KT&G, 'Music Support Project' to Help New Musicians 'Nalgae'... Offline Competitions Also This Year

RuaMel, the winning team of KT&G's '2021 Band Discovery,' is performing. Photo by KT&G

[Asia Economy Reporter Song Seung-yoon] KT&G is providing a foundation for emerging artists, including rookie musicians, to grow steadily through its complex cultural and artistic space, ‘Sangsangmadang’.

KT&G Sangsangmadang announced on the 12th that it is accepting applications for participants in the 2022 music support project, which discovers and supports rookie musicians, until the 29th of this month. This contest consists of two categories: ‘Band Discovery’ and ‘My First Concert.’ Band Discovery is a rookie musician discovery program held for the 10th time this year.

Through public evaluations and competitions conducted online, it helps increase the recognition of rookie bands and supports two teams selected in the final competition with prize money as well as various benefits such as album production support and performance opportunities to help them grow steadily. So far, it has produced many talented musicians such as Thornapple, The Vane, Macguffin, and Rua Mel.

This year, Han Kyung-rok, the vocalist of the famous band Crying Nut, will participate as a judge. With the lifting of social distancing measures, offline competitions will also be held. My First Concert is a program that supports rookie musicians, whose live skills and genre diversity have been verified, with their first solo concert in their lifetime. Selected teams will be given the opportunity to perform at the KT&G Sangsangmadang Hongdae Live Hall and receive promotional and marketing benefits. Students currently attending the ‘Concert Planner Workshop’ will participate as the production team for My First Concert.

Ji Hyo-seok, head of KT&G’s Cultural Contribution Department, said, "KT&G has been striving to revitalize the domestic cultural and artistic scene, including indie music," adding, "We will continue to take the lead in creating an environment where various artists can focus on stable creative activities."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.