Glastonbury Festival announces emerging talent competition for 2024

Glastonbury festival announces emerging talent competition for 2024

Previous winners include N'famady Kouyaté, She Drew The Gun, RAE and Declan McKenna

January 23, 2024

By Dom Gourlay

Web Exclusive

Glastonbury festival announced its details today 2024 NEW TALENT COMPETITIONwhich is once again supported by PRS for Music and the PRS Foundation. The competition gives young acts of any musical genre based in the UK and Ireland the opportunity to compete for a place on one of the main stages at this year's festival.

Winners of the free-to-enter competition will also receive a £5,000 Talent Development Award from the PRS Foundation to help take their composition and performance to the next level. Two runners-up will also be awarded a £2,500 PRS Foundation Development Award.

Acts from any music genre can enter the 2024 ONE WEEK ONLY competition using the form at from 9 am Monday, January 29 until 5 p.m. Monday, February 5, 2024. The festival is committed to diversity and inclusion and we welcome entries from disabled artists, who we will support to ensure they are not disadvantaged by the process.

Once entries are in, a team of 30 UK music writers, including Under the Radar Festivals & Live Reviews Editor Dom Gourlay, will help curate a 90-act longlist. The longlist will then be whittled down to a shortlist of eight artists by judges including Glastonbury organizers Michael and Emily Eavis, before the live finals at Pilton decide the winning act.

Glastonbury co-organiser Emily Eavis said: “At a time when it's not always easy for actors to get their foot on the ladder, we're really happy to be able to offer this opportunity to up-and-coming artists. So many amazing acts have been showcased by the Emerging Talent Competition over the years – and, as with the festival, we welcome artists from all musical genres. I'm really excited to hear what the 2024 entries bring. It's free to enter, so it sure doesn't hurt to give it a try!”

Michelle Escoffery, Chair of the PRS Membership Council, said: “Our ongoing partnership with Glastonbury festival and our charitable arm PRS Foundation aims to discover and champion the ground-breaking homegrown talent we have in the UK and Ireland. The Emerging Talent Competition provides an exciting and unique platform for artists and bands to gain exposure to new audiences and industry leaders, as well as the opportunity to win talent development cash prizes to advance their music careers. If you've ever dreamed of performing at this iconic festival, now is the time. Submit your song and good luck!”

Joe Frankland, CEO, PRS Foundation said: “We are delighted to continue working with our friends at Glastonbury festival and PRS for Music on this fantastic opportunity for music creators to perform at the legendary Glastonbury festival, as well as receive significant funding to develop their careers. The sheer volume of talent that this competition uncovers each year is incredible – showcasing the wealth of exciting artists coming out of the UK. We look forward to seeing which talented artists apply this year.”

The winner of the 2023 competition was Guinea-born Cardiff-based musician N'famady Kouyatéwho says of his experience: “Winning the Glastonbury Emerging Talent competition was amazing and opened a lot of doors for me. It gave me and the band the opportunity to perform on an amazing stage at an incredible festival. The win also meant I could take the next steps to further my career. If you think you are ready to take the next steps, I strongly suggest you take part in this year's competition!”

Other recent finalists in the emerging talent competition include Scottish singer-songwriter Lewis McLaughlin in 2022, winner of lockdown 2020 RAE; Winner 2019 Marie White, who later signed with Decca Records and Universal Publishing. knocker Flohio who won the prestigious Music Moves Europe Talent Award in 2020. R&B singer Izzy Bizu (2016 BRITs Critics' Choice nominee and 2016 BBC Music Introducing Award winner). and singer-songwriter Declan McKenna, who won ETC 2015 and subsequently signed to Columbia and has released two hit albums. The 2017 ETC winner was a singer Josh Barry, who has since toured with Rag'n'Bone Man and Gorgon City. Meanwhile, 2016 winners She drew the gun have received much acclaim for their politically inspired psych-pop.