It is sometimes easier to know if you shouldn't join something than if you should. So we've gone ahead and identified the personality traits of people who shouldn't join OurStage (even though it's free to join and free to compete). To help you decide if you're one of them, we've listed those traits.

Personality Traits of a Non-Member
1. Doesn't like cool music and videos
2. Has never had an opinion
3. Has never shared an opinion
4. Is a hermit who doesn't like meeting cool people online who have similar tastes
5. Fears revolutionary concepts that will turn the traditional media/entertainment world upside-down.
6. Never tries new things

So if the above applies to you, sorry. If not, welcome. We love you.

It's easy! Just go to the Music Stage, and click on the type of music you like. You'll see top ranked songs right there on the page, so you can start listening to the best right away. The player will play the next song in the channel automatically.

OurStage was started and funded by enthusiasts and angel investors who are really passionate about one thing: bringing true democracy to entertainment. Our aim is to make sure that artists gets a fair shot... and that fans can find emerging artists they'll love.

A while back, this guy (that would be Ben, our CEO), was surfing the Web and shaking his head in disgust. He couldn't believe how hard it was to find anything he liked. You see, Ben is a passionate music and film fanatic, who doesn't just sit idle when there is a problem he can solve.

So Ben went out, got some cash, found other cool people with skills different from his own, and said: Let's make a company where the fans have a voice in ranking content from emerging music and video artists! So that's why we created OurStage. Our mission is to provide a platform for artists to showcase their talent and advance their careers, while the fans discover great artists and have a voice in determining the stars of tomorrow. Join us and make some history!

As an artist, your first step is to upload your music or video and decide which channel competition to enter. Then, fans judge the work side by side with the work of others. Our unique judging capability (called Peer Relative Ranking, but don't worry about that) makes sure that each piece is judged fairly by the real audience- with no rigging, no cheating, and no celebrity judges. At the end of each month, the top 20 and the top 10 in each channel go head-to-head in a special judging channel to determine the winner of that channel, and then a site-wide judging contest to determine our Grand Prize winner. For more information about that, see the Judging section below! As a fan, all you have to do is listen to some great music and give feedback about just how great you think it is. Find your favorite artists and follow them as they grow!

OurStage's loyal Artist Relations Guy, Daniel Palmer, wrote a great blog entry about the values of the OurStage community and what it means to be a part of the best site for independent music on the internet. Check it out.

OurStage is a brand new and exciting way for you to succeed as an artist. Our site is designed to leverage the power of the Internet to connect fans to emerging artists. You get exposure to new fans through our ranking and judging system. You can track fans with a fan club and comments. There is a monthly cash prize of $100 for the top entry in each channel and a $5,000 grand prize for music. We also offer a $1,000 grand prize for video. You may also get additional exposure and prizes through our partners, such as NEMO, CMJ, Noise Pop, PASTE, the DV Show and many others. See Prizes for more details.

Our hardworking, fan-loving, music-listening EJs have made a few short movies to help tell you about some of the great features on OurStage. Anywhere where you see the icon on this page, you can click to watch a special movie starring EJ Julie Pham or EJ Quinn Strassel to go into more detail about that part of the site.

The ranking or judging is done via two patent pending algorithms that serve up top ranking, middle ranking and relatively new uploaded material in a channel in "somewhat" random fashion for someone to judge.

When we say somewhat, we mean that we take care of serving up the material in a fair and unbiased fashion. We are watching very carefully to make sure that each item in the channel gets equal exposure--we guarantee that. Whether that happens in a particular judging session, though, is another matter.

Depending on how much our users like something (rank it favorably), and how long they want to keep on ranking, the ranking engine will try to get the user to discriminate how much more an item is liked over other ranked items, and thus, the reason why users may see what appears to them as the same item coming up during several battles.

Our site users who judge cannot request what material they will be served to judge. During judging they have to view or play the material served, and at a minimum, they have to screen an item for 15 seconds each before they can rank one item over another.

Then, all of the rankings from all of the users are taken together and the ranking engine bubbles up the best items to the top!

Field Representative for OurStage.com

Independent internet music and film site OurStage, Inc. seeks passionate music fans to become OurStage.com Field Reps to find and promote talented artists and introduce them to our ever growing user base.

OurStage.com promotes emerging music talent through a 100% democratic fan voting system. We are actively recruiting avid music lovers and tastemakers to become a presence on the OurStage site and help us find the next big thing in music. We also provide you with a highly trafficked, industry embraced Web presence to share your thoughts, opinions, and passion for music with the world. Your goal will be to reach out to new bands and musicians and get them to join the OurStage community by entering our monthly competitions.

Requirements -

1. You are passionate about a specific genre of music with an established network of artists to contact. We are currently recruiting for indie, alt. rock, hip-hop, acoustic, rock and more. For a complete listing, please see the channel listing at www.ourstage.commusic
2. Experience with networking, producing content for the web, and interacting with musicians a must. Our experience has shown us that being a connector is a key factor in success.
3. Familiarity with online music sites, comfortable with a computer, and solid writing and editing skills a must.
4. Additional experience in sourcing talent, A&R, or other fields related to music highly desired.

Compensation:

Guaranteed monthly compensation for hitting a minimum performance benchmark with substantial bonuses for hitting additional benchmarks, as well as exceptional performance. For more details, please contact Brian at fieldreps@ourstage.com. Please include a cover letter and resume in RTF, DOC, or PDF format.

Please note,
We are serious and passionate about what we do. You should be too.

Good news! We made this site for you as much as we made it for our artists. We have a list of 10 Things Every Fan Can Do that's simply a must read. Check it out!

Relax. We made a list for you too!

OurStage is the only fair, un-gamed, fan-driven, endearingly Darwinian music & video judging site on the Web. Not to mention:

* OurStage is free to join, free to compete in and free to participate in at all levels Our competitions fit and welcome all genres of music & film if we don't have it, we'll add it

* Your art remains yours, forever we demand no rightswe just ask permission to post/display your work on our site when agreed to our Terms & Conditions

* There's no sharing, sending, giving or stealing of your property. If you want to sell your work, that's your business

* 5. Your art remains yours, forever we demand no ownership.

Read what some our artists and members have to say about us. They're far more eloquent than we can ever be.

The competitions are monthly, so you have a new opportunity to win every month. You upload your work and enter contests. Our contests have four stages: Regular judging, the quarter-finals, the semi-finals, and the finals, which decide the two Grand Prize winners. Regular judging takes place from the first of the month until seven days before the month ends. Judging goes on between every piece in every channel during this time period.

Step 1: Click on the word Judge in our navigation bar.

Step 2: Pick the stage and channel you want to judge. We have a Music and Video stage, each with different channels. You can pick one of our monthly channel competitions such as Rock, Hip Hop, Country, or select a special promotional channel where artists are competing for specific festival slots, or other specific channel prizes.

Step 3: You'll be shown two items, chosen by our all-intelligent software that guarantees every artist receives an equal number of views throughout the month long competition. Listen or watch both items for at least 15 seconds. Then decide which one you like better and by how much. Your ranking is registered along with all the other votes and is used to compile our near real-time charting.

Step 4: Repeat Step 3 or go to Step 2 and change your Stage or Channel

Step 5: Set an alarm clock to remind you to stop and eat. This gets addicting!

Most contests are decided by a select panel of expert judges, or by whoever executes the most effective get out the vote campaign to the largest established fan base.

But we ask:

Why should the subjective viewpoints of a select minority be the final arbiters of what is good?

What about a brand new talent that's just growing a fan base?

Not sure how to answer? Let us help.

There is no effective way for a small, select group of judges to rank all the content on the Internet. It's simply not possible. Enter OurStage.com. We solve the content filtering problem in two unique ways:

1. Our fans of music and video act as the collective community of judges. Our combined forces provide the bandwidth needed to tackle the mass of content out there to rank.

2. OurStage.com gives everyone an equal shot to be heard, seen and ranked.

3. Artists no longer have to engage in futile get out the vote campaigns to win a contestjust upload your best, let the fans decide and give yourself a chance at career making opportunities.

If one could choose the artist to be judged then one could repeatedly judge that artist higher and higher in the rankings and unfairly influence the outcome. We believe it's critically important that the OurStage rankings reflect the true wisdom of the community by being free of gaming. It is one of the most unique things about our site differentiating us from the scores of other sites that are unable to separate quality from the noise. So on OurStage the artists in each channel are presented at random - to prevent gaming, and to give every artist a fair shot to be compared to every other artist. We know it's different and we know it asks more of our community to do it this way but we believe the results are worth it. Thank you for being a part of our unique community.

As a collective taste-making community of both fan and artist, we value honesty and involvement above all else.

Honestylisten and watch music and video. Compare one item with another in a battle and be honest about how you feel. Our system randomizes all entries, meaning that fans have no way of knowing or controlling who they will get to judge. This keeps OurStage from becoming a crappy little monthly dustup, instead of the film & music discovery venue that it is, where great artists get a stab at fame without having to kiss the A** of people they'd rather just do deals with.

Involvementwe need you to be a part of the fan rebellion taking place on OurStage. Judge fairly and often. Make sure your profile reflects your unique brand of hipness. Don't forget to include a picture and bio too. People like to know who they're dealing withor at least, who they think they're dealing with. Join fan clubs, make play lists, promote the artists you like to your friends and family. To be active means to be a part of the entertainment revolution taking place at OurStage.

We must admit this is a pretty popular question. After all, they're your fans, why shouldn't they vote just for you? That's because OurStage is like no other stage for emerging artists and their fans.

1. We're not a popularity contest. We're a collective taste-making community of passionate fans of music and video. We exist to allow fans the chance to judge ALL content from ALL artists fairly. Let go of old ideals and values. Share your fans with us and other artists will share their fans with you. See, it's cooperative like that.

2. Tell your fans if they care about your music or video and about independent art everywhere the righteous thing to do is check out and judge all uploads in your genre, rather than looking only for your tune and trying to vote it up the rankings.

3. This is a site devoted to passionate fans of music and video. There is no better place for fans to introduce you to other potential fans than here. It's what everyone is here to do. Encourage your fans to use OurStage to discover new artists. It doesn't mean they won't still love you. Ask them to be active in our community and participate in our battles so that artists everywhere can break free of the industry constraints that are partially responsible for keeping your talent hidden. You want to give it back to the man. Here's your chance.

To decide our Channel Winners and Grand Prize Winner, we have four stages of judging. We feel this is the best way to award our prizes, because it's completely uncheatable and gives every artist a completely equal shot.

Quarter-Finals
One week before the end of the month, OurStage moves into the quarter-finals. (Check out our site countdown clock to exactly when we go into Quarter-Finals.) During this stage, the Top 20 entries in every channel at 12AM EST are locked in, and judging continues on just these twenty items. This way, fans on OurStage and can concentrate on helping decide which music and video is the best of the best.

Semi-Finals
After four days of quarter-finals, the Top 10 lock in at 12AM EST to set the stage for the semi-finals. During semi-finals, judging continues on just the Top 10 items to determine which item of those is the best in the channel. After two days of semi-finals, the Number Ones in each channel are locked in, and the finals begin.

Finals
In these final twenty-four hours of judging, fans of all the genres rise to judge for their favorite pieces on OurStage. At 12AM EST on the last day of the month, the #1 item in Music and the #1 in Video are our Grand Prize winners!

The cut off for every stage of our Finals Week is 12 AM EST (Check our countdown clock). But because of heavy battling during finals week, it can take up to 20 minutes for all votes to tally and the system to refresh with the FINAL standings. We suggest you look at the rankings at 12:30 AM EST to verify your official channel rank.

To help prevent people from unfairly doing thousands of battles thinking they can cheat their way to the Number One spot in their channel and on OurStage as a whole, we limit people to only doing just one set of battles in each of the final stages of the month. This means you can do 190 battles per channel in the quarter-finals, and 45 battles per channel on OurStage during semi-finals. You will be able to do different numbers of battles in the Music and Video stages of the site during finals, because they have a different number of channels. Rest assured that this way, we guarantee that every item in a channel receives equal exposure and the same number of chances to be judged favorably as every other piece.

Normally, OurStage never limits how many battles you can do or how long you judge for, but we decided to set a limit in the interest of keeping this competition fair to all artists and fans.

You don't have to win the grand prize to feel like you've won on OurStage. Here are five reasons why just competing in our month long competitions makes you a winner:

1. OurStage is the ultimate music discovery destination for fans. Even if you don't win, there is no better way for you to discover new fans here for sole purpose of discovering new artists.

2. Prizes aren't always awarded to our channel winners. Often the rules state that high-ranking artists are the ones considered for different opportunities.

3. We are changing the game for artists everywhere. And the industry is taking notice, sourcing talent from our pool of fan-ranked talent. If you don't participate in our channels contests, we can't help you as much.

4. OurStage is free to join, free to compete in and free to participate in at all levels

There are more fans judging on the site than people who make the art being judged. Imagine if it were the other way around? Ugh! And our computer smarts are really smart. Artists can't game the system by voting down opponents. We hope and encourage everyone to be honest. But for those who choose to be counter to the counter-culture of OurStage, you are statistically irrelevant to the collective powers that be. Enough said.

The percentages you see at the top when judging are a reflection of which track you selected as your favorite, and by how much you favored that item, as compared to other site users.

Sometimes the numbers may appear a little strange if one of the items in that battle was uploaded very recently - So don't worry if you feel like you were in too small a minority in your decision.

For the same reasons a political candidate can vote for themselves. It's part of what makes a democracy great. You might even judge one of your songs against another of your songs. You might like them both the same. Then again, you might not.

There could be a couple a reasons for a swing up or drop down in the rankings.

Start of a new month
Our competitions run monthly. At the start of each month we archive the previous month's rankings and begin anew with a clean-slate for all. Everything in a channel at the start of a month therefore has a rank of zero. But we have to assign a rank to everything to start the competition so that the battling can commence. The initial sequencing (which isn't fan-driven) may result in significant changes in the rankings in the initial days of battling as we sort it all out.

Heavy Battling
Even during later stages of the monthly competition, ranking swings can still take place depending on the intensity of battling in a channel. So a number 20 can become a number 150 same as a 200 can become an 18. It's all based on taste and fan rankings.

Depending on the intensity of battling, the rankings can change instantly. However, it can take up to 20 minutes for the rankings to refresh. So keep coming back, keep checking, and keep judging and judge all content fairly. That's your job!

That's why we are a collective taste-making community. It's just not all about you. Your opinion matters same as everyone else's. So you might not like the collective opinion, but the majority does. Help us by continuing to spread the word about what we're doing and why we're different and cool. Judge fairly and judge often. The more people are judging the more the majority's opinion is represented. And if you're a genre expert, all the more reason to apply your expertise to the collective rankings.

OurStage is the only democratic competition where the fans decide who's best in emerging entertainment. That means fans have the real voice - because our patent-pending judging system eliminates cheaters. Artists get a fair shot. The bottom line is, if you're really the best, the fans will drive you to the top.

OurStage is a brand new and exciting way for you to succeed as an artist. Our site is designed to leverage the power of the Internet to connect fans to emerging artists. You get exposure to new fans through our ranking and judging system. You can track fans with a fan club and comments. There is a monthly cash prize of $100 for the top entry in each channel and a $5,000 grand prize for music and a $1,000 prize for video. You may also get additional exposure and prizes through our partners, such as NEMO, CMJ, Noisepop, Paste, the DV Show and many others. See Awards for more details.

You should only submit your work once. Once it's uploaded, you can enter it into one competition per month.

Click on the "Upload" link on the top of our home page to upload the items you want to submit. You'll be asked for some additional information to become a contributor. After the upload is complete, select the channels and months you want to compete in. That's all it takes! You should try to select the channel or channels that best fit your item- if it is in inappropriate channels, your viewers might complain that it is off topic and it may be removed.

Yes! We welcome submissions and fans from anywhere in the world.

We ask for some identifying information to make sure we can reach you if you win. This information is kept in the strictest confidence; see our privacy policy for details.

Yes, when you submit your work, you keep the full rights. You are giving OurStage non-exclusive rights to display and play your work. See all of the details on licensing on the terms & conditions page.

There are occasions where there is a short lag time between submission and availability. Fear not, our servers are plugging away 24/7 to make sure all work gets posted.

Proprietary Rights Complaint Process and Notification Form

If you are a trademark or copyright owner and you believe that your rights have been violated in any way, please complete and submit a signed copy of the form below, and send to our designated agent via mail at OurStage Inc., Attn: DMCA Agent Paula Schmitz, 519 CR 455, Thorndale, Texas 76577. Our agent information is provided pursuant to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C. 512(2).

Upon receipt of a fully completed and signed notification form, we will disable access to the allegedly infringing materials and will promptly notify the individual who posted the materials that access has been disabled as is our obligation under the Copyright Act.
If your notification is unsigned or is not on our form and does not contain the authorization language of our form, we will work with you to obtain a properly executed notification. If any of the other information is missing from your notification, however, we will not be able to respond to your request. Pursuant to 17 U.S.C. 512(g)(2), the individual who posted the materials may provide us with counter-notification that the materials were removed or disabled as the result of a mistake or misidentification of the materials. This counter-notification must (1) be signed, (2) include the individual's name, address and telephone number, (3) include a statement that the individual is making the counter-notification under penalty of perjury, and (4) state that the person consents to the jurisdiction of the federal district court where his or her address is located. If we receive such a counter-notification, and we determine that we would like to restore access to the materials, a copy will be sent to you notifying you that access to the materials will be restored within ten business days. Access will be restored between the tenth and fourteenth business day after we receive a counter-notification unless you inform us that you have filed an action seeking a court order to restrain the individual who made the posting from engaging in infringing activity on our network and servers. If we determine that we do not want to restore access to the materials, you will not receive any further notification.

You can access the Notification Form here.

No way! OurStage is a place for emerging artists, so don't rip off anyone else's work. If you do place copyright infringing material on the site, you'll most likely get the hook. Our Community Team has the power to point out and kick off people who don't play by the rules.

Here are some basic definitions of what our channels are like. This isn't meant to be comprehensive or too limiting, because it's art after all. It often defies being put into a box and given a name. But here are some guidelines to help you place your work. If the OurStage support team receives too many complaints about your work being in the wrong category, you may be asked to re-categorize your work. We've also provided examples of some songs typical of the genre from both mainstream acts and OurStage. NOTE: Some songs may fit multiple categories. The OurStage community will flag a song if a better fit channel exists. Your entry may be moved to that channel as a result.

The Acoustic channel is for songs of any genre that feature acoustic instrumentation and arrangements that focus on and feature acoustic instrument performances.

OurStage Examples of Acoustic:
Tim Naylor - Tastefully Graceful Check In The Dark - Complicated Lullaby

The Americana/Alternative Country channel is for artists that have their roots in traditional country music while incorporating instruments, lyrical themes, and production from other genres.

Classic: Flying Burrito Brothers, The Byrds, Gram Parsons
Modern: Gillian Welch, Ryan Adams, Wilco

OurStage Examples of Americana/Alt. Country:
The Foreign Cinema - Hazy Autumn Days Stephanie Raymond - Dance of a Lonely Man

The Country channel is for honky-tonk, country pop/rock, bluegrass and country folk artists. Most artists reflect the culture of the American south, favoring literal storytelling over lyrical abstractions. The music incorporates traditional instrumentation like pedal steel, twangy guitars, violin/fiddle, piano, and acoustic guitar.

Classic: Chet Atkins, Johnny Cash, Merle Haggard
Modern: Garth Brooks, Shania Twain, Faith Hill

OurStage Examples of Country:
Raising Cane - Going Under Garret Ramquist - You Are The One

The Christian/Spiritualchannel is for music withlyrical themes that arereligious or spiritual in nature, characterized by uplifting messages of hope and faith.The styles of music in this channel might very greatly, but all entries must have vocal accompanimentto ensure each is specific to areligionor conveys deeplyspiritualvalues in a positive way.

OurStage Examples of Spiritual:
Strive - Better Way Johnny Boots Band - Anything For You

The Pop channel is for dance/Beat heavy, up-tempo songs with vocal that features keyboards and drum tracks more than guitars and live drums, or for commercial, polished up-tempo rock music with pop friendly hooks.

Classic: New Kids On The Block, Madonna, Whitney Houston
Modern: Kelley Clarkson, Avril Levigne, Justin Timberlake

OurStage Examples of Pop:
Bree Sharp - Robots In Love The Long Time Darlings - Saturday Night Wil Deynes - Super Wonderful

Alternative Rock is for edgy rock music with aggressive or heavy musical productions, yet less aggressive than Hard Rock.

Classic: Jane's Addiction, Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins
Modern: Foo Fighters, Green Day, Arctic Monkeys

OurStage Examples of Alternative Pop:
Front Row For The Meltdown - All My Life
Pascale Picard Band - Gate
View From An Airplane - Operation Illusion of Destiny

Example of Alternative Rock:
Wonderfool - Divine< White Light Riot - In a Shotgun Whirlwind

The Rock channel is for music with a prominent vocal melody, usually accompanied by a guitar, drums, and bass. Many rock songs also involve pianos, synthesizers, or other instruments. Some of the mainstream bands that model the sound of rock music range from The Rolling Stones to The White Stripes.

OurStage Examples Include:
Kilroy - I've Got a Second
The GoStation - Common Ground
Troy MacCubbin - Never Walk Away

The Hard Rock channel is for rock music that usually involves heavy use of aggressive electric guitars, drums, and bass guitar with straight forward rock vocals.

OurStage Examples Include:
Solid State Logic - It's Not Over Her Skeleton - Save You Now

Rap music consists of rhythmic lyrics and an instrumental track or beat, often performed with a DJ or drum samples.

Classic: Run DMC, NWA, Boogie Down Productions
Modern: 50 Cent, Kanye West, Wu Tang Clan

Contemporary/Soft Rock for light Pop/Rock ballads and mid tempo songs.

Examples of Contemporary: Cahill - Out Of State Stars Go Dim - Crazy Korby Lenker - Bored Will Harrison - I Went South/a> Sean Cox - Redemption

Experimental music is any music that challenges the commonly accepted notions of what music is. There is an overlap with avant-garde music.

Classic: Stravinsky, John Cage, Ornet Coleman
Modern: Mr. Bungle, Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, Godspeed You Black Emperor

OurStage Examples Include:

Electronic music is a term that covers a wide range of electronic or electronic-influenced music. The term has been defined by some to mean modern electronic music that is not necessarily designed for the dance floor, but rather for home listening. Some of the archetypal electronic musicians include John Digweed, Orbital, The Chemical Brothers, The Crystal Method, and Paul Oakenfold.

Classic: Devo, Kraftwerk, Boards of Canada
Modern: Aphex Twin, Massive Attack, Air, The Chemical Brothers

OurStage Examples Include:
Loto - Beat Riot, feat. Peter Hook

Indie Pop channel is for non-mainstream rock music, that veers closer to Pop music than traditional rock music, but with instrumentation and vocal melodies that are not as aggressive as hard rock or alternative rock.

Classic: REM, Guided By Voices, Yo La Tengo
Modern: Modest Mouse, Broken Social Scene, Arcade Fire

OurStage Examples Include:
Benny Strange - Nowhere Left To Run

Indie Rock channel is for tracks that express traditional rock elements, but with a modern/ethereal feel. As with Indie Pop, the instrumentation and vocal melodies are not as aggressive as hard rock or alternative rock.

Classic: REM, Guided By Voices, Yo La Tengo
Modern: Modest Mouse, Broken Social Scene, Arcade Fire

OurStage Examples Include:
Foxtail Somersault - Escalator

Rhythm and Blues / Soul is a popular music genre combining jazz, gospel, and blues influences, first performed by African American artists. Some famous R&B musicians include Chuck Berry, James Brown, Marvin Gaye, and B.B. King.

Classic: En Vogue, R. Kelley, Boys II Men
Modern: Alicia Keys, Mary J. Blige, Beyonce

OurStage Examples of R&B/Soul Include:
J Phoenix - Money Don't Mean A Thing

The Instrumental channel accepts any solo or multi-instrumental (i.e. non vocal) compositions for both acoustic instrumentals and electronic compositions.

The Rock Instrumental channel is for all varieties of Rock based music without lyrics.

Solo Instrumental These are solo instrument songs where other instrumentation is incidental to the main instrument performance.

Jazz Music and Blues Music use improvisation, blue notes, swing, call and response, polyrhythms, and syncopation, and blends African American musical styles with Western music technique and theory. Jazz music usually focuses on a full set of brass and wind instruments with one or two vocalists, and blues music usually focuses on a single vocalist that is backed by one or more instruments with some kind of narrative expressed through the song.

Classic: Billy Holiday, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis
Modern: Charlie Hunter, Midesky, Martin and Wood, Geri Allen

OurStage Examples Include:
Chantel Mead & 8traC - Into The Sun Ed Spargo - Min

The New Age/World channel is for music that usually uses distinctive ethnic scales and usually non-Western styles in music, and is very frequently accompanied by classical ethnic instruments like steel drum, the sitar or the didgeridoo.

Punk rock often features one or more electric guitars, an electric bass and drums with vocals. Vocals are often accompanied by a shouting vocalist that backs them. It has been described as very anti-establishment music and very rebellious to the normal characteristics of rock music and other genres. The term rises out of 70s bands like The Clash and The Ramones, or the Sex Pistols.

Classic: The Sex Pistols, The Ramones, The Clash
Modern: The Hives, Blink 182, The Donnas

OurStage Examples of Alternative Pop:
The Beltholes - Ex-Girlfriend Love Story In Blood Red - I Made Out

Metal rock is a genre of rock that developed during the late 60s and early 70s, with a thick sound from drums and guitars, with fast paced guitar solos and heavily amplified. It is now characterized by heavy use of electric guitars, and electric bass with other accompanying instruments at times, with loud vocals that are often accompanied by crashing drums. Some famous metal bands include Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, and Motley Crue.

Classic: Black Sabbath, Metallica, Kiss
Modern: Cradle of Filth, Venom, In Flames

OurStage Examples of Alternative Pop:
Dark Shift - We Came To Rock

Death Metal (From Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_metal): Death metal is an extreme heavy metal subgenre. The genre is typically characterized by the use of heavily-distorted guitars, harsh vocals that are low-pitched and/or growled, morbid lyrics, fast-paced rhythms and melodies, and unconventional song structures.

Example of Death Metal: To Outlive the Beginning - Of Monsters and Men

Techno/Club/Dance is high energy, mid to up tempo electronic music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. This does not currently include Club-style Rap though, which should be in one of the other Rap channels.

Mainstream examples: Carl Cox, Aphex Twin, Orbital

OurStage example of Techno: Darren Styles Ft. Junior - I Need You

Folk is a channel for contemporary folk songs strongly influenced by the folk tradition in instrumentation and subject matter, or acoustic songs that are rooted in the pure folk tradition.

Examples of Folk:
Keith Curtis - The High Mountain Range
Kathleen Dunbar - Round And Round

Hardcore began in the early 1980s with post punk bands like Black Flag, the Germs, Middle Class, Fear, Minor Threat, Bad Brains, and the Rollins Band. Hardcore bands in the beginning were rhythmically loose and heavier than their forerunners like The Clash, and the Sex Pistols and played with more intensity and drive than punk bands typically did. It is frequently characterized as being faster, meaner, and heavier than punk, but with similar lyrics.

Classic: Black Flag, Minor Threat, Bad Brains
Modern: Hatebreed, Terror, Converge

OurStage Examples of Alternative Pop:
The Beltholes - Ex Girlfriend Love Story in Blood Red - I Made Out

Latin/Salsa music, is music featuring traditional Latin American instruments and rhythm. Particular percussion and instruments are commonly found in Latin music and not frequently seen elsewhere. It is also generally in Spanish or Portuguese.

OurStage Examples of Latin/Salsa:
Monty Roca - No Vuelvo A Querer s Holly - Volver Por Ti

Singer/Songwriter (male) channel is for music that focuses on lyrical storytelling and simple melodies with most of the emphasis being put on the character of the vocalist. Electric instruments are used as texture, however, the music stays mellow throughout favoring acoustic sounds. And yes, you must be a guy.

Classic: Cat Stevens, Nick Drake
Modern: John Mayer, Dave Matthews, John Prine

OurStage Examples of Singer/Songwriter:
Alain De Courtenay - Sing To You

Singer/Songwriter (female) channel is for music that focuses on lyrical storytelling and simple melodies with most of the emphasis being put on the character of the vocalist. Electric instruments are used as texture, however, the music stays mellow throughout favoring acoustic sounds. And yes, you must be a gal.

Classic: Joni Mitchell
Modern: Fiona Apple

OurStage Examples of Singer/Songwriter:
Jen Murdza

Jam Bands is for bands whose performances often feature long improvisational sections (or "jams") and rhythmic grooves, which can often cross several genre boundaries. The term "jam band" was used for groups playing a variety of genres funk, blues, country and folk.

Cover Bands is for bands who are performing their own versions of previous works by other bands or musicians. Entrants to this channel should be from a band that performs exclusively covers of other band's material, not just single covers.

DJ/Beats is where all the aspiring beat-makers and DJs on OurStage can show off their best work. Beats are usually sampled from sections of other songs, and synthesizers, drum machines, and live bands are commonly also used, especially in newer music. They generally are entirely instrumental.

Guitar Solo is a channel for music artists to showcase their guitar soloing talent.
Rules:
1. The guitar solo must start within the first 10 seconds of the track (you may edit submitted track minimum length 30 seconds)
2. No vocals, please. This is a contest about guitar proficiency only

Alternative Rap blur genres, drawing from funk and pop/rock, as well as jazz, soul, reggae, and even folk. Often laid-back grooves, with socially conscious lyrics and song themes.

Gangsta Rap is a style of Hip-Hop that became popular in the late 1980's and remains very popular today. Many of the long-standing important commercial artists in this genre are cited as being Ice-T, Snoop, and Dr Dre.

OurStage Example of Gangsta Rap:
Fofif - Wutz Good

Reggae is a style of music developed in Jamaica. It is founded upon its rhythm style, which is frequently characterized by its regular chops on the backbeat, played by the rhythm guitarist and a bass drum often hitting on the third beat of each measure.

OurStage Example of Reggae:
Aaron Jones - Jah Is So Amazing

Promotional and Sponsored channels:

10K Lakes Cosmic Break is for the Get Your Cosmic Break Tour. 50 high-ranking artists (based on regional rankings) will play the OurStage 10KLF Cosmic Break Tour (Minneapolis, Sioux Falls, Fargo, Madison, Chicago, St. Louis, Kansas City, Omaha & Iowa City). One band from each tour stop gets to play 10KLF in MN this July. All genres accepted. Contestants must be residents of: MN, WI, MO, SD, ND, IL, NE, MO or IA. More @ www.ourstage.com/go/10klf

929 Earthfest is a sponsored channel for all artists in Massachusetts to compete for a performance slot at Earthfest 2008.

Battle for the Roo is a competition for a slot to play at Bonnaroo 2008. At least 2 high-ranking artists from the channel will be selected jointly by OurStage and Bonnaroo by the end of May to perform at the 2008 Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester, TN June 12-15. No additional or travel expenses covered.

Newport Jazz Fest:These artists are competing for performance spots at the 2008 Newport Jazz Festival. Miles played here, and so can you. Submissions are accepted from the following genres: Latin, World, Jazz, R&B/Soul.

Newport Folk Festival:These artists are competing for performance spots at the 2008 Newport Folk Festival. This is where Dylan went electric, and history was made. Submissions are accepted from the following genres: Acoustic, Singer/Songwriter, Reggae, Americana/Alt. Country, Blues, Country and Pop.

Soulfest: Entrants must be residents of New England (ME, VT, NH, CT, RI, or MA). Music must be family-friendly, appropriate for a Christian/Spiritual (Contemporary Christian) music festival, and in one the following genres: Rock, Pop, Alt. Rock, Acoustic, Singer/Songwriter. Up to 4 high-ranking artists from the channel will be selected jointly by OurStage and SoulFest to perform at SoulFest 2008 in Gilford, NH July 30-August 2. No additional or travel expenses covered.

Afro-Punk:Afro-Punk is a sponsored channel for artists of every genre to compete for a chance to play at This years Afro-Punk Music, Film Independence Festival Presented by TOYOTA, Matrix in Brooklyn, New York in July.

Here are some basic definitions of what our channels are like. This isn't meant to be comprehensive or too limiting, because it's art after all. It often defies being put into a box and given a name. But here are some guidelines to help you place your work. If the OurStage support team receives too many complaints about your work being in a wrong category, you may be asked to recategorize your work.

Animation is for any animated pieces, whether simple stop-motion or frames put in order or 3D animation from a computer program.

Comedy is for any format of comedy sketch, parody, or other related work.

Music Videos is for videos made for additional entertainment for a song, whether of a band's performance or a narrative to go with the song or whatever the artist's imagination creates.

Short Films is for short movies of any type or length, such as drama or documentaries or others.

Documentaries is for short films or parts of films that provide insight or coverage to something or someone in the world. It isn't the place for speeches or other material - Unless the documentary is about another party's speech and providing analysis or commentary.

Actors Reels is a channel where performers can upload their own reels to showcase their talent and different work on OurStage. Entire short films and other work that is not showcasing the work of a single actor or actress is not appropriate for this channel.

*CMF 2008* *Films* is the channel reserved for Campus MovieFest 2008 entrants. Only users who registered with OurStage through CMF are eligible to join this channel.

The earlier that you upload and enter your song or video in the month, the better...because you have more opportunities to be judged. Entries to a particular monthly competition will be cut-off 2 days before Quarter-Finals for the month. From that point on, you can only enter into the following month's competition.

For songs:
Upload the highest-quality audio file you can, which may be an uncompressed .wav or an MP3 with a bit rate of 256 Kbps or greater. Do not upload a music file that has copyright protection embedded in it, as this will prevent it from working on our site.
Accepted upload formats: mp3, wav, ogg, m4a
Maximum duration: 15 Minutes
Best cover art image size: 360 width, 360 height pixels minimum size in jpg, jpeg, png or gif format

For video:
To avoid having your video file go through a transcoder, the file should be in .flv format (flash video) with a data rate at or below 300 kbits/sec. [Sum total of 428 kbits/sec for both audio and video on the one file.] Preferred size is 480x360 pixels. No need to letterbox since we do this.
Other file formats we support are: wmv, avi, dv, mpg, mpg4, mov, 3gp, 3gp2, m4v, mp4 or asf format, but these need to go thru a transcoder at upload time.
Because of the transcoding, it is critical that you preview/run your file after uploading it, to make sure it still plays as you want it to-- check color/brightness, aspect ratio and audio sync.

Nope. Go somewhere else for that! OurStage is porn-free. Anyone submitting objectionable content is liable to get their account terminated.

Chatting, conversing, and discussing how cool OurStage is. Or maybe how cool your band is, or that amazing gig you saw last night. Maybe you're looking for a new drummer. Talk about whatever you want!

Well, it'd be really uncool if you were in there begging for votes. No one wants to hear that. And keep things nice n' friendly. Instead of spending the time begging, go practice your art.

Not everybody follows the rules. For those that don't, we allow users to report offensive behavior. Users can click the flag link right inside the chat window. So think before you type. The whole world (wide web) is watching! OurStage reserves the right to ban users from chat who violate OurStage terms and conditions.

It's a chat lounge. Talk to people, share ideas, and you know, shmoooze. It's what artists do. We just call it "networking". Most of all, have a good time, meet some interesting people, and find your way to the best music and video from new and emerging artists only on OurStage!

OurStage uses your email address to confirm that you are a real person and that your email address is valid. We ask for your ZIP code so that we can target our site's content to you as well - We are localizing much of our site to present things that would be of higher interest to you via your ZIP code.
If you are uncomfortable with us having your ZIP code for some reason, you can leave that field blank.

To complete registration and activate your OurStage account you will need to click the activation link provided in the email.
If you do not receive this email within a few minutes, and you entered your email address correctly, it is likely that your mail client or internet service provider is filtering the message as spam, which is preventing us from reaching you. All you need to do is check your spam or junk mail folder for the message. If you didn't find it in the junk mail folder, please email our support team from the form at http://www.ourstage.com/contact/help and they will activate your account for you.

OurStage.com uses some of the latest in Internet web-browsing technology. As a result, we need our viewers to have at least Macromedia Flash 8 installed. Version 9 is best. If you aren't sure if you have Flash installed or if your version is new enough, you can check by going to Macromedia's Flash site here: Macromedia Flash
We also highly recommend using Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox on Windows machines, or if you are on a Mac, using Safari, Firefox, or Opera. AOL's built in browser will not display all of the images on our site correctly, so if you are an AOL user we strongly recommend using one of the above browsers. We also recommend using a broadband internet connection to view OurStage.com, because of the speed requirements for streaming video and audio.

The OurStage experience is optimized for Internet Explorer or Mozilla Firefox on Windows machines, or if you are on a Mac, Safari, Firefox, or Opera.

This may be because you do not have Flash installed on your computer. Click here to find out more about the software requirements for OurStage. If you do have Flash and you still are unable to play the media on our site, drop us a line!

In a few places, we provide instructional files on how to add a banner or an OurStage media player to another site, so you can advertise your songs or your favorite items from the site elsewhere. We also provide some information about prizes like this. These files are in the standard PDF format used by many applications, including Adobe Acrobat Reader. If you cannot view these files or clicking on them brings you to a blank white page, you will need to download a free PDF file reader.
Mac OS X comes with one built in, called Preview. You can also use Adobe Acrobat Reader or another application if you prefer.
For Windows, you can download Adobe Acrobat Reader for free from this location.

If you have the misfortune of having any errors on OurStage, or something doesn't work the way you expect, feel free to write our technical support staff. The technical support email address is http://www.ourstage.com/contact/help.

The My Profile section of OurStage is your personal destination on the site. For example, all of the blocks on the page are now movable and editable, and have a great new appearance to them. Blocks can be added or removed from the page, and you can now see who is in your fan clubs or are your friends. This way, you can show off the size of your fan club to your friends and competitors, and help message to your fans about upcoming shows, new albums, and more.

You can also easily communicate with your fans and learn more about who they are by viewing their own profile pages, because every registered user of OurStage can now share themselves with the community, even if they're just an appreciator and not a musician or filmmaker themselves.

To edit anything in your profile, just click on the "Edit This Page" button at the top of the center block. You can also directly edit your account information or the About Me block from links directly on those blocks without pushing this button. If you do push the button in the top right, several tools will become available that look like this:


From left to right, they are the privacy menu, the pencil tool, the trash can tool, and then the positioning arrows. Through the privacy menu, you can select who will see that block on your page. This way, you can restrict information such as your bio to people who know you, or to no-one if you so choose. The only restriction on this is that your personal information block (Which contains when you joined OurStage, how many entries you have seen, and your song sales and purchases) will always be private to just you.
Using the edit tool, you can control the contents of blocks. Currently, the edit tool works on three areas. First, you can edit the About Me block to change the text or image inside there, or add hyperlinks. It also works on Favorites blocks, allowing you to remove or re-arrange items that you have made your Favorite.
Finally, it also works on the My Account block, where you can edit your address, music sales preferences, and other details.
Using the trash can, you can remove the block in question from the page. If you do this, it will be placed back into the pool at the top of the page, so you can add the item back if you wish.
Items can be re-arranged on the page using the positioning arrows. Note that not all items can be in all places. For example, the comments block is too large to fit on the right hand sidebar, so it must remain on the main section. You are free to move it up and down the main section.
There is also a pool at the top where you can add elements not currently on your profile page, and set a global privacy preference.
Here is a picture of this:

By selecting a block, it will tell you where that item can be placed on your profile by lighting up one or both of the buttons. By clicking add, you will get a new block that you can edit or move around as you so choose. You can also change the default setting for the privacy of your page here in the privacy pull-down menu.

Using the Favorites blocks on the My Profile page, you can interact with your favorite songs and videos in quite a few different ways. By using the edit function, you can rearrange them to bring your most favorite entries to the top so they're the first things you or other users see.
You can also view the entries in the channel player by clicking on the cover art, or play them in a new window by pushing the Play button. By pushing the Play button, a new window will pop up with a player in it where you can play any of your favorites, or all of them, in the new window. By pushing Play All, you can also begin a new playlist from your first favorite that will go through all of your favorites in turn. Since it comes up in a new window, you can keep browsing other pages at OurStage or navigate to other websites or programs on your computer without interrupting the playback of your favorite music or video!

If you've looked at our new My Profile page, and decided that you do not want any of your information, favorites, or fan club information viewable to the world, you can make it completely private. Just click on the "Edit This Page" button, and in the box that appears at the top, select "Only Me". You can still join fan clubs, favorite items, and any other actions as normal, but you will not appear to anyone else on the site, and nobody can see any information about you. All anyone will be able to see is that someone on OurStage has registered that username.

We provide two easy ways to help promote your entry on OurStage.
The first is by providing pre-made banners that show off your work on OurStage and that will click through to a judging page where your fans can register and participate in our site. This banner can be embedded virtually anywhere - Your MySpace page, an email, or a personal website. To create a banner to place on the Web, follow these instructions.
The second method is by embedding a streaming video or audio player into any page that supports a user entering HTML code into the page - Like your Facebook, MySpace, or a personal blog or web site. These can even be made by raters on OurStage, so that you can make a player of your favorite music from OurStage and put it directly into your MySpace page! To do this, follow these instructions.

In short, you don't have to! OurStage does this work for you. By following these instructions from your My Stage page, you can use our automatically made banners anywhere that allows a user to insert HTML code, such as your MySpace, Facebook, or a personal blog or website!

You can easily create a personalized media player from your own work or your favorite work on OurStage by following these instructions on how to create a media player. If you want to make a player of your favorite music on OurStage, you can follow those same instructions but for Step Two, instead of selecting the playlist of "My Stuff", choose "My Favorites"!

If you signed up for OurStage through a promotion like our 5000 Action Sports contest or one of our other promotions, and you're missing something, please let us know! Send an email to the community team and they'll help make sure you get your deserved item, service, or whatever you were promised.

When you sign up for OurStage as part of the Twelve Free Songs promotion, you will receive a confirmation email at the email address you supplied us with. That email will include a link to a page where you can download or listen to the tracks that you've just earned.
To download individual tracks, just right click (control-click on a Mac) on the link for the song you would like, and select Save Target As or Save Link As, depending on your browser. The tracks will download in the standard MP3 format, which can be played back in any music player or put on a device like an iPod, iPhone, Zune, or any other standard deice.
If you would like to download all twelve tracks, there is a link at the bottom to an archive of all twelve files. Just click on the link and it will begin to download. If you are on a slow connection be careful - This archive is approximately 80 MB. The archive contains the same MP3 files as the above links, just in one download for convenience.
If you did not get referred to the page from your email, or if you are having other problems, please feel free to write the Community team at http://www.ourstage.com/contact/community.

No. Once you've bought a song off of OurStage.com, you possess a copy of that song and you can use it as you wish for playback.

Songs that are purchased off OurStage.com can be played back in any player that supports the MP3 Format. This includes iTunes, Windows Media Player, Media Player Classic, or just about any other modern program.

Of course! You can transfer these songs to any media player that supports MP3 files. This includes the iPod, Zune, Rio, and virtually every other media player on the market.

The tracks will be in MP3 and will play/sound as you hear them on our site now. They are currently 128 kilobits per second.

Go to My Profile and select the "Edit Profile" link to sign up to sell your tracks. Once you sign up a "Buy" button will appear next to all of your tracks appearing on OurStage.

You can opt in or opt out of selling your tracks at any time, and any balance owed to you will be sent to your PayPal account at the end of a quarter (once the balance reaches twenty dollars). To opt out, go to My Profile and look for the "About me" section and use the link to "Edit Profile/Preferences".

No, right now we will only be selling the tracks that you have uploaded to OurStage. We’ll make them available on a track-by-track basis.

If you decide to sell your tracks, everything you’ve uploaded will be available for sale.

To give us your PayPal account information, you need to go to My Profile and look for the "About Me" section. There you will see a link to "Edit Profile/Preferences", and this will take you to the page where you get to enter your PayPal account information.

To get a PayPal account, go to www.paypal.com and follow their instructions on creating one. We think this is the best method for getting paid fast and keeping track of transactions online. You will need a Premium account to be able to receive money.

Currently, PayPal is the only method we offer.

You will be paid on a quarterly basis (at the end of March, June, September and December) and only after your account has accumulated a balance of twenty dollars. If your account balance is below twenty dollars, it will continue to grow until the end of the following quarter, and so on, until the balance reaches twenty dollars.

Go to your My Profile, you will get to see how many tracks we have sold for you, and how much money is owed to you for these.

We are currently selling tracks for 99 cents with 80 percent of each sale going to the artist, and the remaining 20 percent being used to pay for payment processing. We'll certainly let everyone know well in advance if this changes!

If you come out on top of judging across all the OurStage music hannels, you'll win our $5,000 Grand Prize! If you come out on top of the Video channels, you'll win $1,000. If you win the semi-finals in your channel, you'll be awarded a cool $100 OurStage American Express gift card. Spend it however you like! Depending on the time of year, you could also win great prizes like performing slots at music or film festivals or reviews in major indie publications, and more. Check here for the whole list of prizes.

We will let you know if you are a winner and you will be able to see your rank at all times on the OurStage.com site. These rankings are not always final at the last minutes of a month because of lag time in calculating scores or collecting all votes, so your rank may not be final.

Because these prizes are not awarded by OurStage, our partners select the winners for their prizes. To be eligible to win those prizes, all you need to do is compete in judging normally with your songs and videos. If you win one of these prizes, you will be contacted by our partner who awards that prize. Check here for the details on each partner prize.