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MOBO UNSUNG 2024 KICKS OFF WITH EXCLUSIVE OPPORTUNITIES FROM LEADING PARTNERS, INCLUDING MARSHALL, CANVA, AND VEVO!
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31 OCTOBER 2024: MOBO UnSung, supported by Marshall & PRS Foundation, returns for 2024, offering life-changing opportunities for emerging talent to accelerate their careers. Applications are now open for the programme, which is designed to nurture, elevate, and support the next wave of music stars. The deadline for submissions is 18:00 pm on November 20, 2024, and artists can apply via the official MOBO UnSung application form.
Unlike other talent competitions, MOBO UnSung celebrates not just one winner, but a class of 10 acts, creating a dynamic community of talent.
Building on the success of the MOBO UnSung Class of 2023, which included 10 finalists who have already started making waves in the music industry, this year promises even more exciting opportunities.
The next edition, UnSung Class of 2025, will be selected and enrolled into an exciting programme that includes studio time, live performance opportunities, mentoring, legal and insurances training, marketing and promotion, grants, and networking with key players in the music industry.
Marshall returns with their invaluable, ongoing support, offering UnSung artists access to their world-class recording studio, use of Marshall’s leading products and support through its record label, alongside performance and networking opportunities.
MOBO UnSung also benefits from the ongoing support of PRS Foundation, helping to champion and nurture the next generation of musical talent.
Canva joins as a partner to provide exclusive training sessions on visual storytelling for UnSung finalists, helping them enhance their online presence. Vevo will also provide editorial and marketing support to the Top 10 finalists through their prestigious DSCVR program, designed to spotlight emerging talent on a global stage.
Further support comes from Help Musicians, who are partnering with MOBO to launch a new initiative offering financial support to artists in need, details of which will be revealed soon. BBC Music Introducing will also give finalists on-air exposure across its nationwide radio network.
As part of their journey, the UnSung Class of 2025 will participate in a special performance showcase during the MOBO Fringe Festival ahead of the 2025 MOBO Awards in Newcastle on February 18. This platform will give finalists the opportunity to perform, connect with industry leaders, and build momentum leading up to the highly-anticipated MOBO Awards ceremony.
“We’re incredibly excited to launch the 2024 edition of MOBO UnSung, a programme that continues to be a cornerstone of our mission to elevate and support the next generation of music stars. With the backing of our incredible partners, we’re proud to offer opportunities that truly make a difference in the careers of these young artists,” said Kanya King CBE, Founder & CEO of MOBO and MOBOLISE.
“The MOBO UnSung team offers an important avenue to artists at the very beginning of their journey and the Marshall Group music platforms and culture marketing teams are delighted to support MOBO UnSung for another year; as part of our mission to uplift grassroots and emerging talent. We are excited to meet the class of 2025!” – Stephen Tannett, Director of Music Platforms, Marshall Group
Entries are open now for MOBO UnSung via mobo.com/unsung and the deadline for all entries is 18:00 pm on November 20.
UnSung fans will be able to join the conversation by using #MOBOUnSung and following @mobo.unsung and @MOBOAwards on Instagram.
For more information on the MOBO UnSung Class of 2023 and the success stories of past finalists, visit here.
For media enquiries, please contact press@mobo.com & adenike@mobo.com
Notes to editors:
About MOBO Organisation
Founded in 1996 by Kanya King CBE, MOBO has been a leading platform for over 25 years, promoting diversity, equality, and creativity within the entertainment industries. Operating year-round, MOBO produces a wide range of events, content, partnerships, and opportunities for emerging talent across music and beyond. The MOBO Awards remains one of the most significant cultural events in the music industry, celebrating artistic excellence across a variety of genres, including Hip-Hop, Grime, R&B, Soul, Reggae, Jazz, Gospel, Electronic/Dance, Alternative, and more. For nearly three decades, the iconic Awards have been at the forefront of recognising outstanding British and international talent. MOBO is driven by its commitment to cause, culture, creativity, and community. Through its global initiatives, MOBO offers unmatched opportunities for talent development via the MOBO Awards, cultivates rising stars through MOBO UnSung, and supports career pathways across creative and tech industries with MOBOLISE, a platform dedicated to empowering diverse talent and driving transformation in the workplace.
About Marshall Amplification
Marshall Amplification has a vibrant and dynamic history within the music industry and is celebrated by some of the greatest artists in the world. Catapulted from humble beginnings in Hanwell, London, Marshall is now a global brand achieving manufacturing excellence. Creativity and innovation are at the heart of the business and every product they create. With over 55 years of music experience, Marshall continues to push the boundaries of possibility for the musicians of the future.
About PRS Foundation
Since its creation in 2000, PRS Foundation has given more than £47 million in impactful and timely grants to over 8,500 new music initiatives. 9 out of the 12 Mercury Prize 2022 nominees had received this vital PRS Foundation grant support (including the winner Little Simz) and many supported music creators have gone on to progress their careers to become BRITS, RPS, AIM and Ivors Award-winners and critically acclaimed composers and songwriters in their respective genres. Widely respected as an inclusive, collaborative and proactive funding body, PRS Foundation supports an exceptional range of new music activity through direct grants to music creators and through support for pioneering organisations, including venues, festivals, promoters and other talent development organisations.
About Canva
Launched in 2013, Canva is a free online visual communications and collaboration platform with a mission to empower everyone in the world to design. Featuring a simple drag-and-drop user interface and a vast range of templates ranging from presentations, documents, websites, social media graphics, posters, apparel to videos, plus a huge library of fonts, stock photography, illustrations, video footage, and audio clips, anyone can take an idea and create something beautiful.
About Help Musicians
Help Musicians and sister charity Music Minds Matter are powered by music, which is why they empower and support those who create it and make it happen.For over 100 years, Help Musicians has been working hard to make a meaningful difference to the lives of musicians across the UK. In a precarious profession often filled with ups and downs, opportunities are hard-won whilst challenges come along all too easily, with unsteady income and physical and mental health concerns common issues. Help Musicians offers a broad range of help to support music creators in times of crisis and opportunity - ensuring musicians across the UK can achieve their creative potential and sustain a career in music. Sister charity, Music Minds Matter, puts mental wellbeing centre stage in music. It works proactively to help prevent mental health crises, providing everybody who works in music with the early support, knowledge and tools they need, at exactly the time they need them. Our charities are funded entirely by music lovers. If you love music, join us to support all who make it possible. Donate today: www.helpmusicians.org.uk
About Vevo
Vevo is the world's leading music video network, connecting an ever-growing global audience to high quality music video content for more than a decade. Founded by Universal Music Group and Sony Music Entertainment in 2009, Vevo offers fans worldwide a vast array of premium content to choose from, showcasing official music videos alongside a constantly developing lineup of live performances and innovative original programming. From top superstars to rising new talents, Vevo brings incomparable cross-promotional support to artists across the musical spectrum, at every stage of their careers. Vevo has consistently evolved over the past decade to lead within today's ever-changing media landscape, embracing partnerships with a number of leading distribution platforms to deliver extraordinary content within ad-supported environments. With more than 25B views across television, desktop and mobile devices each month, Vevo brings music videos to the world – when, where, and how fans want them. Vevo is available on YouTube, Samsung, Samsung TV Plus, Roku, Pluto TV, Amazon Fire TV, Amazon Freevee, Apple TV, Comcast (Xfinity X1 and Xfinity Flex), VIZIO (Smartcast + WatchFree+), Sky (NOW and SkyQ), Virgin Media, Xumo Play, Telstra, Foxtel, Fetch, Rogers, Shaw, Google TV, Plex, Hulu + Live TV, Sling Freestream, TCL TV+, Telly, VIDAA Hisense, Philo, Rakuten TV, Whale TV, and Telus.
About BBC Introducing
BBC Music Introducing supports unsigned, undiscovered and under the radar musical talent across the UK. There’s over 1,000,000 tracks uploaded to the BBC Music Introducing uploader and over 300,000 artists registered. BBC Introducing provides a platform to propel new acts onto the national stage through Radio 1, 1Xtra, Radio 2, 6 Music, the Asian Network and Radio 3. It gives up-and-coming artists broadcast opportunities on BBC radio, television and online alongside the chance to perform at major festivals and showcases. Big name artists including Ed Sheeran, Florence + the Machine, Lewis Capaldi, Raye, Sam Fender, Aitch, Nia Archives and Tom Grennan all received BBC Music Introducing support at the start of their careers. BBC Introducing offers new musicians the chance to get played on national day-time radio, to record their own Maida Vale sessions and perform at the biggest festivals in the UK and internationally, including Glastonbury, Latitude, Reading and Leeds, The Great Escape, and SXSW in Texas.
Website: www.mobo.com
TikTok: @moboofficial
Twitter: @MOBOAwards
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Instagram: @moboawards
Instagram: @mobo.unsung
