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Dolly Parton Songwriters Award

$20,000

Due: January 15, 2026

No essay

No min. GPA required

No transcripts required

Eligibility

Dolly Parton Songwriters Award, with an application deadline in January, offers 2 awards of $20000 each.

Description

The Dolly Parton Songwriters Award is an annual, nationwide competition open to aspiring songwriters. The awards can be used as a career grant for study, instrument purchase, recording costs, or other professional expenses and are not restricted to tuition costs. The award was established in 2015 as the Nashville Songwriting Scholarship by BMI to celebrate the company's 75th Anniversary year. The revised program offers $20,000 for up to two of the best original song entries in any of the following genres: Americana, blues, bluegrass, contemporary Christian, country, folk, or roots. All applicants must be in residence in the United States or its territories. They may only submit one application per BMI Foundation awards program and may not submit the same musical work to more than one BMI Foundation awards program. Applicants may only submit works that have not been assigned to any major music publisher or major record label. They may only apply if they have not previously won the Dolly Parton Songwriters Award or Nashville Songwriting Scholarship. Honorable mentions may apply again. Applicants must submit an audio recording of one original song and an anonymized lyric sheet in any language, containing only the title and text. If the song is in a language other than English, applicants must include an English translation. Co-written works can have no more than 3 total writers. All co-writers must meet eligibility requirements. One single songwriter of record must submit the application. Songwriters can only be the writer of a record on one submission. Songwriters of record and their co-writers can also be co-writers on other submissions. Only songwriters should be listed as co-writers for the award. No other artists should be listed (performers, producers, etc.). Please visit the award's website or contact the BMI Foundation, Inc. for more information.