Open Mic Competition

 Format

  • Friday, September 5th from 2:00-5:00PM

    At the Main Street Park Stage next to the Lawrence County Public Library and Septemberfest Crafts Tent

    The winner of the Competition will be announced at the opening ceremonies on the Main Stage at 5:30.

  • You can perform a maximum of 4 songs. Additionally, your set cannot last more than 20 minutes.

  • Play for fun if you want to, but you can also opt to be in our competition! You will be judged by a panel with the winner gaining the opportunity to perform a short acoustic set Saturday evening on the Main Stage.

  • The application form is at the bottom of this page. We want to make sure you read all the information before you apply. After you apply you will be contacted regarding your time slot and any pertinent information. There will be a wait list for those who aren’t selected, as well as a standby list the day of the event, but there is no guarantee you will get to perform.

 Performance Information

  • You will have a maximum of 20 minutes from when your set starts. Please note: this time includes the time it takes you to set up and break down your equipment.

    You can play a maximum of 4 songs.

  • Yes! You have to check-in at least 30 minutes prior to your time slot with the coordinator next to the stage. They will direct you to a place to warm-up, if needed.

  • The only limits are no excessive profanity. Septemberfest is a family event, so make your set family friendly. The coordinator has full discretion to terminate your set at any point if you cannot abide by this one simple rule.

  • Yes! There is a Waitlist. If a performer drops out before the event date, we will go down the wait list and offer the vacated time slot to the next perfomer.

    Additionally, there will be a Standby List the day of the event that is first come, first serve on the day of the open mic. There is no guarantee you will get a chance to perform though.

  • We’re sorry you can’t make it! We were really looking forward to hearing you play. Please contact us at (email address here) to let us know you can’t make it. We hope to see you next year!

  • Yes, it is! The Waitlist is to fill spots prior to the day of the event. If you are selected from the Wait List you will be notified before the day of the event and gauranteed a time slot.

    The Standby List is used the day of the event and is purely first come, first serve in case a performer can’t make it, or we are running ahead of schedule. There is no guarantee you will get to play if you are on the standby list.

  • This is first come, first serve. You will have to check-in with the coordinator next to the stage. You can put your name down on the Standby List no sooner than 30-minutes before the first performer is scheduled to start.

    Once again, there is no guarantee you will get to perform if you are on the Standby List. Your set might also be shorter than other performers and we don’t know what time you will get to go on. We’re sorry for how vague that sounds, but we’re doing the best we can.

 Competition

  • You will be judged by a panel based on:

    Quality of Voice

    Quality of Music

    Connecting with the Crowd

  • Absolutely! Tell us the story behind the song you’re performing. Let the crowd get to know you! Some performers choose to play less than the maximum number of songs in order to tell a story and connect with the audience.

  • There are only 2 awards:
    Best Performance - Awarded to the overall Best Performer as judged by our Panel.

    Best Young Performance - This goes to the Best Performer less than 19-Years Old. *If a performer less than 19-years old wins the overall award, this award will then go to the 2nd place Young Performer.

  • The winner of overall Best Performance will have the chance to perform a 30-minute acoustic set on the Main Stage Saturday evening. So you will essentially get to kick off our Saturday concerts on the Main Stage!

  • You absolutely can! If you aren’t ready for the Main Stage there’s no pressure to perform. In this case the opportunity will go to the next place performer, but you still get to keep the title!

    We ask that you please indicate on your application form if you would accept playing on the Main Stage or not.

Open Mic Application Form

By filling out and submitting this form you acknowledge you have read the above information. If you have any questions you are free to contact us prior to submitting an application.