New York, NY (Top40 Charts/ Mountain Stage NewSong Contest) NewSong
Music is proud to announce the launch of its tenth annual Mountain Stage NewSong Contest - one of North America's premier showcases of emerging performing songwriters and bands, which spans an array of genres and includes regional rounds.
The 2011 contest winner will be presented with the opportunity to record an EP with hit songwriter and producer Mikal Blue who has worked with the likes of Colbie Caillat, Jason Mraz, Five for Fighting, One Republic, Augustana, Jason Reeves, and current indie fave Lady Danville. The EP will be released on Brooklyn's NewSong Recordings label. In addition, the winner will perform on an internationally broadcast Mountain Stage (NPR) show, and will receive 1,000 copies of the completed disc.
Having served on last year's panel of judges that determined the winner, Mr. Blue is familiar with both the competition and the caliber of artists who participate. "It was such a wonderful experience to serve as a judge last year. The spirit of the event and camaraderie amongst the contestants was more like a celebration of songwriting than a competition." Blue continues, "I was blown away with the high level talent of last year's finalists and look forward to finding an amazing artist or group to work with from the 2011 edition."
"This is a unique opportunity for artists to work with one of the top producers in the industry," said Gar Ragland, director and co-founder of NewSong Music. "And, we're also proud to continue our decade long relationship with Mountain Stage. For 25 years, they've been showcasing some of the world's best music performers and songwriters."
NewSong is an independent music organization. Its mission is to both build a supportive community of performers and songwriters across all genres of music and levels of skill, while identifying truly exceptional artists within this community and introducing their music to a broader, international audience.
For the second year in a row, NewSong contestants not only have the unique opportunity to perform on Mountain Stage, but to work with an esteemed music producer to record and release a potentially career-busting project.
The 2010 grand prize winner Amber Rubarth is now working with Grammy winning producer Jacquire King (Kings of Leon, Norah Jones, Modest Mouse, Cold War Kids, Tom Waits) on her forthcoming album, a prize she was awarded for earning the top honors at last year's competition.
"The things that are unique and special about the NewSong Contest is that it seemed to be connecting people and has community atmosphere," said King. "It's nice that there's a network, and that the NewSong Contest is part of furthering that in the music community and among singer-songwriters."
The winner of this year's contest will also perform live on an internationally broadcast Mountain Stage (NPR) show. "The Mountain Stage NewSong Contest has brought a lot of exceptional talent to our attention," said Larry Groce, Mountain Stage Host and Artistic Director. "And, it's not only the winners - but many finalists have appeared on Mountain Stage over the years including Ingrid Michaelson, Diana Jones, Antje Duvekot and Meg Hutchinson. The fact that the contestants are judged by their songs as well as their performances equally makes it very appealing to us."
The NewSong Contest is officially accepting submissions at https://contest.newsong-music.com/. Submissions start at $30 per song, with discounts for multiple submissions. The contest features both a general and regional rounds, with an upcoming general round 'Early Bird' submission deadline on May 6.
