King of the Blues - How it works, When & Where, Tracks, Prizes, Media, Rules, FAQ
General
Q: What is Guitar Center's King of the Blues?
Q: What is Guitar Center's King of the Blues?
Guitar Center's King of the Blues is a nationwide amateur guitar skills competition with the
goal of finding the next great undiscovered blues guitar player.
Q: Where do I go?
In order to compete you must sign up at a Guitar Center store. You cannot sign up online or
over the phone. When you go into the store tell any sales associate that you'd like to sign up
for King of the Blues and they will have you fill out an official sign up form.
Q: How long do I have to sign up?
Sign ups start July 1st and run until the 10 contestant spots and 2 alternate spots are filled
at each store, for each of the 3 store preliminaries. There are a total of 30 spots and 6
alternate spots available for each store holding a competition. You can sign up for any of
the 3 store preliminary competitions so long as the spots aren't already full. They do fill up
quickly so don't wait, SIGN UP NOW!
Eligibility
Q: What are the requirements?
Q: What are the requirements?
You must be 16 years of age or older to compete and must be a lawful resident of any of the
48 contiguous United States or the District of Columbia. You must play guitar (or lap steel,
or pedal steel) and you better like the Blues!
Competition
Q: How does the competition work?
Q: How does the competition work?
The competition is broken down into 3 store preliminary competitions: Store Finals (store
prelims and store finals take place in 214 Guitar Center stores); 24 District Finals; 5 Regional
Finals and 1 Grand Final. All stages of the competition take place at a Guitar Center store
with the exception of the grand finals. Grand finals location to be announced.
The contestant with the highest score from each of the 3 store prelims and the contestant with the second highest score from each of the prelims will advance to the store finals. This leaves 6 competitors at each of the 214 store finals. There will be only 1 winner at the store finals. This store winner will go on to compete at one of 24 district finals. From there the 24 district winners will compete at one of 5 regional finals. The 5 regional winners will then go on to compete at the Grand Finals.
The contestant with the highest score from each of the 3 store prelims and the contestant with the second highest score from each of the prelims will advance to the store finals. This leaves 6 competitors at each of the 214 store finals. There will be only 1 winner at the store finals. This store winner will go on to compete at one of 24 district finals. From there the 24 district winners will compete at one of 5 regional finals. The 5 regional winners will then go on to compete at the Grand Finals.
Q: What will I be performing at the competition?
Each contestant will perform live to one of 25 original backing tracks. You perform to the backing
track of your choice. You will get 5 minutes to set up.
In the event of a tie, you will be required to play an additional 2 minutes with no backing track. So be prepared to demonstrate your skills without the backing track as well!
In the event of a tie, you will be required to play an additional 2 minutes with no backing track. So be prepared to demonstrate your skills without the backing track as well!
Q: What are the gear requirements?
Contestants may bring and use any 6, 7, or 12 string acoustic or electric guitar, lap steel or pedal
steel guitar, any audio pedal effects that can be set-up in 5 minutes all, which will be plugged into
a selection of amplifiers, provided by Guitar Center. THE ONLY PERSONAL PIECES OF GEAR A CONTESTANT
MAY USE IS HIS OR HER GUITAR, PEDAL EFFECTS, CABLE, PICK, SLIDE and STRAP! WIRELESS SYSTEMS, BASS
GUITARS, LOOPING EFFECTS, AND POWER AMPS ARE NOT PERMITTED AT ANY LEVEL OF THE COMPETITION. That
means don't bring your own amp!
Q: What amps will the store be providing for me to play on?
There will be 4 of the following amps set up (see below). Keep in mind that the choices will vary from
one store to the next based on availability. Feel free to check with the store ahead of time.
- Marshall DSL100 Half Stack or Haze combo
- Vox AC-30 or AC30CC2X
- Mesa Boogie 2x12 combo, Rectifier Half Stack or Peavy 6505 + Half Stack
- Fender '65 Twin Reverb, Hot Rode Deville 410, '65 Super Reverb or SuperSonic
Backing Tracks
Q: Where do I get the backing tracks?
Q: Where do I get the backing tracks?
All backing tracks are available for free download on the tracks page.
Q: Can I download more than one backing track?
Yes! Feel free to download as many as you like in order to find the one that works best for you. Keep in
mind you will only get to play to one at the competition.
Q: Do I have to bring the backing track I've chosen to the competition with me?
No. The store will have a CD with all of the backing tacks ready for you. However you must know the name
of the tracking you will be playing along to. Very important, please make sure you know the name and not
just the "track #". The last thing you want to worry about right before you go on is to have to search
through all the tracks in order to find yours. Keep in mind you only have 5 minutes to set up!
Q: What do I do if I have problems downloading a backing track?
Please report all download issues here.
Prizes
Q: What do I win?
Q: What do I win?
The Grand prize is $25,000 cash plus:
If you still have questions, please see the official rules or email us here.
- Gibson '59 reissue Les Paul
- Endorsement deals from Ernie Ball, Marshall, Boss, and Gibson
- $2,500 Levi's showroom shopping spree in LA
- Write up in Guitar World Magazine
- Marshall Vintage Modern Half Stack
- Boss GT-10 Multi Effects Pedal
- 2 Boss Pedals
- Feature in Guitar Center Ad campaign
If you still have questions, please see the official rules or email us here.
