Anderson .Paak
“Let the world hear your music.”
Vans, the action sports brand that aims to highlight the interconnection among fashion, art, music and street culture, recently launched this year’s edition of Vans Musicians Wanted competition—“a music platform that provides undiscovered artists a chance for their original music to be heard by a global audience.”
The project encourages aspiring musicians from all genres and backgrounds to submit demos of their original work for a chance to share the stage with Anderson .Paak, the Grammy award-winning rapper-producer known for his distinctive sound that melds hip-hop, R&B, soul and funk.
The performance, tentatively set in 2021, will be held at one of Vans’ cultural venues located in Chicago, London, as well as various pop-ups all over the world. Called House of Vans, these hubs are described as places “where imagination lets loose over concrete bowls, art installations, workshops and concert stages, inspiring every person who runs, rolls or stomps through its door.”
Submissions will be accepted until Sept. 30 on www.Vans.com/MusiciansWanted.
Bohan Phoenix
J.I.D.
The Top 5 finalists from the Asia-Pacific region will perform in a virtual concert in December, and will be guaranteed a free, one-year album distribution from Spinnup.
Meanwhile, the overall winner—in addition to the Anderson .Paak collab—will receive customized Fender gear, inclusions in Spotify and Apple Music playlists, music video produced by Universal Music Group and one-year unlimited digital distribution, also from Spinnup.
Musicians Wanted goes hand in hand with Vans “Off the Wall” campaign, which features empowering stories championing “creative expression.”
Hip-hop, in recent years, has become the de facto pop music; “a distinct language of choice for young voices forging their paths in the industry. And so, for its final chapter, “Off the Wall” will, aptly, look into the life and musical journeys of the Atlanta-based rapper J.I.D. and Chinese-born, American-raised artist Bohan Phoenix, who spits bars in English and Mandarin.
The two hip-hop artists, whose work is profoundly shaped by their respective cultural identities and experiences, will also serve as guest judges for Musicians Wanted. They will be joined in the panel by Anderson .Paak himself and London-based singer-songwriter Nilüfer Yanya. —Allan Policarpio