London – Glastonbury Festival has just announced details of its Emerging Talent Competition 2017, once again generously supported by PRS for Music and PRS Foundation. The free-to-enter competition offers new UK and Ireland-based acts of any musical genre the opportunity to compete for a spot on one of the main stages at this summer’s Festival. The eventual winner will also pick up a £5,000 Talent Development prize from PRS Foundation to help take their song writing and performing to the next level, while two runners-up will each secure a £2,500 PRS Foundation Talent Development prize.
Entries are open for ONE WEEK ONLY from 9am Monday 30th January until 5pm Monday 6th February 2017 Glastonbury website. To take part acts send in a link to one original song on SoundCloud, plus a link to a video of themselves performing live in any context from bedroom to concert hall. Glastonbury co-organiser Emily Eavis commented: “New music is at the very heart of what we do here at Glastonbury. The Emerging Talent Competition has become such an important way for us to find the next wave of talent from across the genres, and then help to shine a light on it. I’m really excited to hear this year’s entries.”
Previous Emerging Talent Competition finalists include R&B singer Izzy Bizu (a 2016 BRITs Critics’ Choice nominee and winner of the 2016 BBC Music Introducing Award) and singer-songwriter Declan McKenna, who won ETC 2015 and has subsequently signed with Columbia and been longlisted in the BBC’s Sound Of 2017 poll. Last year’s ETC winners were politically-charged Merseyside band She Drew The Gun, who have since released their critically acclaimed debut album.
Once the entries are in, a panel of 40 of the UK’s best music writers including Best New Bands’ London correspondent, Tony Hardy, will help compile a long list of 120 acts. This will then be whittled down to a shortlist of 8 artists by judges including Glastonbury organisers Michael and Emily Eavis. To decide the outright winner, the last eight standing then perform in April at the live finals held at Pilton Working Men’s Club, close to the Worthy Farm festival site.
For the past three years, all eight of the finalists were offered slots at that year’s Festival. The message to new bands is clear though; you have to be in it to win it!
Go here for more on the Glastonbury Emerging Talent Competition.
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