Call for entries: Jägermeister Back The Artist

31 Jul 2015 - 10:05

Published under the Creative Commons Licence

Too often music and creativity suffer because of time and funding restraints, which make it difficult for talent to be nurtured. Recognising this, global alcohol brand Jägermeister launched its Back The Artist campaign in 2013. The purpose is to find a young South African artist or band with a trend-setting sound, to connect them to a top local producer and give them time and freedom in a studio to work in and be creative. This is not just a competition – this is a campaign with momentum that carries a message of artistic empowerment to the youth of South Africa.

HHP will work with this year's Back The Artist winner.

In an age of instant communication, the internet has opened the young generation up to a world of awesome online content. Through social media, for example, we have been introduced to a pool of talent that in the past was completely untapped. Information is simply a click away - and so is your path to success with Jägermeister’s Back the Artist campaign. The organisers are looking for South Africa’s next hit single. To enter, simply submit your track online and get your fans to vote. All genres of music are accepted.

The winner of Back The Artist 2015 will win:

Studio time with the legendary musician HHP, who will overlook the production of the winning single
A music video produced for this track
A one-year contract with Jäger Music, with full artist support
A gig at one of SA’s biggest festivals
Band merchandise

The top five entries will play live at a show in Johannesburg in front of celebrities and music industry leaders. They will also spend the morning with a top artist to share a bit of knowledge, and get plenty of great PR to kickstart their career.

The 2013 winner was Sheen Skaiz, who hustled hard across Facebook and Twitter and won studio time with SAMA-winning producer Justin de Nobrega (Die Antwoord, Toya Delazy, Jack Parow). Last year's winner was Blaze Ryders.

How it works

The competition uses public votes until the Top 10. Each and every day your fans can vote for you and any other artist they choose. It’s up to you to hustle and get as many votes as you can, week in and week out. You will need to make the cut each and every week. When you tweet or facebook post make sure you use the hashtag #backtheartist2015

Once the public has chosen its top 10, it will be down to the judges, Jagermeister and a SAMA-winning producer to choose the track they think is the best suited to be South Africa’s next hit single.

The competition will run as follows:

Contestant Entries (musicians and artists submit their tracks): 1 July – 26 August
Public Voting (All contestants): 2-14 September
Public Voting Stage 2 (Top 56): 14 -17 September
Public Voting Stage 3 (Top 20): 17-21 September
Judges Voting Stage 4 (Top 10): Announced 22 September
Judges Voting Final Round (Top 5): Announced 29 September
Top 5 event: October 2015
Winner Announcement: October 2015

Charl Greyling, Jägermeister’s music and events manager for South Africa, explained: “This year we are growing the campaign and taking a more 360-degree approach. We have lined up top managers, artists, bands and producers to give the finalists some industry knowledge to assist with their growth and planning for their future. The reason for this that artists and bands often get removed from the planning aspect of their career, and we want them to know where to focus their efforts and how the industry works. I'm very excited to see what talent we will be unearthing this year, and even more excited to change the life of the next winning artist or band!”

To enter the Back The Artist competition, complete the online entry form.