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CONTESTS
Contests provide songwriters, singers and bands with an opportunity for the acknowledgement and validation of their talent as well as an opportunity to win prizes.
Contests are created for many different reasons and it's important to be able to assess whether or not it's a waste of money to submit material at all. Most contests are created to make money, though there are always contests that spring up for other reasons; for example, to find a theme song for an organization or a city. There have been several competitions for a new national anthem, for instance. Many nonprofit songwriting and music organizations use competitions to raise operating funds. These contests are usually open to writers from all over the country.
MAKING CONTACTS
The loftier reason for contests, aside from making money, is to find and expose new talent. Seldom do contests translate directly into commercially successful record deals, hit songs, etc. There is, however, a wide range of potential benefits depending on the scope of the contest.
In the American Song Festival and Music City Song Festivals, several judges, who could turn in the code numbers of songs they particularly liked, heard each song. After the contest was over, the judges would be provided with a list of the writers each requested and their addresses and phone numbers so they could request additional material on their own. This benefit was a valuable door opener for many writers to establish ongoing relationships with the judges who were music publishers and producers. Although these festivals are no longer in existence, they set a standard for the industry. Many contests today have similar judging procedures that provide songwriters with opportunities to make contacts and gain exposure.
Beyond prizes and validation, one of the valuable benefits was that winners were provided with more door opening tools via the publicity they received as contest winners. This could, in turn, be used for inclusion in query letters to industry professionals requesting permission to send tapes.
SUBMISSION PROCEDURES
Each competition will give you its own submission requirements on the entry blank, but the following are common to all.
The Entry Form
An entry form is included with each song submitted in each category (if there is more than one category). Be sure to fill out each form completely as though it were the only one submitted. In nearly all cases, it is acceptable to make photocopies of the original form. To save yourself some work, fill out the basic name/address/phone information on the original before making the copies so all you have to add is song titles; writer(s), if different; and categories.
The Cassette
Your song has a better chance of staying in the race if your submission package includes a well-produced demo. This doesn't mean spending $500 to $1,000 in a state-of-the-art studio. But it does mean that your singer should be convincing (don't sing it yourself if you're not the best singer for it), the sound should be clean (without distortion and tape hiss) and the tape copy clean.
Songwriting competitions usually require one song per cassette to facilitate easy coding and tracking of a song, eliminate confusion among judges regarding which song is to be heard, and make it easier to re-cue for the next judge.
Many competitions request that your name not appear on the tape or lyric sheet to avoid the possibility of favoritism should the judge recognize the name of a writer. It is especially important, in those cases, for the writer or performer to completely fill out the submission form so that the person initially processing the tape can code the submission form, the lyric sheet and tape. Don't be too concerned about leaving your name off, though. If you don't eliminate your name, the contest will black it out themselves. In fact, it's always a good idea to have a proper copyright notice (year, a copyright owner) on each lyric sheet no matter where you send it or for what purpose.
The Lyric Sheet a lyric sheet is usually requested to speed the judging process. A judge can listen to and judge a song by listening to a verse and chorus of the song while scanning the remainder of the lyric. Lyric sheets should always look as professional as possible and be neatly typed with sections separated. Caption the sections "verse," "pre chorus" (if applicable), "chorus" and "bridge" and lay them out visually on the lyric sheet so that a judge can immediately "see" the form of your song. You can separate each segment by skipping a line, indenting all the choruses the same amount and double indenting the bridge, or just indenting the bridge and typing the chorus in all uppercase type in contrast to upper- and lowercase for the other sections. This is very important since use of form is a major factor in the success of songs, and consequently one of the factors that will influence a judge. For more information on lyric sheets.
The Fee a fee is required for each tape submitted in each category. Fees can range up to $15 or more per song per category. Entry fees are certainly justifiable. It is not cheap to promote and organize a contest of any kind. Advertising is expensive and, as the now-defunct American Song Festival discovered, it's not enough just to 'announce that the deadlines are rolling around and assume that those songwriters who entered last year will automatically enter again. Each year they have to go after a whole new group of writers. Last year's entrants who didn't receive at least an honorable mention are likely to believe that, if someone didn't recognize their hit, the contest is a rip-off and the judges don't know anything. The last thing they'll allow themselves to believe is that their song just wasn't good enough. As a result, they will not re-enter the contest.
In addition to advertising, contests must hire people to process entries, schedule, coordinate and supervise judges and judging sessions, keep financial records, answer phone inquiries and many other tasks. In some cases, judges are also paid.
Some critics have actually advised writers not to pay a fee for submission to contests, particularly if they get a critique because "you should never pay for a critique." Nonsense! (That philosophy originated as a way to protect writers from song sharks 'who would ask a writer to pay a small fee for a critique, then give the song a rave review as a way to set them up for a publishing contract for which they would ask for an even greater fee.)
CONTEST CATEGORIES There are great variations between contests when it comes to categories. The major groupings are amateur and professional. Some contests will rightfully place great importance on the division between amateur and professional songwriters with a variety of methods of making the distinction. One method is to disqualify you in the amateur category if you are a member of BMI, ASCAP or SESAC with the erroneous assumption that, to be a member of a performing rights organization, you must have a song released on record. In reality, though it is impractical to belong if you don't have a record released, the organizations may sign a writer if they feel the writer is talented enough to release one in the near future.
Another method is that used by the Billboard competition in which you can only enter if you have not averaged more than $5,000 per year in songwriting royalties since 1988. This method gives great latitude because one can still be an excellent professional songwriter and not have attained that goal.
Yet another method is that one may not enter the amateur category if they've had a song released on record before a certain date, usually the dead- line date. This method has caused great problems, at times requiring notarized affidavits as proof and delaying the final disposition of prizes based on objections of amateur entrants. However, this is still, probably, the fairest way to divide categories.
Your best strategy, if you feel you are an exceptional writer (don't we all?), is not to allow your ego to take you into the professional category. Without breaking any rules, stay in the amateur group if possible.
Stylistic categories, though fairer for obvious reasons, are problematic mostly because songwriters, amateurs in particular, often have difficulty distinguishing pop from r&b or rock, country from folk, etc. They either enter the same songs in several categories just to be safe, or risk entering one song in an inappropriate category and having it eliminated, not because it's not a quality song but because of a poor category choice. The best approach is to play it safe by entering more than one category if you can afford it, but only after getting as much feedback as you can from fellow writers and friends on the most appropriate category.
CHOOSING YOUR BEST SONG
Making the choice of which songs to enter involves a process of elimination, which, in fact, is the process used in judging as well. So it may be instructive to come from the viewpoint of a judge who knows that certain factors will preclude a song from being a winner even though it may receive an honorable mention. The bottom line in contests is commercial potential, since most contest organizers dream of turning up winning songs that have a good possibility of being recorded by major artists. This makes it much easier to promote the contest next time around, gives it credibility with the music industry and potential music industry judges (who also hope to find a hit), and shows potential entrants that something wonderful can happen to their careers by entering this contest. Because of that bottom line, judges will look at your song in the same way they would judge any song that came across their desk.
Here are a few of the things that may eliminate your songs from the competition, since judges already know that the winning writers won't make these errors:
1. A song without a chorus, unless it's a variation of the classic AABA form (verse with the title in the first or last line, followed by another of the same followed by a section with a different melody, then back to the melody of the first verse) like Billy Joel's "Just the Way You Are." Another exception might be an AAA form entered in a folk (but not country) category. An AAA form is a story-telling form that uses the same melody in every section; a form not well suited to mass-market radio formats because it tends to get too monotonous.
2. The title doesn't appear in the chorus or first or last line of the verse. This commercial consideration is important in the marketing of a song because if potential buyers can't identify a song they have heard, sales may be lost.
3. Clich?yrics. A judge may hear over one hundred songs at a judging session and will certainly hear the same clich?hrases over and over again. If you've heard it before, don't use it.
4. Little or no melodic change between verses, chorus and bridge. You must hold a judge's attention, and the melodic contrast is one of the best techniques to help you do it. If you can't hold the judge's attention, you won't hold an audience's either.
IS THE CONTEST LEGIT?
A history of take-the-money-and-run contests make it important to be on the lookout for some distinguishing factors that help you recognize the legitimate ones. Here are some things to look for:
1. If a contest has been in operation for more than a year, they should be willing to provide you with a list of previous winners.
2. If they offer you merchandise prizes, they should be able to prove to you that they have either purchased them or, with an affidavit from the manufacturer, that the merchandise has been donated. Note: Most manufacturers no longer directly donate equipment, but may work in conjunction with a local music store to make it available to the contest in consideration of publicity.
3. If the contest offers a cash prize, they should be able to offer proof that the money is in an escrow account that may only be distributed to winners. A common downfall of contests is to promise prize money with the honest hope that money received from entries will exceed the prize amount by enough to cover all expenses and profit. This is a very risky gamble because it is expensive to get enough publicity to ensure that many entries, and once a contest fails to provide prizes on time, its reputation has been destroyed.
4. The individuals responsible for the contest should be listed in the advertising, and there should be an address (street number) and phone number where they can be reached.
5. The contest officers, owners, representatives, judges and their families should be ineligible to enter the contest.
6. Prize schedules and amounts as well as entry deadlines, deadlines for notification of winners and awarding of prizes should be clearly listed on the application. If a deadline becomes impossible to meet, a predetermined process for notifying contestants should be implemented. New deadlines must be clearly stated.
7. Judges of the contest must be music industry professionals with proven experience in judging and critiquing songs and, hopefully, in a position to further your career.
8. Don't enter contests in which your entry becomes the property of the contest. In fact, look for a phrase that specifically says that it doesn't. However, the contest should have the right to play the song, print it or use your name and photo for promotional purposes. Your career benefits directly from that publicity and is one of the unstated prizes for a winner.
There is another caution related to ownership of your entry or winning song. Every year there are at least two or three individuals who want to get into the music publishing business and think that a great new way to find songs and finance their businesses is to have a contest and offer the winner a publishing contract. Sometimes they'll form a record company and their first recording artist will sing your song. Savvy writers don't enter these contests for several reasons:
1. If you believe in the commercial potential of your songs, the worst prize you can imagine is that your song will be owned by an inexperienced and unconnected new publisher whose only means of financing a company and finding songs is to hold a contest.
2. Legitimate publishers never charge you to screen your songs. It is part of the business of a music publisher to find material and convince the writer that he can represent your song better than anyone else. So to set themselves up as someone you would "automatically" want to publish your songs, without a track record or connections, is arrogant, to say the least. Frankly, under certain circumstances, there may be writers who should not even sign with well-established major publishers because, in their individual circumstances, it may not be in their best interest.
FINDING CONTESTS Contests come and go, so a listing here may be out of date by the time you read it. The guidelines listed above should help to keep you out of trouble. There are, however, some well-established sources through which you can find out about contests. A great source for international competitions is FIDO, the international federation of festival organizations. FIDO is a nonprofit organization with contacts to over 1,600 festivals and cultural events in seventy-two countries around the world and releases a monthly bulletin for members about those events. The competitions are for performers and songwriters. You can reach them at (818) 789-7536.
Songwriter's Market has a section, "Contests and Awards," that lists most of the well established regularly held contests. You'll also find information on the requirements and purposes of the contests.
Your local songwriters organization is another good place to find out about songwriting competitions since they're sure to be on the mailing list of anyone promoting the contest.
In addition to songwriting competitions, there are always many contests for individual performers and bands. One of the most visible is Sound check, the Yamaha rock music competition that you can find out about through your local music store. In fact, music stores are the best places to find out about band competitions both locally and nationally.
PRIZES you will partially base your decision to enter a competition on the lure of the money or hardware offered to winners. Customarily, a grand prize is awarded to an overall winner and first, second, third and more prizes are awarded in each stylistic category. In addition, honorable mention certificates may be awarded to songs that judges felt deserved special consideration but didn't make the finals.
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