The Greene Space at WNYC and WQXR....

The Greene Space at WNYC and WQXR Announces the Fourth Annual

 BATTLE OF THE BOROUGHS

Annual City-wide Competition to Discover NYC’s Best Emerging Talent  

Kicks Off with the BROOKLYN BATTLE on Friday, February 1 at 7pm

For The First Time, Grand Prize Includes Guest Artist Appearance

at Amateur Night at the Legendary Apollo Theater

  

(New York, NY – January 17, 2013) – Let’s get ready to battle! The Jerome L. Greene Performance Space at WNYC and WQXR has announced the contestants of its fourth annual BATTLE OF THE BOROUGHS, New York City’s premiere search for undiscovered musical talent.

The contestants, hailing from all five boroughs, were culled from hundreds of submissions. From country gospel and experimental rock to a Latin string quartet and soul funk jazz, the 64 musical acts representing their home boroughs capture the excellence, vitality and diversity of the New York City musical scene. (FULL LIST OF CONTESTANTS BELOW)

Beginning with the Brooklyn Battle on Friday, February 1, these musicians will compete in Borough Battles at The Greene Space, WNYC and WQXR’s intimate and acoustically-superior street-level performance venue. The borough winners will go onto the final showdown, The Ultimate Battle, on Friday, June 21. The winners will be selected through votes from both the live studio audience and the online audience watching via live webcast. Voting will be available online atwww.wnyc.org/thegreenespace and via mobile phone by texting vote codes to 69866.

For the first time ever, the Ultimate Battle Grand Prize winner will be awarded with the opportunity to perform at the iconic APOLLO THEATER as a guest artist at its signature series, Amateur Night.

Every Battle will be emceed by award-winning WQXR host TERRANCE MCKNIGHT. This year, insightful commentary will be provided by musicians, singers, industry executives, and WNYC and WQXR staffers, including:

• GERI ALLEN, Composer and jazz pianist
• CHRIS BANNON, Vice President, Content Development and Production, WNYC
• HAKIM BELL, Singer, songwriter and producer
• NONA HENDRYX, Singer, songwriter, and producer
• FRANCO IEMMELLO, Vice President of Rhythm Promotion, Capitol Records
• WES JACKSON, Executive Director of The Brooklyn Hip-Hop Festival
• CHRISTIAN MCBRIDE, Bassist and composer
• STEVE PAGEOT, Grammy Award-winning producer
• MIKE RINZEL, Senior Director, Digital, WQXR
• JOHN SCHAEFER, Host of WNYC’s Soundcheck and New Sounds
• STEVE PAGEOT, Grammy Award-winning producer

The last act standing at the final battle will win an exclusive concert at The Greene Space with live video webcast, a professional, multi-track recording session, a Tekserve package including iPads, a professional photo shoot, a produced music video and, for the first time, a guest artist appearance at Amateur Night at The Apollo.

“I am wowed by the caliber of talent the battle attracts,” said McKnight. “The dedication and inventiveness of these musicians is the very lifeblood of the New York City artistic scene. It’s a thrill for me to be on stage with these undiscovered but potent artists as they show off their talents to a broad audience for the first time.”