Chrissie Hynde (The Pretenders), Neon Trees, Iggy Pop, Ryan Bingham, Eve, Carly Simon, Hunter Hayes, and Many More Round Out Judging Panel

November 29, 2012 - Unsigned Only Music Competition today announced its judging panel for the 2013 competition, which is now accepting entries. The panel of judges consists of the top echelon of recording artists and music journalists, representing the ten categories of popular music covered by the competition.

Founders/Directors Candace Avery and Jim Morgan noted, "We are gearing up for another great year of Unsigned Only with even more judges, bigger cash prizes, and another great opportunity to bridge the gap between unsigned artists and the music industry executives who could potentially influence and elevate their careers."

Designed for solo artists, bands, and singers who are not signed to a major label record company, Unsigned Only's goal is to find an outstanding, talented performing artist: a band, singer, or solo artist...a newcomer or veteran...raw or polished - the "gem" that needs to be discovered. Unsigned Only is looking for the total package. The Grand Prize Winner will be awarded $10,000 in cash (plus additional prizes) and one-on-one mentoring by an elite group of record company executives. First Place and Second Place winners will also be selected in each category. Entries are being accepted now until March 14, 2013. Categories include : AAA (Adult Album Alternative), AC (Adult Contemporary), Christian Music, Country, Folk/Singer-Songwriter, R&B/Hip-Hop, Rock, Pop/Top 40, Teen, and Vocal Performance.

Launched in 2011 by the founders of the International Songwriting Competition (ISC), Unsigned Only is a fresh and novel approach to other music competitions. Not only does it offer great prizes, recognition, exposure, and the chance to be heard by a group of judges consisting of high-profile recording artists and industry professionals, but it also takes it a step further and offers the Grand Prize winner the unprecedented opportunity to be mentored by a group of record company presidents, A&R reps, and more. This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance for an artist to directly network with the highest level of record company professionals and get guidance, advice, feedback, and networking opportunities.

2012 Grand Prize winner Lara Johnston states, "being the Grand Prize winner of Unsigned Only has been a definite high point of my career thus far. The mentoring opportunities provided by Unsigned Only are nothing short of incredible: I've had in-depth conversations and meetings with the uppermost gatekeepers and leaders of the music industry. Since winning Unsigned Only, I've garnered invaluable advice from a rich variety of perspectives, and I've had the chance to start relationships with people who can truly help me in my career. I'm excited to see where this all takes me and I would urge any aspiring artist to enter this year's competition - you never know, you might be the next Grand Prize winner!"

The judging panel is comprised of an impressive group of recording artists and top-level music journalists. They include : Chrissie Hynde (The Pretenders); Cyndi Lauper; Iggy Pop; Carly Simon; John Oates (Hall & Oates); Eve; 3 Doors Down; Neon Trees; Brandi Carlile; Hunter Hayes; Manchester Orchestra; Black Francis (The Pixies); Ryan Bingham; Faith Evans; David Crowder; Craig Morgan; Robert Smith (The Cure); Darryl McDaniels (Run DMC); Of Monsters and Men; Wynonna; Aaron Shust; Kirko Bangz; G. Love; Jason Gray; Dustin Lynch; The Mountain Goats; Anthony DeCurtis (Contributing Editor, Rolling Stone); Josh Jackson (Co-Founder and Editor-In-Chief, Paste Magazine); Vanessa Satten (Editor-In-Chief, XXL Magazine); Christopher Weingarten (Senior Editor, Spin); and Chris Richards (Pop Music Critic, The Washington Post).

The panel of mentors who have signed on to participate is equally impressive. Included are: Monte Lipman (President of Universal Republic Records); Pete Ganbarg (Executive VP/Head of A&R, Atlantic Records); Shawn Holiday (Senior VP of A&R, RCA Records and Sony/ATV Music Publishing); Josh Bailey (Sr. VP of A&R, Word Label Group); Kim Stephens (President, Forward Entertainment and A&R/Capitol Music Group); Allison B. Jones (VP of A&R, Big Machine Label Group); Lisa Ramsey-Perkins (Senior Director of A&R, Sony Music Nashville); and more to be announced.

All entries must be original music except for the Vocal Performance and Teen categories, which allow original or cover songs.

SPONSORS
D'Addario, The Music Business Registry and Mrs. Fields Cookies

For more information, please contact Candace Avery at 615.251.4441 or cavery@unsignedonly.com. For entry and general information, please go to http://www.unsignedonly.com

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DAVENPORT – Premier Exhibitions, Inc. and the Putnam Museum announced today that Bodies Revealed will open Saturday, March 9, 2013 at the Putnam Museum in Davenport, IA.  Bodies Revealed will provide the public with an opportunity to see inside carefully preserved real anatomical specimens and learn the detailed structure and function of the human body.

"The Bodies Revealed exhibit is a unique opportunity to SEE the impact of our lifestyle choices - what and how much we eat, whether we smoke, how often we exercise. We are surrounded by messages about the importance of healthy living - for many of us though, seeing is believing that ""an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."" At a time when health policy is on our collective minds, we are excited for the Quad Cities area to take advantage of this exhibit's unique look at the wonders of the human body." - Kim Findlay, CEO/President of the Putnam Museum.

"Trinity is happy to help the Putnam bring this fascinating educational opportunity to the Quad-Cities," said Rick Seidler, President and CEO of Trinity Regional Health System, a sponsor of the Bodies Revealed exhibit. "The body is such a complex system; it will be a real eye-opener for people to see exactly how ongoing exposure to unhealthy habits can impact it."

Trinity and the Putnam Museum are collaborating to coordinate a variety of activities in conjunction with the exhibit, including educational seminars, physician presentations, and prevention and awareness events. Trinity healthcare providers also will help serve as guides during the run of the exhibition.

The Exhibition takes visitors through galleries providing an up-close look inside the skeletal, muscular, reproductive, respiratory, circulatory and other systems of the human body. Many of the whole body specimens are dissected in vivid athletic poses, allowing the visitor to relate to everyday activities. In addition, authentic human specimens illustrate the damage caused to organs by over-eating and lack of exercise. A healthy lung is featured next to a black lung ravaged by smoking in a vivid comparison more powerful than any textbook image.

The human body specimens in the exhibition are preserved through a revolutionary technique called polymer preservation. In this process, human tissue is permanently preserved using liquid silicone rubber that is treated and hardened. The end result is a rubberized specimen, preserved to the cellular level, showcasing the complexity of the body's many bones, muscles, nerves, blood vessels and organs. The full-body specimens can take more than a year to prepare.

 

The Exhibition is currently receiving worldwide acclaim attracting nearly 15 million visitors from cities around the world.

Premier Exhibitions, Inc. is a major provider of Museum quality touring exhibitions throughout the world.

WHAT: Bodies Revealed

WHEN: Saturday, March 9 - July 14

WHERE: Putnam Museum, 1717 W. 12^th Street, Davenport, IA 52804

TICKETS: Mark your calendars, tickets will go on sale February 2013. Because of its popularity and attendance, the Putnam urges guests to purchase advance tickets to ensure admittance to the opening of the Exhibition. Tickets to the Exhibition will be available for purchase in February, at www.putnam.org or by calling 563-324-1933.

Discounted prices are available to groups. Exhibition hours are Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday from 12 Noon to 4 p.m.

Bodies Revealed will be brought to the Putnam Museum through generous support from Trinity Regional Health System; Deere & Co.; and the Quad-City Times.

• Heart Behind the Oval Community Challenge is open to all U.S. high school seniors and college students with a demonstrated commitment to their communities

• Public voting determines three winners who each receive a $2,500 college scholarship and a $2,500 grant to complete a future service project

• Students may enter this year's contest on the Ford Blue Oval Scholars Facebook page until Dec. 14 with a video or photo essay showcasing their current community work and outlining a future project they could complete with more funding

DETROIT, Dec. 3, 2012 - The 2012 Heart Behind the Oval Community Challenge is underway, with the general public registering support for their favorite contest entries through daily online voting.  For this year's contest, Ford Motor Company Fund invited high school seniors and college students to showcase their commitment to their communities in a brief video or photo essay.  Students can submit their entries until Dec. 14.

The three entries with the most online votes will receive a $2,500 college scholarship and a $2,500 grant to a partnering nonprofit to complete a future service project.  Wild Card prizes, including a $1,000 college scholarship and a $1,000 project grant, will be awarded to two entries chosen by a Ford Motor Company judging panel.

For more information or to enter and vote for the 2012 Heart Behind the Oval Community Challenge, please visit http://apps.facebook.com/fordblueovalscholars/

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About Ford Motor Company

Ford Motor Company, a global automotive industry leader based in Dearborn, Mich., manufactures or distributes automobiles across six continents. With about 172,000 employees and about 65 plants worldwide, the company's automotive brands include Ford and Lincoln. The company provides financial services through Ford Motor Credit Company. For more information regarding Ford and its products worldwide, please visit http://corporate.ford.com.

Former Liberal Says Loyalties of the Poor are Misguided
By: Virgil Brannon

With young mothers being showered with expensive poverty and bouquets of dependency; when too many males are making more babies and not raising them; when a large percentage of our youth are graduating from high school not prepared for college, and when the doors of the unemployment office are open, but no one is willing to hire, how can we afford four more years of entitlements?   

How can this government raise taxes on the rich -- the ones who create jobs? This will stop businesses from growing and expanding. If you raise their taxes, the community programs they support - the Little League teams and the civic projects -- will suffer. Students who have put in hard work to get to college, who rely on business-funded college scholarships, may not be able to go. If these businesses fail to produce jobs, more people will fall into poverty and the need for entitlements will prevail.

When you raise taxes on businesses and the rich, you prevent companies from hiring new faces, and force them to turn away the old ones. With no jobs and no recognizable alternative presented by this administration, how can Americans become self-sufficient? As long as the Democratic Party is buying the votes of the economically poor households with free money, poverty will become the new norm because the party is using entitlements to sway votes.

How can America survive if she refuses to stand with her founders on what has always made her great? America is the super power of the world, but now it has been downgraded by entitlements to maintain a status quo? There are Americans struggling to make ends meet; they are struggling to put food on the table. With no focus on any solutions, how can there be any progress? The quick way out of poverty is a job and education. A job gets you out of poverty, and education elevates you to the next level. But how can people remove themselves from poverty when the Democratic Party's system has been a failure from the start? What is so hard about showing those who think they cannot make it without entitlements that they can? What is so hard about showing them the long-term effects and consequences that Food Stamps and Welfare have on a them, and what is so hard about showing those who do not need entitlements the right way to stand on their own, without taking from others who are really in need? I know that most Americans would rather have a hand up than a hand-out.

When you make people believe they cannot achieve anything; make their goals become impossible to reach; and train them to believe that nothing is possible for them, failure thrives.  This leadership would rather we have less, settles for less, and be satisfied with receiving less. Struggling families and single parents who have just a little are not thinking that entitlements will kill their dreams, progress and growth while creating laziness. A young male without money or knowledge turns to crime and tries to take all that he lacks.

We have to show those who do not believe that they have a purpose; that there is something special about each of us in America and that there are plenty of opportunities for them to succeed. They need to know that America is the greatest country in the world, built on the belief that man can do anything and be anything, as long as he is willing to acquire the knowledge to put ideas into action. There is nothing that we cannot do when our minds are focused. We are all human beings, born for greatness, created by the greatest Scientist and Creator of the universe to be the most important species on this planet. We are the only species that has so many unique capabilities and talents. We have the ability to change things to make them better, and we can accomplish anything  because there  is  really  nothing  holding  us back.

But with 46 million people and rising still on food stamps and without hope and 60 million American votes without knowledge, when will the rest of us receive any Change? Either way, America cannot afford four new years of Entitlement while our neighbors suffer from choice in the Democratic Coma.

About Virgil Brannon

Virgil Brannon is the author of "Democratic Coma," www.democraticcoma.com. He is also a private investigator and the founder of I Am Vision Inc., a non-profit program that embraces and empowers youth with academic and leadership challenges. His goal is to promote the personal growth of socio-economically disadvantaged youth and their families by encouraging their dreams and providing members with a roadmap for success. Brannon attended Shepherd's Care Bible College and received his master's and doctoral degrees in ministry religious counseling.