Curious about The John Lennon Songwriting Contest?In honor of John Lennon, The John Lennon Songwriting Contest is an international songwriting contest that began in 1997 to give songwriters an opportunity to express themselves, gain recognition, and get their music heard. The JLSC is made possible by Yoko Ono Lennon.

The contest is open to everyone. Enter your original songs in any of the 12 Categories: Rock, Pop, Hip-Hop, Country, Jazz, R&B, Children's, Folk, World, Latin, Electronic and Gospel/Inspirational.

You don't need a professional recording. Entries will be judged on originality, melody, composition, and lyrics (when applicable).

Each year, judges select 72 Finalists and 24 Grand Prize winners. The Grand Prize winners compete for the 12 Lennon Awards, one of which will be selected "Song of the Year." Click here for a complete list of prizes.

George Clinton, Prince Royce, 311, and Flea are some of the members on our Executive Committee of Judges. Meet the Judges

Proceeds from the contest help support the non-profit John Lennon Educational Tour Busmobile recording studio which is dedicated to providing young people with opportunities to create original music and digital media.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO AND TO ENTER

CONTEST DEADLINE ALERT!

Entries for Session II must be received by December 31st!

Enter your original songs to compete for the enormous 2023 prize list which includes pro gear like Genelec 8030C monitors, an Apogee Duet 3, a pair of Epiphone guitars, Audio-Technica studio mic + headphones, Avid Pro Tools, hot plugins from SSL, Apogee/Clearmountain, and Universal Audio, as well as Reason+ and so much more - including the $20,000 CASH prize for Song of the Year.

Enrique Iglesias sells catalog to Influence Media Partners in nine-figure deal (report)Agreement also marks Influence Media's first-ever Name, Image, and Likeness deal
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Spotify’s Campaign Kit brings together its Artist marketing toolsSpotify offers a range of music marketing tools, including playlist pitching, Discovery Mode, Marquee, and Showcase. Each is designed to help reach the right listeners, drive engagement when they’re listening,. Continue reading
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Sona adds musician-friendly streaming, marketplace with $6.8M fundingSona has launched a new web3-based, no-subscription, ad-free streaming music platform and a marketplace where artists can auction off SONA, the “digital twins” of songs. The startup was co-founded by. Continue reading
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Klavis Grainity Eurorack module now available Klavis' new Eurorack module employs a granual filter design which the company say is is new to the world of analogue VCFs.

Two notes announce ReVolt & OPUS deal Two notes Audio Engineering have announced the immediate availability of two Fly-Rig Saver bundles for customers in the US.

Creamfields to house the “largest indoor festival superstructure in the world”Next August, Creamfields is set to debut a brand new stage – and it’s going to be the “largest indoor main stage superstructure” in the world.

READ MORE: MSG says plans for London Sphere were “hijacked” by mayor Sadiq Khan

Making the monumental announcement on Instagram, the EDM festival has revealed that the APEX stage will hold an “epic 30,000 capacity,” with an extra perk of an extended 4am closing time on Saturday.

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The huge 30,000-capacity of the stage will be able to hold just under half of the 70,000 headcount attending the festival. The stage will serve as a mega step forward for the festival, allowing headliners to put on more intricate light shows within the confines of the huge space.
However, some regular attendees aren’t pleased about the announcement – namely due to the fact the stage is set to replace the beloved Horizon stage.
“Horizon is always the best stage at sunset time,” one festival goer writes. The shift from an outdoor stage to a tent has also disappointed some punters as it will restrict acts from closing with climactic firework displays.
Other fans name-dropped the 20,000-capacity Steel Yard stage as the real stage needing a switch up. Despite being one of the festival’s most innovative stages, designed to “transform the space” and to immerse attendees in “a feast for the senses,” it has served as a bugbear for Creamfield goers.
While impressive, the stage is notoriously difficult to worm your way inside due to it being a hot-spot, and is regularly crammed full.
But the plans are in place and the APEX will be making its first appearance on the Cheshire festival grounds next year. While we will certainly mourn the iconic Horizon stage, Creamfields are known for trying to re-define the festival experience. The APEX is sure to be a truly game-changing festival structure.
2024 will also see XXL and Teletech joining Creamfields as first-time stage hosts, and the rest of the line-up is yet to be unveiled. Limited day, weekend and camping tickets are available to buy now. 
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Algoriddim’s djay Pro 5.0 is here: hyper-fast stem separation, flexible beat grids
Algoriddim is releasing djay Pro 5.0. Here's what DJs should know about this major Neural Mix stem separation update
The post Algoriddim’s djay Pro 5.0 is here: hyper-fast stem separation, flexible beat grids appeared first on DJ TechTools.

10 things you need before releasing music If you want to release music but don’t know how to start, this guide is for you. Here are ten things you need to start the process (and you probably. Continue reading
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MSG says plans for London Sphere were “hijacked” by mayor Sadiq KhanMSG has accused London Mayor Sadiq Khan of ‘hijacking’ plans for the city’s planned Sphere venue with his “bogus last-minute report”.

READ MORE: Spotify Wrapped live in London: A Top Of The Pops-style end-of-year celebration at IKEA-turned-superclub Drumsheds

Khan rejected MSG’s plans to build the Vegas-style sphere in London last week, citing the “unacceptable negative impact on local residents.” The UK government has since stepped in, with levelling-up secretary Michael Gove ordering a six-week pause as he considers calling in the mayor’s decision to pull the plug on the development of the east London venue.
In a new statement, the entertainment company slams Khan’s decision as “last-minute”, saying that the move had derailed a planning process that spanned five years.
“The entire five-year planning process was hijacked by the mayor and his bogus last-minute report,” the statement read. “Londoners should be dismayed that they are not going to benefit from this groundbreaking project, and others looking to invest in London should certainly be wary.”
“Moreso, everyone should be alarmed by how easily the government’s established process was tossed aside by one politically motivated official. Mr Gove’s action, although commendable, still appears to us to be more of the same, and we cannot continue to participate in a process that can be so easily undermined by political winds.”
“As we said previously, we will focus on the many forward-thinking cities.”
MSG Sphere London was proposed for a site near the Olympic Park in Stratford, near Westfield Stratford City. If built, the facility would be 120 metres wide and 90 metres tall, featuring an exterior that’s completely covered in illuminated screens.
It would be the second MSG Sphere to be built, following in the footsteps of MSG Sphere Las Vegas, which recently opened with its first ever residency from Irish rock band U2.
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Ableton’s Push 3 Upgrade Kit lets you make your Push standalone – for £879Ableton has launched a much-anticipated Upgrade Kit for its Push 3 workstation, allowing those with the non-standalone version to use it solely by itself without the need for the Ableton Live DAW.

READ MORE: Union Audio’s Elara.4 is an analogue DJ mixer that’s “tiny but mighty” with “exemplary” build quality

Until now, only users of the more expensive battery-powered Standalone Push 3, launched in June, were able to use it by itself, thanks to an in-built processor. Now, with this Upgrade Kit provided by Ableton, in as little as thirty minutes, the brand says, you can unplug your Push and use it anywhere.
Once the standalone components are integrated, your Push will mirror the functionality of a processor-equipped Push.

The Upgrade Kit includes all the components to turn your Push 3 into a standalone unit, according to Ableton. There’s an Intel 11th Gen Core i3-1115G4 processor with 8GB of RAM, a 256GB SSD hard drive, a lithium iron phosphate battery and a heatsink. It also includes screws, a screwdriver, a backplate lifter, and a protective mat.
The Intel NUC Compute Element is made up of a processor, combined with RAM and WiFi. According to the brand, this is the first Intel processor to have ever been adapted for Push.
What is the Ableton Push 3?
The Ableton Push 3 is a standalone expressive instrument and workstation created so you can move away from staring at a screen and produce with a more hands-on feel. With the standalone version – or the non-standalone version with the new Upgrade Kit implemented – you can essentially take your DAW anywhere, with the ability to continue projects started in your DAW, and then send them back again to continue later.
It has 64 MPE pads, an LED screen, a built-in audio interface, ADAT optical in and out, MIDI in and out, USB-A and USB-C ports, DC power in, two 6.3mm footswitch jacks and a 6.3mm headphone out.
The Upgrade Kit costs £879. In June, MusicTech spoke to J Black, producer and Ableton ambassador, who defended the arguably high price.
“For what you’re [paying], you’re getting something really strong,” J Black said at the time. “That price is fair because it’s a modular system. So you can upgrade the battery, and [Ableton] said you can maybe update the processing in the future. I think that right there alone makes it already a high-grade machine, right? You can give this a terabyte [storage] and [Intel] i7 processor if you want to in the future, you know.
“I think that’s Ableton saying, ‘this is going to be the piece of equipment for a long time. We’re not getting another one anytime soon.”
Find out more about the Ableton Push 3 Upgrade Kit via Ableton.
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Tom Petty’s Love is a Long Road sees 36,979% increase in Spotify streams following GTA 6 trailer launchThe GTA 6 launch trailer sent the world – at least temporarily – into a frenzy. Fans of the franchise have waited 10 years since the release of GTA V for a morsel of concrete information regarding its followup, and yesterday (5 December), the sixth instalment of the series was confirmed.

READ MORE: Spotify set to lay off 17 percent of its team in a “hard but crucial step”

But while the bulk of the attention was aimed at the forthcoming game itself – the launch trailer has received over 100 million views at the time of writing – late rock musician Tom Petty has received a spike in interest following the inclusion of his song, Love is a Long Road, in the trailer.

So much interest, in fact, that Spotify tells BBC Newsbeat streams for the track have increased 36,979 percent compared to this time last week.
Love is a Long Road was released in 1989 as a B-side to Tom Petty’s biggest hit, Free Fallin’. The track now has over 11 million streams at the time of writing.

A Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee, Petty – who died in 2017 at the age of 66 – is also known for such songs as American Girl, Don’t Do Me Like That and I Won’t Back Down.
This isn’t the first time a movie or video game has led to a rapid increase in interest in the musician behind its soundtrack. For example, Spotify says that when Linda Rondstadt’s Long Long Time was featured in the TV adaptation of The Last of Us, streams increased by 4,900 percent.
And when Stranger Things featured both Kate Bush’s Running Up That Hill and Metallica’s Master of Puppets in its fifth season, streams and plays of both tracks skyrocketed.
In the GTA 6 trailer, the track – which features a classic rock arrangement driven by crunchy electric guitar lines and smooth keyboard stabs – sets the scene in Leonida, an open-world zone based on the US state of Florida, and its Miami-inspired Vice City.
GTA 6 will feature the series’ first female protagonist since 1999, following her Bonnie and Clyde-style escapades with her romantic partner.
The post Tom Petty’s Love is a Long Road sees 36,979% increase in Spotify streams following GTA 6 trailer launch appeared first on MusicTech.

Basso Profondo & Vienna Boys Choirs from VSL VSL's latest releases capture two choral ensembles: the Vienna Boys Choir, and the Basso Profondo Choir, a group of six contrabass singers with a range that extends down to A1. 

UVI HX-20 HX-20 - Iconic Semi-Modular Analog Synth : Unique hardware-based wavetable + sample oscillators. Each oscillator section driven through physically-modeled filters. Powerful, modern... Read More