Your guide to the free Songwriters @ The Rocks gigs this month

Songwriters @ The Rocks is an original songwriting competition that’s set to use the picturesque area of The Rocks Landscape as its stage for new artists who are keen to take their chance to show Sydney their musical chops.

The competition aims to promote upcoming singer-songwriters with a truly unique opportunity to show off their talent and gain industry and public exposure as part of Sydney Solstice, Sydney’s favourite winter festival that celebrates food and drink, art, entertainment and culture.

The event kicked off on May 25 and runs until June 20 and will feature over 40 showcase performances across six locations in The Rocks.

The once-in-a-lifetime comp for budding songwriters will culminate with Forty small-scale free performances showcasing contestants within a variety of settings across The Rocks, taking place over two consecutive days: Friday 18 and Saturday 19 June, 2021. Plus a free live outdoor concert final at First Fleet Park where finalists will perform alongside iconic Australian musical talents like Phil Jamieson, Boo Seeka and Tia Gostelow.

Not only will finalists battle it out while landing some major exposure during one of Sydney’s biggest culture festivals, but the winner will also nab a bunch of music-related prizes for their solid effort (a share of prizes up to the value of $15,000).

The Sydney Solstice festival showcases the best of Sydney’s hospitality, music, arts and culture within four precincts across the city in June while bringing together Sydney’s best venues, chefs, artists and musicians, so you’ll be sure to find something you’ll love.

Sydney Solstice takes locals and visitors from urban laneways to city landmarks, inside hidden bars to glittering harbourside locations.

Honestly, what’s not to love about that?!

Basically, to sum all this up, Songwriters @ The Rocks will feature:

Online Songwriters competition: Running for a two week period, from May 25 – June 7 (10am), 2021 – entries have now closed
Judging: Featuring a range of industry professionals
Songwriters @The Rocks showcases: Forty small-scale performances showcasing contestants within a variety of settings across The Rocks, taking place over two consecutive days: Friday 18 and Saturday 19 June, 2021.
Songwriters @ The Rocks Finale: A one-day event on Sunday, June 20, 2021 (running from 1-4 pm) at First Fleet Park. A music stage will feature the top four finalists (as determined through the showcase performances) performing two songs each. They will be judged by a team of four industry professionals and share the stage with some of Australia’s most successful musicians.

The four industry judges are: