Four acts will receive return flights to Dubai, three nights accommodation, radio and press opportunities and more
(Image credit: Lowden Guitars)
If you’re a budding UK-based artist looking to take your musical journey to the next level, we might have just found the opportunity for you.
Lowden Guitars – the acoustic guitar company which supplies the mighty Ed Sheeran – has just launched Take the Stage, a new competition which seeks to find four aspiring music acts to perform at the world-renowned Expo Dubai 2020 on the UK’s National Day on February 10, 2022.
A six-month-long celebration of humanity’s creativity, culture, resilience and innovation, Expo Dubai 2020 sees over 190 nations take part, and has attracted millions of visitors since its grand opening on October 1, 2021. The UK’s National Day will also see appearances from a host of musicians, entertainers and innovators from across the commonwealth. Needless to say, this represents a fantastic opportunity to gain some exposure and do some serious networking.
Four artists will be selected to perform at the event, and they will all receive return flights to Dubai and transfers whilst there, accommodation for three nights (February 8, 9 and 10, 2022) food expenses, an onsite sound engineer, lighting engineer and production technician for their shows, in addition to radio and press opportunities, a full festival backstage experience and more.
These four acts will then compete for first place on February 10, and the winner will get the opportunity to curate and create their very own bespoke, handmade Lowden Guitar alongside the company’s founder and luthier, George Lowden.
(Image credit: Lowden Guitars)
Entry to the competition is totally free; all you need to do is submit a 30-second video clip of yourself/your band performing, and fill out a short entry form at the Take the Stage website. Your video will be judged on technical ability, presence and performance, creativity and uniqueness, song choice and suitability, and whether you’d be a suitable act to sign, book, play with or support. So choose your song wisely and give it all you’ve got.
“Through Lowden’s Take the Stage competition, supported by the UK Department for International Trade, we want to support and showcase some of the most promising up-and-coming talent from across Britain,” says Lowden Guitars Managing Director David Ausdahl.
“Our judging panel – comprising a lineup of UK industry leaders – will choose four regional winners who will get the chance to take home a Sheeran by Lowden guitar and represent each nation within the UK onstage in Dubai.”
“The overall winner will also have the opportunity to work with George Lowden and our team to spec their very own custom Lowden guitar. This is a priceless prize which we feel will be a highlight of an emerging musician’s career.”
Adds George Lowden: “Sheeran by Lowden, Lowden’s collaborative brand with Ed Sheeran, was inspired by the shared goals of Ed Sheeran and myself to encourage the next generation of guitarists with a quality guitar to grow their talent. We know first-hand the difference a quality guitar makes in the hands of a player at any level and are pleased to give four up and coming musicians the unique opportunity to win a quality Lowden guitar.”
For more information on the competition, and to enter, head to Take the Stage.
Sam was Staff Writer at GuitarWorld.com from 2019 to 2023, and also created content for Total Guitar, Guitarist and Guitar Player. He has well over 15 years of guitar playing under his belt, as well as a degree in Music Technology (Mixing and Mastering). He's a metalhead through and through, but has a thorough appreciation for all genres of music. In his spare time, Sam creates point-of-view guitar lesson videos on YouTube under the name Sightline Guitar.
