It’s time for the 21st Annual Cincy Blues Challenge that will take place on Sunday, June 7, 2020 at Germania Park in Colerain, Ohio. Applications must be received by April 15th to be eligible.
The Blues Challenge will feature competitors in both the Band and Solo / Duo categories. The winner of each category will be entered as representatives of the Cincy Blues Society at the International Blues Challenge (IBC) in 2021 in Memphis. Information at https://blues.org/international-blues-challenge/ tells about the advantages of competing and doing well at the IBC.
The first-place winner of the Cincy Blues Challenge in the Band category will represents the Cincy Blues Society in Memphis will receive a $1,000 stipend to help pay travel costs. The first-place winner of the Cincy Blues Challenge in the Solo / Duo category that represents the Cincy Blues Society in Memphis will receive a $300 stipend to help pay travel costs. If for some reason the first-place band or solo/duo winner(s) can’t represent us in Memphis, the honor will fall to the second-place winner(s).
The first-place winners in the Band category, and the first-place winner of the Solo / Duo category, will also be invited to play at the 2020 Cincy Blues Fest – to be held July 18, 2020 at Schmidlapp Event Lawn at Smale Riverfront Park. Several of the top bands from the Challenge will be asked to play at our Fall Blues Experience event in September but as of this date, we don’t know how many acts can be scheduled.
To enter the competition go to https://cincyblues.org/challenge/ and click on “Application” to download an application to fill out. Once completed, it can be emailed to challenge@cincyblues.org or mailed to Cincy Blues Society 1623 Dalton Avenue 141080 Cincinnati, OH 45250.
The entry fee for a band is $50 and $30 for a solo/duo act. Payment must be received by April 15 by mail or paid via our web site (also located under “Application” on the Blues Challenge page). We can not accommodate anyone dropping off an entry at any location.
Before entering, please read the eligibility requirements and the competition rules – go to the “Rules” section on the Cincy Blues Challenge page. It explains the competition in detail and should answer most of your questions.
