Podunk Songwriters Contest – Overview

Heads-Up

Please read through this update as we’ve made a few changes for the songwriting contest.
As always, our contest will run Nov 1 to midnight April 30.

We are asking if you could try to avoid sending in your entry during the last few days of the contest. Having the entries pile up near the end of the contest window makes it difficult for our judges who are all working people with jobs, families and other activities.

Therefore, to spread out the entries over time with less arriving near the contest deadline, we are implementing a higher entry fee ($30) for those that arrive after April 15th at midnight. If you can get your entry in prior to April 15th, Podunk and the songwriting contest volunteers will be very grateful and your early-bird fee remains at $25.

You can still send your entry in after April 15 if you need to. In such a case, please pay the $30 rate per song. Our judges will be mighty happy for your help with their workflow.

Our second announcement is to let you know that we have a new person who will be managing the Podunk Songwriting Contest.
Let’s all welcome Laurie Prentice. She replaces Myrna Riquier, and you will be sending your USPO entries to Laurie in the future. You’ll also have a new email to use for online entries starting November 1, 2024. You will find Laurie’s contact info in the appropriate places of the entry form and elsewhere.
Podunk thanks Myrna for her many years of dedicated service to the festival!

The third and final announcement you will want to know about relates to some increases in the monetary awards. The new values are: 1st place remains unchanged at $200, 2nd place is now $150, and 3rd place is now $100.

The Podunk Bluegrass Festival’s annual songwriting contest gets underway November 1. Songwriters have until midnight April 30 to enter. The top three winners will receive cash prizes and other amenities and perks.

An intangible perk for the 1st place winner includes hearing the self-penned song performed by others. Each year, in addition to the songwriting contest, the festival also hosts a band competition (sponsored by Telelfunken Elektroakustik) and these two events are somewhat entwined. Here’s how.

The top four competing bands each perform the winning song from the previous year’s songwriting contest. This performance takes place on Thursday of the festival as a mandatory part of the band competition judging.

It’s a special thrill for songwriters to hear their winning song arranged and performed by multiple bands at the festival.

Entries must be received no later than midnight April 30. To enter, submit the forms linked below along with the entry fee per song. If you are sending more than one entry, you may mail the materials together in a single package. You may place multiple entries on a single CD, and you may write a single check to cover multiple entry fees.
While email is the preferred method of entry, it is not mandatory.