As technology has progressed, music making has become paradoxically more accessible and more intimidating. Every few years there seems to be a new production program that promises to become every veteran or nascent artist’s new favorite toy, but too often they’re either limited in scope or so intricately complex that creatives looking to break into music get scared away. That’s where Open Labs’ Stagelight comes in.
Stagelight is a free, intuitive app that works on most Android devices and PCs. With its easy to use digital instruments and a full library of loops — both expandable with in-app purchases — Stagelight is a tool that feels right in the hands of an old pro as well as a beginner.
To show just how far a creator can go with their powerful app, Open Labs has teamed with Intel, Linkin Park, and Lenovo for their second Stagelight Monthly Music Contest. From now through March 2017, music makers will be able to upload their original songs to Stagelight’s webpage; each month will feature a different rotating theme (rock, electronic, hip-hop, and a wild card month), and users can upload multiple songs.
At the end of every month, the top 10 submissions will be selected based on user votes and a panel of judges. The monthly winner will receive a sick collection of music-making gear: a Lenovo Ideacentre Y900 series computer, a ThinkVision P27 27-inch Wide UHD IPS Monitor, a Blue Microphones Yeti Pro, a set of Blue Headphones Mofi, and a Linkin Park Underground 15 Super Bundle featuring archived and exclusive merchandise.
While there are also prizes for second place and runner-ups — plus weekly winners just for voting — the really goal is the Grand Prize. After the final month, a panel including members of Linkin Park will review all the First Prize winners from the year and select one of them to join the band for an in-studio mentoring session. What’s more, they’ll also snag a Lenovo Yoga Home 900 and a Yamaha reface CS keyboard.
This is a chance for serious artists, whether they’re fresh to the craft or have perfected it over many years, to receive a massive boost in the career. Not only will all that new tech help you realize your creative dreams, but the oppurtunity to work with a Grammy-winning band like Linkin Park is a once-in-a-lifetime learning experience. For more details on how the contest works, head here; to enter, you can download the Stagelight app to start creating or record your own mp3 or .wav file, and then submit here.
