John Lennon Songwriting Contest
Encyclopedia
The John Lennon Songwriting Contest, named for the former member of The Beatles
, is a songwriting competition
for songwriter
s, open to amateur
s and professional
s. The contest accepts instrumental pieces as well as songs with a vocal component. Though all entries must include a CD, cassette, or mp3 file, a professional recording is not needed. Songs are not judged based on performance, but on originality, melody
, composition, and lyrics
(if applicable). Entries may be submitted in any one of twelve categories:
Songwriting contests such as the John Lennon
contest have been called a "career boost." Prizes for 72 Finalists and 24 Grand Prize Winners vary from year to year, but past winners have received Studio Equipment from: Roland/Edirol, Audio-Technica, Gibson Guitars and Epiphone, gift certificates from MusiciansFriend.com, and a one year subscription to Guitar Player, Bass Player, Keyboard, or EQ Magazine. In addition to the songwriting prizes, one band is selected annually to perform on the Warped Tour for one week and receive a Blackheart Handsome Devil Head and Cabinet, Publicity, Radio Marketing and Strategic Consulting services courtesy of Music Allies, and Creative Allies design contests showcasing the winning band, so they can win licensing to exclusive: Posters, T-Shirts and Pocket-size Flyers.
The John Lennon Songwriting Contest is divided into two sessions each year. Session I runs until June 15, and announcements for winners and finalists of this session occur on September 1. Session II begins on June 16 and runs until December 15. Winner and finalist announcements for Session II occur on March 1 of the following year. In each session, there are twelve grand prize winners - one for each category - and thirty-six finalists - three for each category. Judges for the John Lennon Songwriting Contest vary each year. Executive judges are often well-known recording artists and members of the music industry, including Fergie, The Veronicas
, Natasha Bedingfield
, Bob Weir
, The Bacon Brothers
, Ryan Shaw
, Ken Komisar, Jesse Harris
, Lamont Dozier
, and Matt Pinfield
.
The contest also gives out twelve Lennon Awards each year. These awards are fan-voted and are faceoffs between the previous year's Session I and Session II grand prize winners for each category. Lennon Award winners receive additional prizes from Mackie, Ampeg or Blackheart, and 1,000 CDs in full color with premium 6-panel Digipaks courtesy of Disc Makers.
The highest honor that the John Lennon Songwriting Contest awards is the Maxell
Song of the Year. This coveted prize is awarded to one of the twelve Lennon Award winners, and includes a $20,000 prize check, as well as an Apple computer with cinema display, a Mackie Mixer, a pair of Mackie Studio Monitors, Logic Pro Software, and a $1000 scholarship to Digital Media Academy.
On July 27, 2010 the 2009 Maxell Song of the Year winner was announced to be Canadian Folk duo Madison Violet, for their song "The Ransom."
The contest was created by Brian Rothschild, a former songwriter and keyboard player for the band I Am Siam, and David Sonenberg, whose company manages acts that include Fergie, The Black Eyed Peas
and John Legend
; they joined with Lennon's widow, Yoko Ono
, to create the contest in 1997. They also outfitted The John Lennon Educational Tour Bus
, a non-profit 501(c)(3) mobile audio and HD video recording and production facility, that provides free hands-on programs to hundreds of high schools, colleges, Boys and Girls Clubs, music festivals, concerts, conventions and community organizations throughout the country.
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
, is a songwriting competition
Songwriting competition
A songwriting competition is a contest whereby musicians submit original music to a third party or forum, generally to win a prize or some other benefit. Songwriting competitions have existed long before the advent of the Internet, but today many are conducted through websites or musician forums...
for songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
s, open to amateur
Amateur
An amateur is generally considered a person attached to a particular pursuit, study, or science, without pay and often without formal training....
s and professional
Professional
A professional is a person who is paid to undertake a specialised set of tasks and to complete them for a fee. The traditional professions were doctors, lawyers, clergymen, and commissioned military officers. Today, the term is applied to estate agents, surveyors , environmental scientists,...
s. The contest accepts instrumental pieces as well as songs with a vocal component. Though all entries must include a CD, cassette, or mp3 file, a professional recording is not needed. Songs are not judged based on performance, but on originality, melody
Melody
A melody , also tune, voice, or line, is a linear succession of musical tones which is perceived as a single entity...
, composition, and lyrics
Lyrics
Lyrics are a set of words that make up a song. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist or lyrist. The meaning of lyrics can either be explicit or implicit. Some lyrics are abstract, almost unintelligible, and, in such cases, their explication emphasizes form, articulation, meter, and symmetry of...
(if applicable). Entries may be submitted in any one of twelve categories:
- Children'sChildren's musicChildren's music is used here to refer to music composed and performed for children by adults. In European influenced contexts this means music, usually songs, written specifically for a juvenile audience. The composers are usually adults. Children's music has historically held both entertainment...
- CountryCountry musicCountry music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
- ElectronicElectronic musicElectronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
- FolkFolk musicFolk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
- Gospel/Inspirational
- Hip-Hop
- JazzJazzJazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
- Latin
- PopPop musicPop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
- R&B
- RockRock musicRock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
- WorldWorld musicWorld music is a term with widely varying definitions, often encompassing music which is primarily identified as another genre. This is evidenced by world music definitions such as "all of the music in the world" or "somebody else's local music"...
Songwriting contests such as the John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
contest have been called a "career boost." Prizes for 72 Finalists and 24 Grand Prize Winners vary from year to year, but past winners have received Studio Equipment from: Roland/Edirol, Audio-Technica, Gibson Guitars and Epiphone, gift certificates from MusiciansFriend.com, and a one year subscription to Guitar Player, Bass Player, Keyboard, or EQ Magazine. In addition to the songwriting prizes, one band is selected annually to perform on the Warped Tour for one week and receive a Blackheart Handsome Devil Head and Cabinet, Publicity, Radio Marketing and Strategic Consulting services courtesy of Music Allies, and Creative Allies design contests showcasing the winning band, so they can win licensing to exclusive: Posters, T-Shirts and Pocket-size Flyers.
The John Lennon Songwriting Contest is divided into two sessions each year. Session I runs until June 15, and announcements for winners and finalists of this session occur on September 1. Session II begins on June 16 and runs until December 15. Winner and finalist announcements for Session II occur on March 1 of the following year. In each session, there are twelve grand prize winners - one for each category - and thirty-six finalists - three for each category. Judges for the John Lennon Songwriting Contest vary each year. Executive judges are often well-known recording artists and members of the music industry, including Fergie, The Veronicas
The Veronicas
The Veronicas are an Australian electrorock, pop-punk and rock band. Twin sisters Jessica and Lisa Origliasso formed the band in 1999 in Brisbane. They have their own line of clothing which was released in 2007....
, Natasha Bedingfield
Natasha Bedingfield
Natasha Anne Bedingfield is a British pop singer and songwriter. Bedingfield debuted in the 1990s as a member of the Christian dance/electronic group The DNA Algorithm with her siblings Daniel Bedingfield and Nikola Rachelle...
, Bob Weir
Bob Weir
Bob Weir is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist, most recognized as a founding member of the Grateful Dead. After the Grateful Dead disbanded in 1995, Weir performed with The Other Ones, later known as The Dead, together with other former members of the Grateful Dead...
, The Bacon Brothers
The Bacon Brothers
The Bacon Brothers is the American musical duo of Michael Bacon and Kevin Bacon. Although they have played music together since they were boys, the brothers have only been a working band since 1995....
, Ryan Shaw
Ryan Shaw
Ryan Christopher Shaw is a soul musician from Georgia, USA.-Biography:Shaw began singing in Pentecostal church at the age of three, having been raised in a deeply religious household. Shaw won a spot in a gospel musical at Georgia State University, and in 1998 he dropped out of college to take...
, Ken Komisar, Jesse Harris
Jesse Harris
Jesse Harris is a Grammy Award winning American singer-songwriter. He has collaborated with several musical artists including Norah Jones, Melody Gardot, Madeleine Peyroux, Nikki Yanofsky, and Lizz Wright.-Early life and education:...
, Lamont Dozier
Lamont Dozier
Lamont Herbert Dozier is an American songwriter and record producer, born in Detroit, Michigan. Dozier has either co-written or produced several US Billboard #1 hits.-Career:...
, and Matt Pinfield
Matt Pinfield
Matt Pinfield is a music personality and TV host, best known for being a video deejay on MTV and VH1. He currently lives in Harrison, New Jersey having previously resided in East Brunswick Township...
.
The contest also gives out twelve Lennon Awards each year. These awards are fan-voted and are faceoffs between the previous year's Session I and Session II grand prize winners for each category. Lennon Award winners receive additional prizes from Mackie, Ampeg or Blackheart, and 1,000 CDs in full color with premium 6-panel Digipaks courtesy of Disc Makers.
The highest honor that the John Lennon Songwriting Contest awards is the Maxell
Maxell
, commonly known as Maxell, is a Japanese company which manufactures consumer electronics. The company's notable products are batteries -- the company's name is a contraction of "maximum capacity dry cell" -- and recording media, including audio cassettes and blank VHS tapes, and recordable optical...
Song of the Year. This coveted prize is awarded to one of the twelve Lennon Award winners, and includes a $20,000 prize check, as well as an Apple computer with cinema display, a Mackie Mixer, a pair of Mackie Studio Monitors, Logic Pro Software, and a $1000 scholarship to Digital Media Academy.
On July 27, 2010 the 2009 Maxell Song of the Year winner was announced to be Canadian Folk duo Madison Violet, for their song "The Ransom."
The contest was created by Brian Rothschild, a former songwriter and keyboard player for the band I Am Siam, and David Sonenberg, whose company manages acts that include Fergie, The Black Eyed Peas
The Black Eyed Peas
The Black Eyed Peas are an American pop group , formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1995. The group includes rappers will.i.am, apl.de.ap, and Taboo, and singer Fergie. Since the release of their third album Elephunk in 2003, the group has sold an estimated 56 million records worldwide...
and John Legend
John Legend
John Roger Stephens , better known by his stage name John Legend, is an American singer, musician, and actor. He is the recipient of nine Grammy Awards, and in 2007, he received the special Starlight award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame.Prior to the release of his debut album, Stephens' career...
; they joined with Lennon's widow, Yoko Ono
Yoko Ono
is a Japanese artist, musician, author and peace activist, known for her work in avant-garde art, music and filmmaking as well as her marriage to John Lennon...
, to create the contest in 1997. They also outfitted The John Lennon Educational Tour Bus
John Lennon Educational Tour Bus
The John Lennon Educational Tour Bus was founded in 1998 as a non-profit 501 organization committed to reaching youth through music and video, a testament to John Lennon's zeal for expression through music...
, a non-profit 501(c)(3) mobile audio and HD video recording and production facility, that provides free hands-on programs to hundreds of high schools, colleges, Boys and Girls Clubs, music festivals, concerts, conventions and community organizations throughout the country.
External links
- John Lennon Songwriting Contest official website
- John Lennon Educational Tour Bus official website
- CDBaby, "John Lennon Songwriting Contest" - Finalists and winners of this contest
- Country Standard Time, "Uncle Earl, band member win John Lennon songwriting contest", Tuesday, April 17, 2007
- “Mint Green Bee” from Gustafer Yellowgold’s Wide Wild World was the Grand Prize Winner in the Children’s Category in 2008.Gustafer yellowgoldGustafer Yellowgold is a fictional character created by American songwriter and illustrator, Morgan Taylor. Gustafer is the main character in a series of minimally animated music videos brought to life in both live concerts and its DVD/CD series....