WOOZYFLY Launches Contest for Bands

I have never heard of WOOZYFLY, but apparently they are a music media and social networking website who is putting on a pretty cool contest.  This press release, WOOZYFLY Launches Contest for Bands to Win a $150,000 Recording, Promotion, and Distribution Deal, was written just yesterday announcing the terms of this contest.  The contest will run from April 2 to May 15, 2008 and it is allowing unsigned bands and artists to go on the their website, woozyfly.com, and create a band profile complete with original music and any "tweaks" the band wants to make.  Then a panel of judges including CEOs of well known music companies, picks a winning band based on the quality of music, number of fans on the profile, creativity, and fan comments on the page.  The winning band will be crowned "woozy idol" and receive a number of cool prizes including $1,000 cash, 10 hours of studio time, and a professional video shoot.

This contest is innovative and interesting because there are not many contests or promotions out there catering to musicians trying to get signed.  There is American Idol but that is just for individual singers and many bands do not want to be associated with Hollywood.  I think this contest is very different from the other ones I've written about or even seen anywhere on the Internet.  This promotion helps spread Woozyfly's website and their position in the music industry while helping musicians.  I think that this is a really positive contest because a large percentage of the judging goes to the quality of the music, this shows that the contest is about the music and not about image.  However, since I'm not familiar with Woozyfly I don't know the type of music they promote or if they have a certain image.  This could definitely restrict the type of bands that enter the contest even though all types of music are accepted.  

This promotion is relevant to my life because my boyfriend and 4 of my high school friends are in a band and I think they are really talented.  Their name is Pop Party Opera you should check them out, they have a really great sound, each member plays multiple instruments, and they write all of their songs as a group.  A promotion like this, even if they didn't win, could spread their name and music around the Internet like crazy.  People around the country could hear their music and share it with their friends and they could get a broad fan base, which could then result in something more.  This is true for all bands that enter this contest, their influence will not just touch the judges, people who visit Woozyfly will check out the contestants as well as the other bands, so it could really open up some opportunities.  I like this contest because it is more than just promoting a brand or giving away free products, a group of people are really being offered the opportunity of a lifetime.  I'm going to mention this contest to my boyfriend's band and see if they would be interested in entering because I think that it could really only result in more people hearing their music and a potential contract.