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Competitions/International Acoustic Music Awards

International Acoustic Music Awards 2026.

with International Acoustic Music Awards — in its 23rd year, with the 22nd annual winners published by artist, song and category — Sawyer Fredericks, Johnnyswim and Weary Ramblers among them · listed Aug 2Verified · Aug 2
Closes
November 6
eight weeks
Entry
$35 per song
non-refundable — Rule 3
You could win
No cash
$11,000 of merchandise and services to the Grand Prize winner
Your rights
“Entrants and their collaborators will retain full rights to all work submitted for the competition” — Rule 5.
A publicity-rights note: Rule 6: “Entry constitutes permission to use winners names, likeness and voices for future publicity and advertising purposes without additional compensation.” A publicity grant over winners, not a claim on the song — the same clause shape appears in ISC’s Rule 10 and the John Lennon Songwriting Contest’s Section 5.

The clearest thing about IAMA’s prize is what it is not. Rule 7 describes the Grand Prize as “US$11,000.00 worth of merchandise”, first prizes as “US$900.00 worth of merchandise and services” and runners-up as “US$600.00 worth of merchandise and services”. There is no cash component anywhere in the rules, so the entry fee and the prize are in different currencies: $35 out in money, goods and services back.

What comes with it is distribution — every first-place and runner-up winner gets “a track on IAMA compilation CD which goes out to radio stations”. Rights are handled cleanly in Rule 5, and Rule 6 is the usual publicity permission, quoted above. Entries must be postmarked by November 6, 2026; winners are determined by January 31, 2027.

The record
Who can enter
Writers and artists worldwide across six categories — Best Male Artist, Best Female Artist, Best Group/Duo, Folk, Alternative and Acoustic Open Genre. At least one acoustic instrument or voice must be clearly audible.
What it costs
Rule 1: “US$35.00 (US currency only)” per song. Rule 3: “Entry fee is non-refundable.”
The prize
No cash. Rule 7: Grand Prize “US$11,000.00 worth of merchandise”; category first prizes “US$900.00 worth of merchandise and services”; runners-up “US$600.00 worth of merchandise and services”. First-place and runner-up winners also receive “a track on IAMA compilation CD which goes out to radio stations”.
Rights, plainly
Rule 5: “Entrants and their collaborators will retain full rights to all work submitted for the competition.” The publicity permission in Rule 6 is a separate clause family and is quoted above.
Dates
Rule 1: “All entries must be postmarked by November 6, 2026 or earlier.” Rule 6: “Winners will be determined by January 31, 2027.”
Source
IAMA rules and prizes page (inacoustic.com/rules-prizes) and winners page, both captured August 2, 2026.
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You could win
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The contest page carries no rights, licence or ownership clause — captured August 2, 2026.
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Entry
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You could win
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The license has no stated end date — Section 5 (Content).
A heads-up: Section 5 (Content) takes a licence over what you send and never states how long it lasts. Scope, duration and revocability are what a licence means — an ownership disclaimer standing next to it settles none of them, so this is the question to put to American Songwriter in writing before you enter.
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