Music lovers in London are invited to vote for their favourite cover and tribute band in this year's Made in London 2021 Summer Concert Series.
Classic Rock 98.1 FM has teamed up with the Forest City London Music Awards again to support local, Canadian artists whose performances were put on hold due to COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. A total of eight bands are battling it out for the title of tribute band of the year and cover band of the year.
Mario Circelli, chair of the Forest City London Music Awards said the board was determined to find a way to allow the bands to perform and get some recognition while following public health guidelines.
"This is the best of both worlds. The bands weren't able to play live, but they were able to [record] performances for us and now we're letting the public determine who the winners are," Circelli said.
The series started on Sunday and featured nightly shows from bands playing tribute to iconic performers such as Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers, Led Zeppelin and Elton John. Unique cover bands playing rock tunes ranging from the early 70s to late the 90s are also featured in the competition.
"We could not be more proud of the local artists and musicians who have survived COVID, minus the ability to practice with their bandmates, and without having access to paid gigs," said Becky Malacaria, marketing and promotions manager for Classic Rock, 98.1.
"The nominees are all super fantastic," Circelli added.
Wednesday night will feature the competition's final two shows from Guns N' Roses tribute band Rocket Queen and the Geoff Masse Band cover band that's slated to play an array of classic rock favourites.
Once the votes are counted, the winning bands from each category will get an encore performance on Canada Day at 8 p.m.
Circelli hopes next year things will look a little more normal.
"Moving forward, instead of having a live stream we hope we'll have a series of [in-person] concerts that people can attend leading up to voting."
The pre-recorded shows can be viewed on the Classic Rock 98.1 Facebook page, while the final two shows will air at 8 p.m. Wednesday. The stream can be viewed on the Classic Rock Facebook page or be heard by tuning into 98.1 FM.