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A SURVEY OF SONGWRITERS
When the concept was first discussed, everyone involved with Songwriters Resource Network agreed we should sponsor a song contest ONLY if it would truly benefit the songwriters and lyricists who participated.
What we came up with was the Great American Song Contest. The event was launched in 1999 and became an immediate success.
As you will see in the following survey, we've incorporated quite a few recommendations from participating songwriters, and continued to make incremental improvements in our annual event.
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THE SURVEY:
We asked songwriters what they'd like to see in a good song contest. And what they didn't like in other contests. Out of 112 songwriters who responded to our survey, approximately 55 percent were male and 45 percent were female; 65 percent were from the U.S., 26 percent were from Canada, and 9 percent were from other countries.
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THE SURVEY FINDINGS:
1.) Many songwriters in the survey said they questioned the value of the large "big-cash prize" song competitions.
"Frankly, I think the big contests are often more interested in making money than helping songwriters," said one songwriter from Texas. "I think some contests just use a lot of hype to get tons of entries. A few people win but everyone else gets zero benefit."
2.) Some songwriters complained about the high fees charged by large "lottery-style" song competitions.
"Some big song contests seem more like song lotteries," commented a songwriter from California. "It seems like writers pay costly entry fees only to end up paying for the big cash prizes for a few lucky winners."
3.) Some participants of other big corporate contests said they questioned whether their songs were thoroughly reviewed.
"I've heard some contests only listen to the first minute or so of the songs," said a Michigan songwriter. "If songs are not even listened to completely, how fair is that?"
4.) Some participants of other songwriting contests complained they received no feedback on their songs.
"It would really be helpful to get critiques from judges," said a song lyricist from Tennessee. "I entered [one contest] and they didn't even confirm my entry. They didn't give me any feedback about my work. All they did was cash my check."
CREATING A BETTER SONG CONTEST
Songwriters in the the survey offered these following recommendations to create a useful and truly rewarding contest:
- Don't be just another big-cash-prize contest trying to attract thousands of entries
- Focus on Quality — Not Quantity
- Reward winners with opportunities to open doors in the music industry
- Provide evaluations from qualified judges on ALL songs and lyrics
- Offer a range of categories and multiple awards in each category
- Offer low entry fees
These recommendations formed the basis of the Great American Song Contest.
Now EVERYONE who enters our contest can expect the following:
- Multiple awards & prizes in all categories — a total of 45 awards, 5 per category
- ALL entries receive a respectful and complete review
- ALL entries receive at least one written evaluation from a contest judge
- ALL contest participants are notified upon receipt of their entries
- Easily affordable entry fees
In addition, the Great American Song Contest proudly presents some of the music industry's top judges! (See Judges & Judging section.)
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We Value Your Suggestions!
Songwriters Resource Network sponsors the annual Great American Song Contest because we believe it is the most rewarding contest available to undiscovered songwriters. We welcome your suggestions on how can continue to improve and create the best event possible.
We'd love to hear from you. If you have suggestions, please email us: info@GreatAmericanSong.com