SpinTunes 26 Round 1 Album

We had a great time at the Round 1 Listening Party last night. If you missed it, be sure to take a listen to the Round 1 album, now available to stream or download on Bandcamp or embedded below. Our faithful graphic designer Matt Schubbe returns to provide charming cover art for the album. Thanks, Matt!

ST26 Round 1 Listening Party and Deadline News

Congratulations to everyone who has submitted to SpinTunes 26 Round 1!

This is shaping up to be a terrific tournament. Round 1 consists of forty-three forty-four* competing entries, and, as of this writing, two shadow entries. (Shadow entries are never late, so if you're still working on one, get it to me when you can!)

Your first chance to hear all 45 46* songs is at tonight's Listening Party, hosted by Tommy G at 8 pm EDT. Join us on YouTube or embedded below:

*If you're reading this in the future, a missed entry has been added to the album, but was not identified in time to be played at the Listening Party.

After the Listening Party, these songs are in the hands of the judges. Their rankings and reviews will be posted on Sunday, September 13.

With 44 competing entries, the elimination schedule will proceed as follows, barring ties on the threshold:

• Round 1:
• 44 songs compete
• 13 songs eliminated
• 31 songs move on to Round 2
• Round 2:
• 31 songs compete
• 13 songs eliminated
• 18 songs move on to Round 3
• Round 3:
• 18 songs compete
• 13 songs eliminated
• 5 songs (top 4 + 1 wild card) move on to the Final Round
• Final Round:
• 5 songs compete
• 4 songs eliminated
• 1 contestant earns the title of SpinTunes 26 Champion!

SpinTunes 26 - Meet the Contestants

Now that our Round 1 challenge has been posted, contestants are hard at work on their entries. But who are these contestants? Who will be vying for the title of SpinTunes 26? Fifty-three contestants have thrown their hats in the ring, and what a varied collection of hats they are. We have long-time contestants and first-time contestants, singers and emcees, pianists and guitarists, former champions and former judges. Read on to meet them!

ST26 Round 1 Challenge

Circle up, folks! I hope you've squared away the rest of your responsibilities, because SpinTunes 26 has begun, and it's gonna be a ball.

If you haven't signed up yet, we're keeping the form open until 11:59 EDT, so get your name in now!

Once that's taken care of, read on for your Round 1 challenge...

SpinTunes 26 - Meet the Judges and Support Staff

As the Round 1 challenge nears, you may be wondering who will be listening to the fresh batch of songs that are about to be written. I am very excited to announce the SpinTunes 26 judging panel. Read on to get to know them, then - if you haven't already - head over to the sign-up page to get your name in as a competitor!

Announcing SpinTunes 26!

Hello, everyone! Micah here, excited to announce that SpinTunes 26 will be happening August 21 to October 26, 2026.

SpinTunes is a four-round tournament for songwriters and recording artists. In each round, contestants receive a challenge prompt and have ten days to write and record a brand-new song that meets the challenge. Our panel of judges then review and rank all entries on the strength of their songwriting, performance, and production, with the highest-ranked contestants moving on to the next round. The winner of the fourth round earns the title of SpinTunes 26 Champion!

SpinTunes is an opportunity to create new songs and hone your musical skills; to receive thoughtful feedback from fellow musicians; to connect with a vibrant and supportive musical community; and to engage in some playful competition.

Below, find links to all the information about the upcoming tournament. We hope you will join us for SpinTunes 26!

• Official rules
• Full schedule
• Meet the judges
• Sign-up form

SpinTunes 26 Sign-Up Form

If you're ready to sign up for SpinTunes 26, you're in the right place! Be sure you've read the rules and consulted the schedule; then fill out the form below! If the form is not displaying properly, you can access it directly here. If you can't access it there either, please contact me by email at spintunescontest@gmail.com.

This sign-up form must be filled out by 11:59 pm EDT on Friday, August 21. (Note that the Round 1 challenge will be posted earlier in the day, at 9:00 am; since this is earlier than in past tournaments, we'll keep the sign-up deadline the same.)