TuneFlow Tournament FAQ

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FAQ Index

How do I enter the tournament?
1. Write/record a new, original song based on one of next month's tournament titles.
2. Make an MP3 out of your song.
3. Upload your song to TF before the deadline.

When is the tournament held?
There is a new TuneFlow Tournament each month. Each tournament lasts one month, starting on the first day of the month and ending on the last day of the month.

When is the entry deadline?
The absolute deadline for entering a song into the tournament is 11:59 PM PST on the last day of each month for the next month's tournament. Example: The deadline for the February tournament would be January 31st at 11:59 PM. Note: Issues in uploading entries can occur (file corruption, dropped connections, etc.). Therefore, we strongly recommend that all entries be submitted 48 hours or more before the actual midnight deadline, so that if there are issues, they can be resolved before the deadline.

What's in it for the artist?
1. Free daily reviews. Get invaluable feedback to help you refine your sound and hone your song-writing skills from TuneFlow Members from around the world.

2. Competing in the tournament is THE best way on TuneFlow to build your fanbase and sell your music. Why? Our members love rating the latest tournament entries. And it's during these song reviews that members discover new artists that they want to hear more of. By being in the tournament, you position yourself to expose your music to hundreds of new people every month--people who become fans that buy your music, come to your live performances, and tell their friends!

3. Major exposure. If you're top five in any of the four categories, you'll be featured on the homepage of TuneFlow for the entire month of the tournament!

4. Even bigger exposure. Win one of the four categories and your name and picture will be featured for one full month on the TuneFlow homepage and throughout the entire Website. You'll also be featured for a month on TuneFlow's MySpace page (www.myspace.com/tuneflow). Plus, the top songs in each of the four categories each month are specially promoted in worldwide press releases, in the monthly TuneFlow Newsletter sent to every TuneFlow member, and in emails going out to over 150,000 SFI marketing affiliates representing thousands of website worldwide with the ability to expose your music to millions of people!

5. Cool perks. If you're competing in the tournament, your song(s) may be selected for airplay on TuneFlow's global radio station. You may also be selected to appear in our Artist Of The Day rotation (more great exposure on TuneFlow's homepage) or be chosen to have your song appear on future "The best of TuneFlow" CDs.

How long do I have to create an entry?
Up to a full month. Titles are announced on the first of each month, the deadline is the end of the month, so you've got the entire month to write, record, and get your entry uploaded.

What kind of song am I supposed to enter in the tournament?
Each monthly tournament has four song titles. Choose one of the four titles and write a song based on that title. You can do the song in ANY of the 14 TF musical genres.

Does the tournament song title need to actually appear in the lyrics?
Yes, the title needs to appear in the song.

What format do my entries need to be in?
We need it in stereo MP3 format, encoded between 128-192 kbps (we prefer 192 kbps!).

How are tournament winners selected?
Throughout the month of the tournament, our members will listen to and rate the new songs, giving them a rating of 1-10 (with 10 being the best). The winners will be the songs with the highest average rating at the end of the month.

When are the tournament winners announced?
On the first day of each month for the prior month's tournament.

How do I enter a song in the "best-of-genre" competition?
You'll be automatically entered for the genre that your title entry is in. Example: Let's say you entered the "She's So Fine" title competition with a song you recorded and submitted in the "R&B/Soul" genre. You might not win or even place in the title competition, but if your song receives the highest average rating for all R&B/Soul songs entered (for ALL of the tournament titles), you'd be our winner in the R&B/Soul best-of-genre competition for the month. In other words, you always have a chance to win BOTH the title competition and/or the best-of-genre competition for each song you enter!

Can I enter songs I’ve written in the past?
No. All songs entered must be brand new and written explicitly for one of the tournament song titles.

Can I enter covers of other artists’ songs?
No. All songs entered must be new and original.

Who can compete in the tournament?
The TuneFlow Tournament is open to all musicians at this time. However, we will reject any songs submitted that do not comply with the tournament rules, or are very badly recorded, or promote violence or discrimination, or are sexually explicit.

Can tournament songs contain “swear words?”
If you must, but we'd like to keep the tournament "PG-13", so don’t get carried away.

Are there any restrictions on the music, lyrics, etc.?
The following content is not acceptable at Tuneflow and may result in your song being removed from the system or other disciplinary actions:
• Songs with lyrics promoting hatred or containing personal attacks
• Songs containing sexually explicit lyrics
• Songs that promote violence or discrimination based on race, sex, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, or physical disability
• Songs that promote illegal activities

Can I vote for myself?
No. You will not be allowed to review/rate your own songs. However, we hope you'll do lots of reviews of other artists' entries (musicians love having their music critiqued by fellow musicians). Note: Your reviews of other artists' songs who are competing in the same tournament category as you do not get counted. They will receive your comments, but the actual rating number is not included.

What exactly am I agreeing to when I submit a song?
See the Artist Agreement.

Can instrumentals be entered?
No. All Tournament songs must have singing and lyrics based on the title.

Can I enter more than one song in a tournament?
Yes, you can enter a song for each of the four titles each month if you wish. You are not allowed to submit more than one song per title however, so four songs maximum per month.

Can't people just send their friends to vote them high so they can win the tournament?
TF has put in place a number of features to prevent this, including:

1. Random reviews (members get to reviews songs in their favorite genres, but they can't choose the artists or even the titles they want to review)
2. We have four member ranks: Member, Gold Member, Platinum Member, and Double Platinum Member. The higher your membership rank, the more weight is given to your vote. And you can't gain the higher membership ranks without earning them (which takes time and effort).
3. So that all tournament songs get reviewed equally, the system automatically queues up the the least-reviewed songs for reviewers first.
4. Reviews are allowed to be done by members with confirmed email addresses and only one review per email address per title is allowed.

Bottom line: Telling all your friends to go vote for you so you can win won't work.

Does entering a song in the TuneFlow Tournament mean I give up ownership of my song?
Absolutely not! The only obligation is that you will allow us to continue to offer your tournament entries for downloading and pay you royalties on any sales. Other than that, your music is YOUR music. You can sell it or distribute it anywhere else you want, any way you want. Give it away if you want. Sign up with a record label and sell it through them. Whatever you want. It’s YOUR song.

Is there a way to know how my song is doing during the month of the tournament?
Real-time "leaderboards" of the top vote getters, by title and genre, are provided on the TuneFlow homepage. You can also see what your current average rating is any time by simply logging in and going to the "Tournament Stats" page. In short, you can follow exactly how you're doing all month long.

What if there is a tie?
In the cases of ties, final placement will be determined by the ratings of TF's Double Platinum Members.

How much do songs cost at TuneFlow?
As little as 79 cents (the more you buy, the less your cost).

Won't people that dislike my music genre rate my song low and hurt my chances of winning the tournament?
When members register, they designate both their favorite four music genres and their four least-favorite genres. Members are never allowed to review songs from their least-favorite genres. Rather, we feed reviewers the tournament songs in their favorite genres (and only if they get through all of the songs in their favorite genre, will they ever even hear any songs from their "neutral" genres).

When are tournament entries posted?
Assuming you successfully uploaded your entry prior to the deadline, it will be live and available for reviews on the first day of each month. Note that at the same time, your entry will be be available for purchase via download both in the TF Music Store and on your personal Artist Profile Website.

Do I have to give you my real name when submitting music?
We'd prefer you did, but it's not an absolute requirement. That said, keep in mind that tax statements for US residents will need to be tied to real Social Security Numbers. Also, be sure you'll be able to cash any future royalty checks we send you for the name you register.

Can I submit "non-serious" songs?
Absolutely. One of our music genres is "Humor" and we encourage the submission of humorous songs -- especially ones that contain social commentary -- because they are proven attention-getters. Write a great, funny song that skewers a politician, celebrity, or deserving industry, and your song might become the most discussed thing on the Internet for a few weeks or months, bringing you fame and maybe even fortune (and we won't mind at all the extra traffic).

HAVE OTHER QUESTIONS? CONTACT US HERE.