RULES AND REGULATIONS

All participants must be 22 years of age or under as of December 13, 2023. This means all band members must have been born on or after December 14, 2000.
All artists/bands must live in Northern Colorado. This is defined as: at least 50% of band members have permanent residence in Larimer or Weld Counties, Colorado.
Employees of presenting partners Fort Collins Museum of Discovery (FCMoD), 105.5 The Colorado Sound, and Bohemian Foundation, the officers, shareholders, directors, employees, agents, representatives, and subsidiary companies of each such corporation; and the members of their immediate families are not eligible to participate in or win Sonic Spotlight. This includes members of the FCMoD Squad, who will be participating in the selection process for Sonic Spotlight.
If an applicant submits multiple projects with over half of the same members or same front person, only one of the applicants will be considered for Sonic Spotlight.
Selected artists/bands will be required to communicate directly with Sonic Spotlight staff and contributors. Managers or other personnel retained by the artists may not be used as intermediaries. Parents or guardians may remain involved in those communications as desired, but direct interaction with participating artists is required as part of this program.

Contestants must submit two audio tracks of original music and one video via the Sonic Spotlight submission form. The video can be live performance content, music video, or other video representation of the song. If the content is unreleased, please submit a private Soundcloud or YouTube link.
All genres of music are accepted.
Original music is required. Artists/bands may not submit cover songs or plagiarized material. Plagiarism is defined as the act of copying someone else’s artistic or written work and claiming it as your own.
Any artist/band giving false, unsubstantiated, or misleading information on the submission form will be disqualified. The panel of judges will have access to all information provided on each artist/band’s entry form.
While copyright and licensing of artist’s/band’s original material is not required for public broadcast, it is required no one else own the rights to any material artists/bands may put forth to be shared publicly. Similarly, any samples incorporated in otherwise original music MUST BE cleared for use prior to public broadcast. If this is in question for you, please check into our Resources for Readiness for more information and/or do not hesitate to ask us.

Two panels of more than 20 music industry veterans, all ages music supporters, and Northern Colorado musicians from different backgrounds will review all the submissions and choose 8 artists/bands to participate in Sonic Spotlight. Reviewers will consider categories like song composition and arrangement, creativity, and musicianship.
Artist/band selection is made at the review panels’ sole discretion. The panels’ decision is final in all matters regarding the selection process.
Submissions will be judged on content and a demonstration of musical talent and potential, not on the audio quality of recordings or on the quality of photos or video production.
The 8 selected artists/bands will be announced late-September 2022.
Alternate artists/bands may be selected at any time to prevent any unfilled showcase billings.

The first showcase is called the Sonic Round, consisting of all eight artists/bands and will take place on October 27th, 2022 on 105.5 The Colorado Sound. Three artists/bands with the highest scores will advance to the final showcase called the Spotlight Round on December 8, 2022. The Sonic Round is on the radio and the Spotlight Round is planned to be in-person with virtual elements. Both showcases will feature live and pre-recorded content.
Selected artists will be required to participate in 6-8 hours of sessions with music industry experts. Each session will be scheduled in advance. Professional development sessions occur during the SPOTLIGHT ROUND (October 4th - November 6th).
Artists/bands that advance to the Spotlight Round must work with Sonic Spotlight provided video production team to conceptualize and shoot a new music video.
Artists/bands will be required to showcase 1 radio-ready song, 1 additional song, and other promo materials for the Sonic Round. Artists/bands that advance to the Spotlight Round will be required to showcase their brand-new music video as well as 2 additional songs, perform a 15 min set, and prepare other promo materials.