East Lansing Arts Commission Launches Songwriting Contest

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The City of East Lansing Arts Commission is hosting a songwriting contest that invites local musicians to create original songs inspired by the city's people, places, culture, history, or community identity. Finalists will perform their entries at a live event in September, with audience voting determining the winner who will receive a professional recording of their song and a $1,000 prize.

Why it matters

The contest aims to celebrate East Lansing's vibrant arts scene and community identity by encouraging local songwriters to creatively showcase what makes the city unique. The winning song could become an anthem that helps promote East Lansing's culture and attractions.

The details

Entries for the songwriting contest must be original compositions that meaningfully reference or depict the City of East Lansing. Songs cannot contain explicit language or content that is hateful, discriminatory, defamatory, or promotes violence. Finalists will perform their entries at a live event in September, where audience voting will determine the winner.

• The contest is open until the end of the day on Wednesday, April 15, 2026.
• The live event where finalists will perform is scheduled for September 2026, with the exact date to be announced later.

What’s next

The City of East Lansing will announce the date of the live event where finalists will perform their contest entries in the coming months.