Melinda Warren
ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT REPORTER
PHOTO BY MELINDA WARREN // Producer and partner in Girth studios Adam Damelin.
Post Foods is sponsoring a music contest for up-and-coming Canadian musicians called The First 15 through Facebook. Winners will receive $5,000 cash and studio time at Girth music in Toronto.
On The First 15 Facebook page, fans go on, vote and then a panel will decide the winner.
To vote, all one needs to do is to “like” the page on Facebook and vote for an artist. said Adam Damelin, producer and partner at Girth studios.
“It started when we [Girth] wrote and produced a track using a sample from the original Sugar Crisp commercial,” The song was later released with Canadian artist ISH singing on the track, Damelin said.
“Post got a hold of it and they really liked it,” Damelin said.
Since Girth has connections with other labels and publishers, the sky is the limit in terms of possibilities for the winner. said Damelin.
Margaret Hastings, senior product manager at Post Foods said, “I am on The First 15 Facebook page all day every day and I am seeing genuine involvement in friends and family rallying behind all of these people who have entered”.
“I find it very inspirational. I think that’s what has attracted us to helping,” Hastings said.
She said the contest name came from the idea of giving the artists their first 15 minutes of fame.
“This is the first year for The First 15 contest. It opened in October and will close in mid-December,” Hastings said.
“I think it’s great that this program is reaching out to university and college kids because it is really hard for us to connect with the right people in the music industry,” said Kristine Chau, 20, a Guelph-Humber media studies student who decided to spread the word to other students at Guelph-Humber.
Chau has been handing out Post Cereals T-shirts, putting up posters around Guelph-Humber as well getting the message out online through Facebook and Twitter.
Additional information for The First 15 can be found at facebook.com/TheFirst15.