Hard Rock and ReverbNation will co-host Hard Rock Rising, a far-reaching battle of the bands competition. Hard Rock Rising gives local groups a shot at stardom with an all-expenses paid trip to Barcelona, Spain to compete for the chance to perform at the first-ever Hard Rock Rising Barcelona music festival this summer!
For the fifth straight year, Hard Rock continues its commitment to aspiring musicians by holding a worldwide search for talented bands to showcase on its international stage. This year, Hard Rock and ReverbNation, a provider of tools to manage every aspect of independent musicians' careers, will host open registration for bands wishing to participate in the international battle starting on Monday, Jan. 5 through Monday, Jan. 26.
"ReverbNation and Hard Rock share the same commitment to discovering new musical talent, and we both strive to provide independent musicians with meaningful opportunities to achieve their career goals," said Mike Doernberg, CEO of ReverbNation. "The Hard Rock Rising program supports ReverbNation's Artist First mission, showcases our unique curation capability, and provides the perfect platform to offer a world-class experience to the best new artists."
With Hard Rock's brand and live music program, and ReverbNation's platform, curation capabilities and extensive community of more than 3.8 million artists in 250 countries worldwide, emerging and undiscovered talent will have the platform to catapult their music careers and expose themselves to Hard Rock's global audience.
"At Hard Rock, music is the heart and soul of everything we stand for, and we can't wait to welcome new talent to our international stages through this year's Hard Rock Rising program," said John Galloway, Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer for Hard Rock International. "Since 2010, Hard Rock Rising has been a staple of our live music program, and attracts more than 15,000 bands annually. We look forward to supporting promising artists in hopes of exposing them to new fans and opportunities to enhance their music careers."
Bands with the largest number of votes in their cities will take the stage at participating Hard Rock locations around the world for a series of live battle events. One winner will be selected from each location by a panel of local industry judges. The winning band from each location will receive a prize of $1,000 and move on to the regional phase of the competition.
Photo by Tony Landa
The Battle to Take the Stage in Barcelona
Bands can visit HardRockRising.com to register to compete in the global battle. Bands must originate from within a 100-mile radius of a Hard Rock location in order to participate. Following open registration, bands that have entered will receive a unique URL to encourage their fans to vote. Fan voting will not be limited to a specific market and fans can vote for multiple bands located in any participating city. For full rules and a list of participating locations, visit HardRockRising.com.
A panel of international music industry professionals will then review the city winners to determine regional winners. Each of the regional winners will receive an all-expenses paid trip to Barcelona, Spain to perform at Hard Rock Cafe Barcelona for the final live battle event. The overall winner will perform on the main-stage at Hard Rock Rising Barcelona!
Live in Barcelona
Hard Rock Rising Barcelona will take place on Friday, July 24 and Saturday, July 25, in Barcelona, Spain in front of 60,000 fans, featuring a lineup of international talent performing against the backdrop of the beach at El Forum. This cultural music event gives music lovers the opportunity to witness the first-ever Hard Rock Rising Barcelona music festival and enjoy some of the hottest and most recognized names in music.
