Judging

Our annual category winners are judged by an elite panel of judges. Our judges are Grammy and Billboard award winners, music industry professionals, music buyers and fans. Songs are judged on composition, musicality, melody, marketablility, lyrics and originality. The quality of the production and performance will not be considered.

The Judging Panel

Anne Catalino
Anne Catalino is a Grammy and Dove Award-winning sound engineer, producer and mixer based in Los Angeles, CA. She has been named #1 R& B Mixer and #1 Engineer by Billboard Magazine. She has worked with artists such as Whitney Houston, Boyz II Men, Wynonna Judd, Gladys Knight, Deborah Cox, Ice Cube, Yolanda Adams and many others. In her spare time, Anne DJ’s and plays the keyboard.

Scheila Gonzalez
Scheila Gonzalez is a world-class multi-instrumentalist based in the Los Angeles area. Her skills and experience on woodwinds, keyboards and vocals keep her in high demand. Scheila has toured extensively in Europe, Japan, the United States and Canada. Over the years this versatile artist and educator has performed and recorded with artists such as Sheila E., Pete Escovedo, Ray Parker Jr., Billy Preston and many more. Some of her television appearances include The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, the BET Music Awards, Late Night with Conan O'Brien and Craig Ferguson's Late, Late Show. She can also be seen in the Christopher Guest film "For Your Consideration".

Marti Amado
Marti Amado is a composer, arranger and producer as well as a classically and jazz trained keyboardist and vocalist. With a degree from Northwestern University’s School of Music in Chicago, Marti began her musical career writing and producing music for commercials in Chicago and Nashville.
Relocated to Southern California, Marti now writes music for TV and radio as well as recording and producing records for commercial release. Record projects include "I'll Be Home for Christmas" for MCA Records. Recent television projects as composer, arranger and producer include The Odyssey TV Network (a project featuring The Muppets for which she won a PRO-MAX Gold Medallion Award), and scoring for Entertainment Tonight and NBC Television Network. Marti has performed or recorded with top artists including Kenny Rogers, Michael Bolton and many others.

Josquin des Pres
Josquin des Pres is a lifelong music impresario. As a renowned producer, songwriter, musician, manager, studio owner and prolific author, Josquin has consistently maintained the respect of his peers throughout the music industry. He grew up in France, where at age 19 he landed his first record deal with RCA Records. After touring the world with some of the biggest acts in France and becoming one of the most sought-after session bassists in the region, Josquin moved to Southern California. In the late 1980s, Josquin began a long-time collaborative writing partnership with Bernie Taupin, the legendary lyricist for Elton John. Taupin and des Pres have co-written several songs that have been covered by artists around the globe. His collaborations and numerous covers lead to publishing contracts with Warner Chappell Music, EMI Music, and many others. Josquin has produced and recorded hundreds of projects, and is the owner of Trackstar Recording Studio in La Mesa, CA. He most recently worked with American Idol contestant Carly Smithson.

Vidais Lovette
Vidais Lovette is a sound engineer, mixer and producer, and owner of Lovette Productions in Hollywood, CA. Vidais brings over 25 years experience as a musician and producer. His work has been featured for many years on the nationally-syndicated Tom Joyner Morning Show. He has also worked with several artists such as Joy Enriquez.

Shyla Marie
Shyla Marie is a singer/songwriter, entrepreneur, music educator and promoter from Southern California. Her music has been described as “heartfelt soul music,” uniquely blending Jazz, Pop and R&B together. She has been nominated for numerous indie songwriting awards. Shyla Marie has also taught vocal music performance in both Los Angeles and San Diego County for 17 years, where she has developed young singers into seasoned professional performers. She is also the founder of the Independent Singer Songwriters Association, which she created to give performance and marketing opportunities to Independent music artists.

Samara Renee
Samara Renee is a music fan and buyer from Los Angeles County, California. She is a recent Visual Arts graduate from Cal State San Marcos and has over six years experience as a vocalist and choreographer. She has put her talents to good use by working in the events and media profession focusing on marketing indie music to the masses with Nibbay Events and Media.