E18 launched its flagship event Independence Rock on the 20th of October at Hard Rock Café in Mumbai. This year Independence Rock has teamed up with MTV India and is being presented by MTS Red Energy.
The Press Conference Launch was attended by Special Guest, Imran Khan, Bollywood celebrity and youth icon, Gary Lawyer, Rock Musician, Amitesh Rao, Brand & Marketing, MTS India, Farhad Wadia, founder of IRock and CEO, E18 and Aditya Swamy, EVP, MTV India.
After 25 years of bringing the best in Rock Music to audiences in India, E18 is taking IRock (as it is fondly called) to the next level. For the first time, IRock is going to go LIVE on MTV & VH1 Simultaneously from 5 cities – Mumbai, New Delhi, Bangalore, Kolkata & Pune – on the 27th of November.
The format of the event has been tweaked to incorporate more music, more fans and more rock!
Bands will register their entries on http://www.mtsredenergy.com/irock/ where they will submit 1 original song, a short bio and a band photograph. All this information will be reviewed and judged by an esteemed panel of judges appointed by E18. 8 bands will be chosen as qualifiers in each of the 5 cities. These bands will compete over a period of 2 days at the end of which, 1 winner will be decided. The audition rounds will be held at the Hard Rock Café in New Delhi, Mumbai, Pune and Bangalore and The Park Hotel in Kolkata. The five regional winners will then be brought to Mumbai to compete at the All India National Final on November 26th, 2011 at Chitrakoot Grounds, Andheri.
There will also be a special Wildcard Entry slot which can be won by any of the bands that register. All they would have to do is create a social medium via the registration website (Facebook/Twitter handle) and promote it as much as possible. The activity on these pages, which is being labeled “Red Energy” will be calculated based on their social/digital activity, the number of interactions they have on these mediums, and most importantly, the number of fans they can gather. Of the top 10 bands with the most “red energy”, 1 band will be chosen as the Wildcard. This band will get that unique opportunity to circumvent all the auditions and secure a place in the final.
The winner of the All-India Competition will be crowned the winner after the competition and will then go on to head-line the LIVE concert in Mumbai on the following day. The 27th of November will be a day to remember in Indian Rock history – there will be concerts held in all 5 cities between 5pm and 10pm which will be broadcast live. The regional bands that do not win, will still win a spot as the opening act at the concerts in their respective cities. Each opening act will be followed by 4 of the best professional bands in those cities.
The schedule is as follows:
- Kolkata Auditions - November 7th & 8th, 2011
- Mumbai & Pune Auditions – November 9th & 10th, 2011
- New Delhi & Bangalore Auditions - November 16th & 17th, 2011
- All India Final - November 26th, 2011
- Grand Finale Simulcast – November 27th, 2011
Independence Rock has been the platform where the country’s leading bands have made their debut. It is a landmark event which every aspiring musician dreams of being a part of – on or off stage. Every band that has ever played at I-Rock has gone on record to say that it was the best experience, with the most enthusiastic crowd on the most exhilarating stage.
Independence Rock has now become a household name with accolades from various forms of media receiving extensive coverage every year from several news publications, online magazines and blogs.
Speaking of the 26th year of IRock, Farhad Wadia, CEO, E18, said, “E18 is extremely happy to partner with MTS & their Red Energy initiative for Independence Rock XXVI as both initiatives target the Youth of India and through MTS’s massive user base we hope to reach out to even more people this year and make them experience the Best Live Music Festival in India as we create Broadcast & Music History by going out LIVE on MTV and VH-1 this year for the first time ever from 5 cities simultaneously!”
Speaking about the event, Imran Khan, Bollywood Star and Youth Icon said, ” I am excited to be a part of the 26th edition of MTV Independence Rock brought alive by MTS Red Energy. It is a platform which has introduced some of the most famous rock bands to India. I’ve always been a big fan of rock music, and I have great memories of attending I Rock over the years. I’m hoping to see some great new bands along with old favorites.”
According to Amitesh Rao, Director – Brand & Media, MTS India, said “Our association with Independence rock is part of MTS Red Energy, which is a platform designed to offer talented and digitally active young people a great way to leverage their online status to get real world benefits. In this case, MTS Red Energy offers talented bands a shot at winning a wildcard entry into the finals of Independence Rock, based on their online activity and engagement with rock music fans.”
Ferzad Palia, Head VH1 said: “Vh1 India has partnered with iRock since its launch 7 years ago… We’re proud to take this partnership to the next level with LIVE simulcasts & other exciting stuff we’re doing with the new Rock talent… Vh1 will take this talent to the next level!”
Aditya Swamy, EVP & Business Head, MTV India said “I grew up going to I Rock and now to be a part of it is unbelievable… MTV will now take this iconic property LIVE for the first time and showcase the music not just from Bombay but from the other 4 cities as well… So a historic property makes history once again”
Photos from the Event:
