Official Contest Rules “Move On Up” Gospel Sing-Off Competition 2025
NO PURCHASE OR PAYMENT NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN. OPEN TO CHOIRS LOCATED IN THE STATE OF NEW JERSEY.
1. ELIGIBILITY
a) The “Move On Up” Gospel Sing Off Competition (the Contest) is open to choirs/praise teams located in the state of New Jersey. Choirs who do not meet the requirements will be disqualified and their submissions will be void. For purposes of these Official Contest Rules, individuals and teams who submit Contest entries will collectively be referred to as “Entrants”.
b) Employees and their immediate families (spouses, siblings, parents, children and their respective spouses) including household members of the Bruce Springsteen Archives & Center for American Music (BSACAM), Monmouth University, and their respective affiliates, subsidiaries, divisions and agencies are not eligible to enter.
c) This Contest is subject to all federal, state and local laws.
d) By entering this contest, each Entrant agrees to release and hold harmless Bruce Springsteen Archives & Center for American Music and Monmouth University and their respective trustees, officers, directors, employees, representatives and agents from any injury, death, loss, damage, action, claim demand or other liability that may occur from Entrant’s participation in this Contest or from the acceptance or use of any prize awarded or attendance at the event.
e) BSACAM reserves the right to verify eligibility qualifications of any winner.
f) Entrants agree to allowing their performance to be recorded and used for archival, educational, and promotional purposes.
g) Entries will be considered ineligible if, at the sole discretion of the BSACAM, they do not follow the directions described in these official rules or if they contain language or images that are in any way threatening, abusive, offensive, defamatory, invasive or another’s privacy, in breach of confidence, embarrassing to any person or likely to deceive any person, hateful, blasphemous, pornographic, or racially, ethnically or otherwise objectionable or which constitutes or encourages conduct that would be considered a criminal offense or otherwise contrary to any law or appear contrary to the spirit of the Contest.
h) By submitting an Entry, each Entrant warrants and represents that they consent to the submission and use of the entry in the Contest and to the BSACAM possibly posting information of the entry on its internet sites in connection with the Contest.
i) Choirs must have a minimum of three (3) members to participate in the Contest.
j) The Entry must adhere to the following guidelines:
· Each performing member must be active members of the choir.
· Live accompaniment is encouraged, however, only recorded instrumental tracks NOT VOCAL TRACKS, are permitted. No recorded accompaniment is permitted.
k) Choirs who have won the Move On Up Gospel Sing-Off are disqualified from entering for the following year’s contest. (one-year).
2. HOW TO ENTER
a) This Contest begins at noon 12:00 pm on February 7, 2025 and ends at 3:00 pm on March 24, 2025 (the Entry period) and consists of three (3) phases. BSACAM is not responsible for late or unsuccessful attempts to enter.
b) BSACAM reserves the right to allow for minor fluctuations between the timing of an Entry and the actual runtime of the Contest based on clear intent to comply with the Official Rules as determined by the BSACAM’s sole discretion.
c) An eligible entry must be received as described above. Incomplete entries are void. By entering, Entrants agree to the terms of these Official Rules, including all eligibility requirements.
d) The Entry will be deemed to have been submitted by the authorized account holder of the email address provided. BSACAM is not responsible for lost, stolen, mutilated, incomplete, incorrect, delayed, interrupted illegible or misdirected entries. All entries become the property of BSACAM and will not be acknowledged or returned.
e) Entrants must have been granted the right to furnish the services and use the names and likeness of all choir members.
f) Each choir Entrant must designate a representative who is a member of the choir who shall be the spokesperson on behalf of the choir and responsible for the submission of all required information and documentation.
g) By submitting an Entry, the Entrant represents and warrants that the Choir Entrant representative has obtained permission from each person whose name, images, likeness or voice is included in the Entry and that such persons has granted the Entrant all necessary rights to use the person’s likeness as described in these rules and that the Entrant can make written copies of such permission available to the BSACAM upon request.
· PHASE 1
During the Entry period, February 7 – March 24, 2025 log on to 2025 Move On Up Event Registration and fill out the online registration form.
Next, upload an original video audition of your choir via the link on our website after completing the entry form. The video may not exceed five (5) minutes in duration.
Videos must be filmed in widescreen (no vertical video will be accepted) and the video file must not exceed 3GB.
Only one Entry per Choir will be considered. Each entry must feature Entrant only.
The Entry must not contain material that violates or infringes upon another person’s rights, including but not limited to material that violates privacy, publicity, or intellectual property rights or that constitutes copyright infringement. Without limiting the foregoing, Entry must not include any third-party trademarks, logos, insignia, location signage, photographs, artwork or sculptures.
Entrant must agree that if selected as a finalist, they will be available to perform at the Final Gospel Sing-Off competition at Pollak Theatre at Monmouth University on May 10, 2025.
· PHASE 2
A panel of unbiased, independent judges selected by the BSACAM that do not have a connection to or affiliation with any of the choirs will review all submitted auditions between and determine the six (6) choirs that will perform in the final competition. The criteria used for judging will include the following:
(1) PRESENCE
(2) TECHNICAL MERIT
(3) ORIGINALITY/BEST INTERPRETATION
These same criteria will be used by the judges to determine the winners.
BSACAM will announce the top six (6) finalists from amongst all eligible Entries received during the Entry Period on Tuesday, April 1, 2025.
· PHASE 3
The Finalists will compete live at Pollak Theatre at Monmouth University (the “Event Venue”) on May 10, 2025 at 2:00 pm EST. A panel of judges will score the Finalists in each category using the same criteria specified in Phase 2 (the “Finals”).
Performances will not exceed fifteen (15) minutes total duration and the Finals. This can be allocated to 1 song or as many as you can perform within the 15-minute timeframe. Performances exceeding fifteen (15) minutes will result in a score deduction.
Each Entrant is responsible for its own music accompaniment. BSACAM will provide a backline of keyboards, Drum set, amplification and microphones. (A specific list will be provided to all finalists.)
Finalists must be able to provide a contact person for all production related needs. This individual must be prompt in all correspondence and with the production manager and sound engineers. All production related information will be due by Friday, May 1st, 2024.
No assistance by anyone other than the choir director may be given to the choir during the performance. Any such assistance overseen by any of the judges and/or reported by 2 or more individuals and verified may be cause for automatic disqualification. This includes performers added to the group without prior notice and approval by the production manager.
3. DETERMINATION OF WINNER
Six (6) competing choirs will be judged by an independent panel of judges on the following criteria:
· PRESENCE – 30% of Score
Enthusiasm, connection to the audience, general appearance (uniformity and professional behavior)
· TECHNICAL MERIT – 40% of Score
Clarity, naturalness, purity of vowel and articulation, tone, quality, consistency, projection, vitality, rhythmic accuracy, control, evenness of vocal line and conductor’s ability to communicate to the choir.
· ORIGINALITY/BEST INTERPRETATION – 30% of Score
Dynamic style, artistry, expression and musical interpretation
The voting process will be conducted by a panel of Judges and scores will be tallied by an independent, impartial CPA under the supervision of the BSACAM. The judges shall choose the Winners in their sole discretion whose decision is final and binding.
The Finalists with the most cumulative votes in each category will be selected as the Winner.
4. PRIZES
a) Six (6) choirs will receive the opportunity to perform live at “Move On Up” finals scheduled on May 10, 2025 at Pollak Theatre at Monmouth University in West Long Branch, NJ.
b) Winners will be selected to receive a cash prize in the amount listed as follows:
· Best Gospel Choir will receive a check for $10,000.
· 2nd Place Finalist will receive a check for $5,000.
Federal and state taxes on the prize are the sole responsibility of the winners.
· No substitution or transfer of prizes permitted except at the sole discretion of the Sponsor.
· If any Entrant is disqualified or found to be ineligible for the contest, BSACAM reserves the right to determine an alternate Finalist or Winner or not to award the prize at its sole discretion.
· Winners and awards amounts will be announced immediately following the announcement of the Winner and finalists. Provided winners have submitted the necessary paperwork (w9s, etc) award checks can be picked up the following Wednesday from the Bruce Springsteen Archives & Center for American Music on the campus of Monmouth University. Photographs will be taken at the time of the winning choir directors receiving the checks.
· Awards must be used for the intended purpose of supporting the Choirs and not for individual use.
· Winners agree to be photographed and filmed for promotional and educational usage.
5. GENERAL CONDITIONS
By submitting your registration and video to compete in the Move On Up Gospel Sing-Off Competition, you agree that if selected, your choir will perform at the Final competition on May 10, 2025 at Pollak Theatre at Monmouth University.
