Tonight sees the launch of the fourth Billy Kelly Songwriting Award at Oran Mor, Glasgow, in association with The Skinny. It all kicks off as a free Acoustic Session/Open Mic night at 8pm and is hosted by Tommy Reilly where you can pick up information and application forms for entering the 2012 event.
All unsigned songwriters, regardless of whether they are solo performers or in bands are invited to take part with a prize worth £5000 up for grabs.
The award organised and overseen by Jamie Webster, bookings manager at Oran Mor commented that:
“The basic idea of the process is we help the act get it together and help them get a record out, then we get them on tour and get them in the press. We give them a good start, its not a like a five year process, they get a year of our time to help them shape their careers and get them in the right places. But after the course of that record, it’s back over to them to use that help in a positive way. It’s important to stress that this is less a competition and more an award. It’s simply breaking the song down. We look at the lyrics and the song’s arrangement and often give credit just for ideas and the musicianship”.
Four heats will take place in July and August. Each act will be required to perform a set of three original songs. Then the panel of judges will select one winner from each heat, who will be guaranteed a place in November’s final. Each heat runner-up will still have a chance to make it through. They will be invited to take part in a semi-final, along with two ‘wild cards’ chosen by the judges.
“We try to get as big a variety of acts as we can. We do get a lot of acoustic singer-songwriters, so we try our best to encourage people from others genres. No one should be put off by it” says Webster.