Your music, your EP – recorded at Real World for free!
Record a professional EP at Peter Gabriel’s legendary studio in Box, Wiltshire. Plus get industry mentoring and a live showcase in front of music industry professionals. Open to unsigned artists and bands from the South West – no polished demo needed.
amplified@rw is an incredible new opportunity (funded by Arts Council England) for grassroots artists and bands from the South West of England to record a professional EP at Real World Studios – the iconic studio founded by Peter Gabriel, where The 1975, Beyoncé, Harry Styles and so many other great artists have recorded.
We will be selecting 4-6 acts who will all get a dedicated recording session in one of Real World’s high end studios with in-house engineers, mixing and mastering of their EP, mentoring from industry professionals on publishing, rights and release strategy, and the chance to perform live to an invited audience of music industry professionals at an exclusive industry showcase.
No polished demo required to apply – a voice note, phone video or rough recording is all we need. And tell us about yourself – a few words with some background to your music and what your ambitions are.
If you want to be considered for this opportunity, Click on the ‘Apply Now’ button below and complete the form. Closing date for applications is 11:59pm on the 9th September, 2026.
And do check out our FAQs at the bottom of this page for more details.
Frequently Asked Questions
Submissions will be reviewed by a selection committee of industry professionals including senior staff from Real World Records, WOMAD and Real World’s engineering team.
Applications for amplified@rw close at 11:59pm on 9th September, 2026.
This is an incredible opportunity for the selected artists and includes the following:
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A recording session over 3-4 days in one of Real World’s world-class studios with our in-house engineers to record an EP of 4-5 songs. Includes on-site catering for the duration of the recording. Accommodation is not provided, however, and therefore artists are expected to make their own travel arrangements to and from the studio every day.
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Mixing and mastering of the EP by a Real World engineer.
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Mentoring from industry professionals on publishing, rights and release strategy.
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Exclusive showcase event (at Real World) for the artist to play a selection of songs from their EP to an audience from the music industry (record labels, A&R).
We are looking to select between 4-6 artists / bands.
We are not looking for a specific style or genre. In fact, we are keen on attracting a diverse selection of artists.
We will be recording simultaneously across multiple studios within two recording blocks:
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26/10 – 03/11
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16/11 – 19/11
Artists will be allocated a specific slot during one of these recording blocks.
The date for the showcase event is yet to be confirmed. There will be plenty of notice given to artists to prepare for the event.
Artists need to be based in the South West of England, which means you need to live in one of the following counties: Bath & North East Somerset, Bristol, Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Isle of Wight, Isles of Scilly, North Somerset, Somerset, Wiltshire.
According to the funders of this project (the Arts Council): “By grassroots music, we mean the parts of the music sector where independent artists at any stage of their professional career – including emerging acts – access opportunities to build their skills and to perform.
Grassroots music isn’t only about the beginning of a musician’s journey; it’s also about supporting independent artists, industry professionals and diverse musical genres or scenes that might not get the same exposure in larger venues. Sometimes (though not always) characterised by more intimate spaces, local grassroots music organisations are hubs for their local music scene, developing local talent, and engaging their community – often by providing audiences with opportunities to engage with exciting new talent, as well as by enabling artists to build communities of fans.”
It will depend on who and what is involved. We are aiming to allocate 3-4 days per artist/band for recording, but for some it will take less time and others maybe a little more (for example a solo artist or a duo vs a 10-piece band). Mixing time will be done after the recording amd in addition to the recording days.
Your EP will be mixed and mastered by a Real World engineer. Mixing will take place in the weeks following the recording and not during the recording session. We have earmarked 4 weeks of time for a mixing engineer to mix and master the EPs for all of the artists that we will be recording for amplified@rw.
This is not a record deal. The copyright in the recording is owned by you, the artist. You can choose to self-release or take your music to a record company.
At this time we are not able to offer accommodation.
You are welcome to bring your own producers, otherwise you are welcome to work with our engineers who can take on more of a production role if needed.
Yes Real World will provide all backline, but you are welcome to bring your own gear, of course.
To be eligible to apply for amplified@rw, the artists need to be living in the South West of England and be 16 years of age or older. You also need to be able to travel to and from the studio for the duration of your recording session (which is likely to be for between 3 and 5 consecutive days).