2017 Emerging Talent Competition announced

30th January 2017

We’re very pleased to announce our EMERGING TALENT COMPETITION 2017, which is supported by PRS for Music and PRS Foundation. The competition gives new UK and Ireland-based acts of any musical genre the chance to compete for a slot on one of the main stages at this year’s Festival.

The winners of the free-to-enter competition will also be awarded a £5,000 Talent Development prize from PRS Foundation to help take their songwriting and performing to the next level. Two runners-up will also each be awarded a £2,500 PRS Foundation Talent Development prize.

Acts from any musical genre could enter the 2017 competition FOR ONE WEEK ONLY from 9am Monday 30th January until 5pm Monday 6th February 2017. The entry period has now closed. 

To enter, acts needed to supply a link to one original song on SoundCloud, plus a link to a video of themselves performing live (even if it’s only recorded in a bedroom).

With the entries now in, a panel of 40 of the UK’s best music writers will help compile a longlist of 120 acts. The longlist will then be whittled down to a shortlist of 8 artists by judges including Glastonbury organisers Michael and Emily Eavis, before the live finals at Pilton Working Men’s Club in April decide the winning act. For the past three years, all eight of the finalists were offered slots at that year’s Festival.

Recent Emerging Talent Competition finalists include R&B singer Izzy Bizu (a 2016 BRITs Critics’ Choice nominee and winner of the 2016 BBC Music Introducing Award) and singer-songwriter Declan McKenna, who won ETC 2015 and has subsequently signed with Columbia and been longlisted in the BBC’s Sound Of 2017 poll. Last year’s ETC winners were politically-charged Merseyside band She Drew The Gun, who have since released their critically-acclaimed debut album.

Says Glastonbury co-organiser Emily Eavis: “New music is at the very heart of what we do here at Glastonbury. The Emerging Talent Competition has become such an important way for us to find the next wave of talent from across the genres, and then help to shine a light on it. I’m really excited to hear this year’s entries.”

Paul Clements, Commercial Director, PRS for Music, comments: “I am delighted that PRS for Music is once again partnering with Glastonbury Festival for the Emerging Talent Competition – a brilliant initiative that paves the way for many artists at the beginning of their careers. We are all looking forward to seeing which new talents rise out of such a fantastic contest.”

Vanessa Reed Executive Director of PRS Foundation says: “The Emerging Talent Competition is a fantastic opportunity for talented up and coming artists to receive vital support to develop their careers and perform at the iconic Glastonbury Festival. The level of talent each year has been consistently high with recent winner Declan McKenna signing to Columbia, with international festival bookings under his belt, and last year’s winner She Drew the Gun supporting The Coral at Shepherd’s Bush Empire last month following shows in Korea last year. We’re looking forward to seeing which exciting new artists apply this year.”