THE 20th ANNUAL NSAI SONG CONTEST PRESENTED BY MARTIN GUITARS AND STRINGS AND CMT TO LAUNCH SEPTEMBER 1, 2019!
This year’s competition is bigger than ever boasting two cash prizes, $5,000 to the Grand Prize Winner and $2,000 to the Lyric-Only Winner, four mentors - multi-Platinum singer/songwriter Elle King, hit songwriters Ross Golan and Joe London of AND THE WRITER IS..., and Tom Douglas, several Martin guitar and strings prizes totaling over $21,000 in value, as well as a one year single-song contract with Anthem Entertainment, and much more. Pull out your best songs and you could be on your way to winning big beginning September 1!
With two entry categories, Song and Lyric-Only, the contest provides an opportunity for songwriters of all genres to have their song(s) heard and judged by industry professionals. All entries will receive scorecard results, and a final total of 22 entries will place.
The Grand Prize Winner will take home $5,000 CASH, receive mentoring sessions with CMA Award-winning songwriter-artist ELLE KING, and hit songwriters ROSS GOLAN and JOE LONDON of AND THE WRITER IS..., and will be awarded a one-year SINGLE SONG CONTRACT WITH ANTHEM ENTERTAINMENT. In addition, the Grand Prize Winner will receive: a Martin D-28 Modern Deluxe and 10 packs of Martin Authentic Acoustic Strings, two tickets to the 2020 CMT Music Awards, a three day trip to Nashville, live performance opportunities at The Bluebird Café and the 2020 Tin Pan South Songwriters Festival, an NSAI residency package including a one year membership, access to one NSAI premium event, winning song inclusion in one of the quarterly Pitch to Publisher meetings, and more! The nine runners-up in the Song Category will also receive an incredible prize, a Martin 000 Junior and five packs of Martin Authentic Acoustic Strings.
The Lyric-Only Winner will receive $2,000 CASH, a mentoring session with hit songwriter, TOM DOUGLAS, a Martin OME Cherry (FSC® certified) and 10 packs of Martin Authentic Acoustic Strings, access to one (1) NSAI premium event, a pass to the 2020 Music Biz Conference in Nashville, TN, along with additional prizes. The Lyric-Only runner-up will also receive a Martin 000 Junior and five packs of Martin Authentic Acoustic Strings.
For judging, all eligible submissions received by NSAI will be judged in their respective categories by music industry professionals and NSAI staff. In the third round of judging, the top ten (10) finalists and ten (10) honorable mentions will be determined for the Song Category, and the Lyric-Only winner and runner-up will be selected. In February of 2020, the top ten finalists for the Song Category will be scored during a live-streamed event where a music industry-based celebrity panel of five or more elite music industry professionals will score each submission, with the highest score receiving the Grand Prize!
Beginning September 1, 2019 at 12:00pm CDT, entries can be submitted online at nsai.cmt.com or they can be mailed to the NSAI office (NSAI--ATTN: Song Contest, 1710 Roy Acuff Place, Nashville, TN 37203). All entries mailed in must include the submission form, entry fee, printed lyric sheet, and one audio CD (unless a Lyric-Only entry). Entry fees are $35 per song for current NSAI members and $45 per song for non-NSAI members. There is no limit to the number of songs that songwriters can submit, and all submissions must be post-marked by October 31, 2019.
For further details, including additional information on submitting songs, an official full list of prizes, the Terms and Conditions and contest updates, visit nsai.cmt.com. Updates will also be posted at nashvillesongwriters.com and shared on NSAI socials, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter pages (@NSAIOfficial).
Sponsors: And The Writer Is..., Anthem Entertainment, ASCAP, BMI, CMT, Martin Guitars and Strings, SESAC, Southwest Airlines®, and We Make Tapes & Discs.