VH1, Ingrid Michaelson Announce 'We Are All Blood Brothers' Contest

Today, Platinum, Indie-Pop singer/songwriter Ingrid Michaelson, VH1 and the VH1 Save The Music Foundation joined forces for the We Are All "Blood Brothers" Contest, inviting middle and high school music groups to record a video version of Ingrid's song "Blood Brothers." Young music enthusiasts across the country are encouraged to rally their school music programs, grab their instruments, get together their band, acapella groups, orchestras, and anything in-between to record their school's version of the song and submit it to http://www.vh1savethemusic.com/contest.

Submissions will begin on August 8th and run through October 1st, after which, the videos will be hosted on http://www.vh1savethemusic.com/contest and www.ingridmichaelson.com so that fans, friends and family can vote through October 8th to select the finalists. While on her fall acoustic tour (dates below) Ingrid Michaelson will choose the Grand Prize winner and announce the lucky fan from her Orlando, FL show on October 15th. The Grand Prize winner will receive a performance from Ingrid at their school during the 2012-2013 school year, as well as a new Yamaha keyboard for their music program. Several runners up will also receive exciting prizes.

"Earlier this year I had the opportunity to perform with Staten Island's PS 22 Chorus, a VH1 Save The Music Foundation grant recipient, and was truly inspired by their talent. Every child should have the chance those students do to experience music at school, but with music budgets being cut, it's rare," said Michaelson. "The work that the VH1 Save The Music Foundation is doing will help put instruments in the hands of kids across the U.S. and I'm so thrilled to be able to help."

The VH1 Save The Music Foundation is a non-profit dedicating to restoring instrumental music education programs in our nation's public schools. Since its inception in 1997, the Foundation has provided more than $48 million in new musical instruments to 1,800 public schools in more than 100 cities around the country, impacting the lives of over 1.8 million children. Thanks to the generous support of celebrities like Ingrid Michaelson and the VH1 Save The Music Ambassadors, including Katy Perry, Daughtry, Lupe Fiasco, Jordin Sparks, Matthew Morrison, Vanessa Carlton, AJ McLean and Gavin Rossdale, the Foundation is able to generate awareness about the importance of music in a child's education.

"We are absolutely thrilled to have a performer like Ingrid Michaelson challenge students across the country to pick up their instruments," said Paul Cothran, Vice President & Executive Director of the VH1 Save The Music Foundation. "Music and the arts unites us all and Ingrid's song 'Blood Brothers,' as well as this contest, are great examples of that. With her help, we can show the power of music and come one step closer to achieving our goal of ensuring that no child be deprived of access to a complete education, which includes music."

For more information, contest rules or to see how you can get involved please visit www.vh1savethemusic.org.

ABOUT INGRID MICHAELSON

Ingrid Michaelson has earned enviable name-recognition thanks to her knack for crafting beautiful, idiosyncratic songs, many of which have wafted out of your television in handfuls of Grey's Anatomy episodes (not to mention countless other series such as American Idol, Parenthood, and So You Think You Can Dance), in an affecting Google Chrome ad, and on VH1 as an artist You Oughta Know. She has sold over 900,000 albums and 3.5 million singles on her own label, ending up on the cover of Billboard Magazine as "the new paradigm" in the music industry. Her latest album, "Human Again," on Cabin 24 Records/Mom + Pop was her highest-selling debut yet, reaching #1 on iTunes and Top 5 on the Billboard sales chart in its first week.

INGRID MICHAELSON TOUR DATES

September 30 Ann Arbor, MI Power Center
October 1 Grand Rapids, MI Covenant Fine Arts Center @ Calvin College
October 3 Lawrence, KS Granada Theatre
October 4 Columbia, MO The Blue Note
October 5 Milwaukee, WI Turner Hall Ballroom
October 6 Iowa City, IA Englert Theatre
October 7 Green Bay, WI Meyer Theatre
October 10 Columbus, OH LC Pavilion
October 12 Cincinnati, OH Taft Theatre
October 13 Knoxville, TN Bijou Theatre
October 15 Orlando, FL Beacham Theatre
October 16 Fort Lauderdale, FL Culture Room
October 18 Savannah, GA Trustees Theatre @ Savannah College
October 19 Nashville, TN Ryman Auditorium (with Rufus Wainwright)
October 20 Atlanta, GA Tabernacle (with Rufus Wainwright)
October 22 Durham, NC Carolina Theatre (with Rufus Wainwright)
October 24 Wilmington, DE World Cafe Live
October 25 Harrisburg, PA Whitaker Center
October 26 Portsmouth, NH The Music Hall
October 27 Lebanon, NH Lebanon Opera House
October 31 Tarrytown, NY Tarrytown Music Hall