Ten singer-songwriters have been named as finalists in the 2018 Rocky Mtn Folks Festival Songwriter Showcase and will open the festival on August 18 as they perform on its main stage in Lyons, Colorado – a historic quarry town, 15 miles north of Boulder, in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. They also will perform during in-the-round sessions in the Wildflower Pavilion on Aug. 18 and 19 – where songwriting workshops will take place throughout the weekend.

The singer-songwriter competition – open to anyone who writes and performs original music and who is not currently signed to a major recording or publishing deal — drew more than 300 song entries from around the world. A panel of music industry professionals judged the entrants on the quality of the song’s composition, vocal delivery, and the overall performance.

This year’s finalists include Clint Alphin (Nashville, TN), Jackson Emmer (Carbondale, CO), Monica Marie (Lyons, CO), Brian Pounds (Austin, TX), Jobi Riccio (Denver, CO), Emily Scott Robinson (Greensboro, NC), Kira Small (Nashville, TN), Mike Stocksdale (Culver City, CA), Ira Wolf (Nashville, TN), and Frankie Zwick (Nashville, TN). J. Klein (Tampa, FL) and Jana Pochop (Austin, TX) were named as alternates.

During their main stage performances, a panel of judges will evaluate their songs and select the winners based on a scoring criteria that includes quality of composition (50%), vocal rendering (25%), and quality of delivery (25%). Following the Songwriter Showcase, the winners will be announced from the main stage. The first-place winner will receive a Main Stage set during next year’s festival, along with a Taylor guitar and $400, while cash prizes also will be awarded to the other finalists. Heather Mae (Washington, DC) was the 2017 winner.

More information on the Rocky Mtn Folks Songwriters Showcase and the festival of which it is a part may be found online at www.bluegrass.com/ folks/contests.html.