Welcome to The Gauntlet

This is no ordinary open mic.


What makes The Gauntlet any different?

The Gauntlet is an artist’s ticket to greatness. It’s a chance to challenge yourself to be a better performer and ultimately a better artist.

Amateur hour is over my friends. It’s time to step it up and challenge yourself to be better. The entertainment industry is not a kind one. If you want to be an entertainer, you have to get used to being rejected, being challenged and being responsible.


Here are the ground rules:

  1. NO MICKEY MOUSE SH*T
  2. No more backing vocals. If your track has backing vocals, do it a capella.
  3. No more reading off your phone or notebook.
  4. Don’t be afraid. If you slip up, that’s okay, but you better fix it next time.

At the end of the night, we ask all the performers to stay for a quick optional workshop where we can talk through what was good and what was not so good about your performance. We want to help you be better. Constructive criticism only. Take it with a grain of salt.


What's in it for you?

Besides helping you be a better performer; we also offer headliner spots to the best performers. The performers who show up to the workshop are the ones who show that they not only want to be better, but it’s an active step towards getting better. People who want to be better are headliner material.

Being a headliner for The Gauntlet is a paid gig and opens opportunities to perform in larger events like The Urban Renaissance. But these headliners don’t get off easy either. Being a headliner comes with expectations too. We want to give you, the artist, real world experience in the industry. If you want to be a headliner, then you need to put asses in the seats. In other words, you need to sell tickets. Labels don’t sign artists who don’t sell tickets. Music festivals don’t invite artists who don’t sell tickets. The Gauntlet doesn’t headline artists who don’t sell tickets.