JetSpeed and Red Galaxy Records continue to SPONSOR The Orange County Music Awards!!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Free-Press-Release.com) July 13, 2004 -- OC Pop



By ROBERT KINSLER

Special to the Register







What do folk, pop, rock, punk, jazz, electronic, roots, hip-hop, blues, hard-core and country artists have in common?





All have a musical voice as part of the Second Annual Orange County Music Awards, to be held March 29 at the Grove of Anaheim � which holds twice as many people as the Galaxy Theatre, where the inaugural event was held last year.

"It was such a success in 2002; that is why we moved to a larger venue," said Martin Brown, who is co-producing the music awards with Michelle Emard. The two are publishers of LIVE magazine and produced last year's event.







Acoustic crooner: Sherman Fowler hopes to be onstage at the Grove on March 29.

Wonderlove and Scarlet Crush were the big winners last year, with each band receiving honors in two categories. OCMA judges include music critics from local publications, as well as representatives from Warner/Elektra/ Atlantic, Virgin Records and Universal Entertainment.

"Several of last year's winners and nominees are now signed," Brown said. "Project 86 has since signed to Atlantic, Jay Buchanan is signed to Ultimatum, and Scarlet Crush is with 2K Sounds (distributed by EMI Music)."



Those bands hope to soon join a long and well-known list of artists such as Jackson Browne, Social Distortion, Berlin, No Doubt, Lit and Sugar Ray that got their starts in Orange County before achieving international acclaim.



"With all of the relationships that have been built through our efforts, I think we have helped give the local music community a heart," Emard said.

The awards will be preceded by a series of eclectic concerts at local clubs that will determine the nominees in two categories. Best Live Artist/Band (acoustic) concerts are now held at the Gypsy Den in Santa Ana 8-10 p.m. on Tuesdays, while the Gypsy Lounge in Lake Forest, DiPiazza's in Long Beach and Fitzgerald's in Huntington Beach are hosting the Best Live Artist/Band (electric) competition on most Wednesdays and Thursdays.



Among singer-songwriters performing at the most recent Best Live Artist (acoustic) showcase were Yvonne Perea, Sherman Fowler and Holly Light. All three artists have released strong independent CDs and are among the many wonderful musicians who will likely gain much-deserved attention as part of the Second Annual Orange County Music Awards.

In addition, the panel of judges from throughout the music industry is listening to tracks from all artists who submit; trophies in about 20 categories will be awarded at the ceremony. The entrance fee to participate is $25; proceeds from the event will benefit Big Brothers Big Sisters of Orange County (www.bigbrooc.org). Musicians may choose to be judged in as many categories as they wish. The Orange County Music Awards nominees will be announced by March 10. Complete details on categories and how to enter are available at www.orangecountymusicawards.com.











2001-2003 Orange County Music Awards - All Rights Reserved.

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