The 2024 New Song Music Performance + Songwriting Competition has announced its finalists. They include the following:

Eliza Edens (Brooklyn, NY)
Paula Boggs (Seattle, WA)
RO Shapiro (Los Altos, CA)
Rai Omri (Carbondale, CO)
Admiral Radio (Columbia, SC)
Erika Lewis (Asheville, NC)
Marcus Fetch (Birmingham, AL)
Lindsay Foote (Somerville, MA)

Now in its 23th year, NewSong Music is an independent artist development organization and independent record label that aims to support performers and songwriters across all genres of music and skil levels. Their foremost goal is to identify the truly exceptional artists within the artist community and to work closely with them to develop their careers.

NewSong hosts the NewSong Contest, now in its 20th year. In addition they also have NewSong Recordings and NewSong Presents, featuring live music concerts, series and events, which als ofeatures former contest finalists and winners and label artists.

The record label features recordings from: Max Hatt + Edda Glass, Crys Matthews and Slow Runner.

Prior winners of the NewSong Contest include: Jobi Riccio, Joy Zimmerman, Alice Boyle, Kenny Cornell, Geoff Oelsner, Regan Brown, Jeff Hames, T.R. Ritchie, Hannah Hamlin, Chris Velan, Arthur Allgood, Farewell Milwaukee, Amber Rubarth.

NewSong was co-founded by Gar Ragland, a Winston-Salem native who attneded UVA and shared bills with the likes of DMB, Gov’t Mule and Aquarium Rescue Unit. Prior to founding NewSong he worked at the environmental policy think tank Resources for the Future. He relocated to Boston to study music at the New England Conservatory. While in Boston he founded NewSong. In 2005 he relocated to Gowanus, Brooklyn, NYC where he operated a music studio. In 2012 he relocated with his wife and three children to Asheville, NC where he runs Echo Mountain Recording Studios. During the pandemic he founded Citizen Vinyl, which is a presenting sponsor of NewSong Music. Ragland is also a voting member of the Recording Academy (the GRAMMYs) and serves as board chair of the Asheville Area Arts Council.