Highlighting the next MOBO superstars through our annual talent competition.
MOBO UNSUNG AIMS TO MOTIVATE AND ELEVATE EMERGING TALENT BY PROVIDING PRICELESS OPPORTUNITIES WHICH CAN SIGNIFICANTLY CONTRIBUTE TO THEIR PERSONAL AND CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT, WHILST IMPROVING THEIR UNDERSTANDING OF THE MUSIC INDUSTRY.
For the past 25 years, MOBO has been dedicated to providing a platform for exceptional British talent. While we’ve witnessed and celebrated the success of artists like Stormzy, Rita Ora, Craig David, Lady Leshurr, Krept, and Konan, whilst supporting and elevating new and exceptional talent through our MOBO UnSung program.
With that in mind, MOBO is pleased to announce that MOBO UnSung is back and bigger than ever supported by Marshall Amplification!
MOBO UnSung, with support from PRS Foundation and Marshall Amplification, is one of the country’s strongest annual talent competitions for unsigned artists producing original work. A nationwide search for exceptional unsigned talent culminates in 10 finalists, known as the MOBO UnSung Class of 2021, with all 10 receiving tickets to this year’s MOBO Awards.
The Class of 2021 will enter a year-long artist development program of industry and production workshops, performance and networking opportunities, guidance, etc. facilitated by MOBO and its partners through this compelling program giving you the opportunity to make your mark with your music and level up.
The MOBO UnSung Class of 2021 will get the chance to go through the Sony Music A&R process as well as receive opportunities to attend Industry Seminars supported by our new Mobolise platform, where they will have the opportunity to learn about key areas of the music industry from some of the best in the music business, with the aim to reach wider audiences. Other exciting activities and opportunities for the top 10 will include studio time at the state of the art Marshall Studios with established songwriters and producers; to further enhance their creative output, a 12-month membership to The Halley a unique London private members' club for those working in the creative industries and MOBO UnSung bursary, granted by the MOBO Help Musicians fund, which will train you how to secure funds to develop an aspects of your own choosing.
The winners will also receive sessions with top songwriter as well as the potential opportunity to perform at the Great Escape Festival, introduction to booking agencies and support with their social media and brand development. There will also be the chance to create music video assets for yourselves and partner platforms to raise your profile within your respective audiences produced by industry professionals and access to professional networks that MOBO have established over 25 years.
More information can be found in the FAQ section below.
Open to singers, songwriters, producers, rappers, live bands, reggae/caribbean and afroswing artists as well as poets, MOBO UnSung is about championing creative individuals who may not be household names in their field but are already showing great promise.
Applications for MOBO UnSung 2021 are now closed!
Find out more about our MOBO UnSung 2021 partners
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Got a question about MOBO UnSung 2021? We've got you covered
MOBO UnSung is one of the country’s strongest annual talent competitions for unsigned artists producing original work.
MOBO UnSung aims to provide emerging talent with priceless opportunities which can significantly contribute to their personal and creative development, whilst improving their understanding of the music industry. Opportunities can range from mentorship to live performance opportunities.
The MOBO UnSung initiative, with support from PRS Foundation, incorporates the values of the MOBO Organisation of facilitating opportunities and elevating the next generation of music talent in the UK.
MOBO UnSung is open to singers, songwriters, producers, live bands, rappers and poets who write/compose their own material.
Artists who perform within the musical genres of Hip Hop, Grime, R&B, Soul, Reggae/ Caribbean, Afrobeats or Gospel (as well as Spoken Word) are eligible.
Applicants for MOBO UnSung must NOT be signed to a major or independent record label deal.
Yes. You can only apply for MOBO UnSung if you're based in the UK and have lived in the UK for more than 5 years. You'll need to enter a valid UK postcode to complete the application process.
If you're based outside the UK and wish to have your music supported by MOBO, you can of course send a link to your music to our editorial team. You should find the relevant contact details on our 'Contact Us' page.
Yes, applicants must be aged 18 or older at time of application.
• Entrants to MOBO UnSung must reside in the United Kingdom.
• Entrants must write/compose their own music and maintain full ownership of it
• Entrants must not be signed to a major or independent record label
• Deadline for entries will be announced in the coming weeks.
• The 10 finalists are expected to be available for any UnSung live performance opportunities
• The 10 finalists are expected to attend the final judging panel day in London and organise and pay for their own travel.
• The 10 finalists who are approached to take part in MOBO UnSung performance opportunities must be 18+
• MOBO Organisation reserves the right to adjust any terms and conditions at any time
To apply for MOBO UnSung, simply head over to the official MOBO UnSung landing page and complete the application form by the specified closing date.
This is an opportunity to tell us about yourself, your brand, as well as your music.
Artists interested in applying need to have the following items available:
As per MOBO privacy guidelines, we will keep all your personal information confidential and generally only use the information provided within the MOBO Organisation.
**Information such as artist bios and social media links will be used to build your profile and may be shared on a public domain.
In previous years, this stage of the UnSung competition would include a public vote to assist with narrowing the Top 20 down to 10 finalists, who would go on to meet and perform for our esteemed MOBO UnSung judging panel.
However, after careful consideration and feedback from key members of the music industry as well as previous UnSung finalists, we have decided to replace the public voting stage of the competition with an exciting new element.
With the wealth of incredible talent across a multitude of genres, as well as striving to make the process as fair as possible to all artists who make it to this stage in the competition, the public vote will make way for a review by independent, external music connoisseurs who will screen the selected entries to arrive at the Top 10 finalists who will go on to meet the MOBO UnSung judging panel in the next stage of the competition.
With UnSung entrants enjoying different levels of support among fans, family and friends, as well as us also wanting to give each genre an equal opportunity, we feel that this new route is a welcome improvement.
The 10 Successful applicants will be notified and briefed on the judging panel stage of the competition.
During this stage of the process, MOBO and the music connoisseurs will consider the following criteria when reviewing each applicant:
A representative from the MOBO UnSung team will contact all successful applicants by email/telephone to notify them that they have been successful in making the MOBO UnSung Top 10.
Once the top entrants have been selected and contacted, an esteemed judging panel made up of music industry experts will convene to review the Top 10 to become the Class Of 2021.
The judging panel stage of the UnSung competition will take place at a London venue later this year.
The selected winner of MOBO UnSung 2021 will be announced at a special press event.
This nationwide search for exceptional unsigned talent culminates in 10 finalists, known as the MOBO UnSung Class of 2021, who then go on to enter a year-long artist development programme of industry and production workshops, performance and networking opportunities, guidance, etc. facilitated by MOBO and its partners.
This way, all finalists will be given the opportunity to make their mark with their music.
The winner and the two runners-up will further be given studio time, mentoring, production support and A&R.
The full list of exciting MOBO UnSung 2021 prize elements will be revealed in the coming weeks.
Unfortunately, because of the volume of applications that MOBO receives for the UnSung competition, we can’t provide feedback to every applicant.
However, there are plenty of other MOBO initiatives geared towards supporting emerging talent which you can explore here.
If you wish to get in touch with the MOBO UnSung team, please contact unsung@mobo.com with your query clearly stated in the subject line. A member of the UnSung team will aim to get back to you within 48 hours.
As always, you can refer to the MOBO UnSung FAQ page or Terms and Conditions for further details.
When talking about the MOBO UnSung competition, please use #MOBOUnSung and tag @MOBOAwards.
For congratulating MOBO Unsung finalists:
So many talented artists featured in this year’s @MOBOAwards #MOBOUnSung competition! To support emerging talent + to find out further info on the competition, head over to mobo.com/unsung.
And please make note of our MOBO UnSung URL link.
