All songwriters who have not previously performed at the New Jersey Folk Festival are eligible to apply for its 14th Annual Singer/Songwriter Showcase.  Six “winners” will be afforded the opportunity to perform 20-minute sets during the annual day-long festival on Saturday, April 26, 2008, at the Douglas campus of Rutgers, the State University, in New Brunswick.  Each showcase performer also will receive a $50 honorarium and be included in the printed program.

Singer-songwriters should submit three songs containing original lyrics and music by the featured performer (no covers), along with lyric sheets.  The application deadline is December 15, and entries may be sent in on CD, cassette tape or via Sonicbids.  There’s a $15 application fee; $19.95 via SonicBids.  Artists will be selected to perform based on originality of lyrics, melody and vocal quality. 

2007 Singer/Songwriter Showcase performers included Arlington Priest, Jan Bell and the Cheap Dates, Chris Elliot, Patrick Fitzsimmons, Pat Guadagno and Dave Murphy. 

More information on the New Jersey Folk Festival, a free event that has taken place annually since 1975, is available at www.njfolkfest.rutgers.edu, as is a downloadable showcase application.