Downtown Detroit. The Annual Detroit Music Awards is a high profile awards & ceremony organized by the Motor City Music Foundation MCMF. Click Awards link for artists eligibility and submissions, for all of us to register and vote, get ceremony information (when available) and tickets. Previous winners are also posted on DMA website. DMA myspace page

[TBA 2009] International Gospel Music Hall of Fame and Museum Induction and Awards - annual event held in Detroit, usually in late October.

[Oct 2009?] SoulTracks Readers' Choice Awards - online voting/national with awards ceremony and show in Detroit. 2008 2007 - info when available is on SoulTracks.com.

Trance Awards - Featuring 13 categories voted for by the public on this site. The highlight every year is the star-studded ceremony and full-on party (in November) which celebrates the diversity of trance music and culture.

Nashville Star - former annual TV show & Country Music singing competition that aired on NBC TV and USA TV.

Unisong International Songwriting Contest - former annual contest, last entry deadline was in 2008. checked in March 2010, no new info.

Music City Music Records Song Contest - this contest has no dates, might be over. checked in March 2010, no new info.

Goodnight Kiss Songwriting Contest - last in 2008. checked in March 2010, no new info.

Get Out of the Garage Music Contest - last in 2008. checked in March 2010, no new info.

The Shortlist Music Prize (New Pantheon Music Prize) - 2001 through 2007.

The Next Great American Band - Fox TV show competition from 2007. checked in July 2009, no new info. The Muggs from Detroit were on it.

Emo Emily Theme Song Contest - a one-time contest on youtube held in 2008.

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