I was asked to write a bit about what it takes to be a Creative Commons Community Music Awards (CC CMA) judge for the 2021 edition of the awards.
Executive Summary: The judge picks 5 recording artist nominees from their region to be voted upon. As the name implies, the recording artist must license some of their work under a Creative Commons license.
Details:
I. Criteria
The judges can use whatever criteria s/he wants. Most judges use album release date, as the regions are large, so it is difficult to cover the local scene for an entire region.
If you have a question, other than how to a find stuff, you are probably over-thinking it. You literally just give me 5 nominees from your region that release under Creative Commons. This is ridiculously simple.
That said, I have included some questions I have gotten below.
II. Why?
There are many layers to why we are doing the awards. Specifically for the regions, it is a way for judges to learn their local scene.
III. What sites?
You can use any site. Literally. Any. Site. If you don’t know what a Creative Commons license symbol is, or how to look that up on the Internet, you probably are not going to find being a judge a good experience.
That said, the real question is, does that site have licensing metadata? Spotify does not give licensing data, but you could listen on Spotify and then verify the license through another source.
There tons of music sites out there. If you don’t see the CC logos on the site, then it’s probably not a place to find CC music. If you have questions, just ask!
Bandcamp is my personal favorite.
Jamendo seems to not be updating (the 2018 year in review is still on the home page), but more than that they do not give city information, which makes it very difficult for US judges. For international judges, Jamendo is an excellent choice.
YouTube is not going to be a good resource because the license is for the video, not the song. Some musicians will post license details in the details, but YouTube is just not a reliable source.
III. B. Netlabels
Netlabels sites are a good resource, particularly if you have a particular aesthetic. There are too many to list. Below are a handful of active ones, in case you find the list at ClongClongMoo confusing.
Releases
Catàleg/Catalogue
blocsonic.com
http://bonimedia.pl
IV. How to contact?
My email is doug@blocsonic.com, but I am easy to find around the Internet. There are not a lot of Doug Whitfield’s in Minneapolis.
We have a private facebook group. Once you pick a region, I can add you.
V. Where are previous winners listed?
http://ccmusicawards.com
VI. Deadline
Jan 15, 2021
VII. What regions are available?
Central America and Carribean
Canada
Africa
Oceania (aka Australia and company)
VIII. What genres?
Any genre. Any language. The only requirement is that the musician be releasing some of their work under a Creative Commons license. Also, see Section I.
IX. Where do I take notes?
You can take notes wherever you like. Being a judge is like being king of a region, it’s just your only power is giving us 5 Creative Commons nominees.
I use a Google Spreadsheet per region.
X. Where do I submit?
For now, just send your nominees to Doug, though we should probably have a better process in case Doug rides his bike off a cliff. Yes, Doug is mixing third and first person. I don’t know why.
TBC…
Douglas A. Whitfield
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