menu

The Beyond Music Project

Join the movement, unite and go Beyond

How to
go Beyond

We have successfully completed the fourth edition of the Beyond Music Project and look forward to continuing this creative journey with you.

After producing the first three Beyond Music albums under the guidance of renowned, award-winning producers – Vol.1 with four-time Grammy Award winner Larry Klein, Vol.2 with legendary drummer and composer Manu Katché, and Vol.3 with five-time Grammy Award winners Michael League & Bill Laurance – we were thrilled to introduce new elements and surprises for Vol.4.

Our latest album centers around the theme of “Social Change.” You brought the songs, and we brought the stars. For this edition, the winners had the extraordinary opportunity to collaborate with world-famous, award-winning guest artists: “African Legend” and five-time Grammy Award winner Angélique Kidjo, Afrobeats hitmaker Pheelz, and Ghanaian powerhouse Wiyaala.

Follow the inspiring journey from the first spark of an idea to the full realization of album Vol.4.

Create Impact
through music

A picture of a musician holding up a microphone Play
Musical focus Vol.4
Social Change
A picture of Vol.4 guest artist Angelique Kidjo Play
Guest Artist Vol.4
Angélique Kidjo
A picture of Vol.4 guest artist Pheelz Play
Guest Artist Vol.4
Pheelz
A picture of Vol.4 guest artists Wiyaala and Dodo Play
Guest Artist Vol.4
Wiyaala with Dodo

Procedure &
Schedule Vol.4

1. Collaboration Phase

Connect with professional musicians, composers, singers and songwriters from all over the world within the Beyond Music community. Share your experiences and talk about possible collaborations. Work together on an original piece of music that reflects the musical focus of this year's project, "Social Change". Your collaboration must involve a minimum of three artists, of which at least two hail from different cultural backgrounds in line with Beyond Music's idea of "connecting cultures through music". Any genre or combination of genres is welcome. You are free to choose the style of music. The choice of powerful lyrics is of great importance in Vol.4.

A picture of two female musicians in the songwriting process Play

2. Submission Phase

The submission phase for uploading collaborative songs was open from 12 September 2023 to 16 April 2024, 9 a.m. CET. Each artist can be involved in a total of eight submissions. The same combination of artists in a collaboration can submit a maximum of three songs for the project. We look forward to seeing you participate in various collaborations and hearing your musical versatility and creativity. Music submitted should be semi-professionally recorded. The compositions and recordings must not have been published or released for commercial use prior to upload.

A musician submitting his music via his laptop

3. Winner Selection Phase

For Vol.4, we are working with world-renowned and award-winning guest artists - African legend and five-time Grammy Award winner Angélique Kidjo, Nigerian Afrobeats hit-maker Pheelz, and Ghanaian pop sensation Wiyaala. They have now selected three submissions as their favorite songs. The musical performance was judged based on musicality, vocals, instrumental performance and originality. Apart from that, the main criteria were the significance of the lyrics with respect to the musical focus of the project. Another 20 submissions have been selected to be released on the Beyond Music album Vol.4 along with the Top3 winning songs and will be awarded with a total of up to 85,000 US dollars.

A picture of two synthesizers with various effect pedals Play

4. Song Production Phase

The artists involved in the Top3 winning songs will be invited to travel to a city chosen by the respective guest artist and go into the studio alongside the star. Together they will work on and record their song. We want to create great music pieces and have your messages go around the world. Your songs for “Social Change”. Songs with strong lyrics. Songs with a moving story. Songs that inspires to go above and beyond.

A musician and a producer sitting together in a studio working on a song

Prizes
& Awards

The Top3 winners will each be awarded a collaboration with a star, a globally acclaimed guest artist. They are "African Legend" and 5-time Grammy Award winner Angélique Kidjo, Nigerian Afrobeats star Pheelz and Ghanaian pop sensation Wiyaala.

The artist teams that created the selected songs will be invited to a professional recording session with the guest artist in a studio of their choice to professionally re-produce the song in collaboration with this artist. We will take care of all travel, accommodation, food, transport and the opportunity to perform in a music video with the guest artist. The three singles will be accompanied by a significant marketing budget, so you can be sure that the world will hear your song. We will also enter the three songs in the new Grammy category "Best Song for Social Change".
 
Another 17 submissions will be selected and awarded with a total of up to 85,000 US dollars. In detail: 17 songs will each be honored with an award. The prize money per award is a maximum of 5,000 US dollars. Each member of a winning team will receive 1,000 US dollars for the participation, up to a group size of five members. Collaborations of more than five artists must share the prize money of 5,000 US dollars equally. The songs will be mastered and released with the Top3 winning songs on the Beyond Music album Vol.4.

With a substantial marketing budget, both the album and singles will enjoy global promotion. We want your songs to go around the world and make sure your messages get heard.

All 20 artist teams will benefit from the exploitation of the tracks.

Check out our Conditions of Participation and our FAQ for more information.