Project: Aloft Star – The Search for a Star
The Project: Aloft Star Europe 2018 contest, which launched on Monday 13th August 2018, is part of Marriott International's first-of-its-kind global partnership with UMG&B, which has evolved to include a focus on developing emerging talent. Aspiring artists are invited to submit an original song for consideration. Those who get through the initial selection process and public voting went on to perform in front of headline judge and Artist Ambassador JP Cooper, known for his hit songs 'September Song' and 'Perfect Strangers', as well as an expert panel of judges in November at the Aloft Hotel in Munich, Germany.
Musicians could enter the contest for a chance to win a prize that includes:
Releasing their own single through one of UMG's prestigious music labels
Production of a music video to accompany their single
Dedicated A&R mentoring from UMG's unrivalled executives
Audio Recording Booths For Shower Superstars
For guests who normally prefer to keep their vocal talents to singing in the shower, there will be the chance to step into state-of-the-art shower audio recording booths set up in dedicated rooms at select locations around Europe during the course of Project: Aloft Star 2018. The booths take full advantage the room's acoustics by mimicking the experience of singing in the shower, but come fully-equipped with waterproof studio equipment that can be used to sing a song, record it, listen back or share it. Guests staying at Aloft Hotels in London, Brussels, Munich and Kiev will be able to access these special "shower studios" during their stay to coincide with the Project: Aloft Star 2018 competition.
"Each year we see incredible, undiscovered talent emerge through Project: Aloft Star. This year we're going a step further with a new partnership with Universal Music Group to nurture and support more emerging musicians," said John Licence, Vice President of Premium and Select Brands at Marriott International Europe. "Showers are synonymous with singing, so we put a fun spin on this by launching these voice recording booths using innovative technology to encourage even more superstars-in-the-making to bring their vocal talent out of the showers and into the spotlight."
"Having been on this journey myself, I'm really excited to be able to help shine a light on the next generation of musical talent," added Island Records U.K.-signed artist JP Cooper. "As Project: Aloft Star's artist ambassador and head judge for Europe, I can't wait to discover the emerging artists who will get the chance to be noticed throughout the competition and get that all important chance to record and digitally release their single, a deal that will change that person's life."
As a truly global hotel brand, Project: Aloft Star competitions ran with Aloft Hotels and UMG&B in the Americas, Middle East, Africa, and Asia Pacific to find the next big music stars in these regions.
The final in Munich in November 2018 saw the winners, Ukrainian band Adm:t, win the opportunity to record a single with UMG and gain access to mentoring opportunities with UMG representatives.
The runners up in the final included UK star Laura Murray, Turkey-born Müge Işık, Belgium entrant Melanie Mertens Polak and Danish Kingsley Q.