Get ready for New Music January 2026! This annual celebration of Santa Cruz County musicians showcases a collection of brand-new, never-before-seen videos—while also serving as a fundraiser for Legends: Live & Local, our mentorship-driven music series that pairs local artists with iconic musicians for unforgettable performances and career-shaping opportunities.
Videos will be released here, the first week of 2026. 25+ Videos!
Interested in supporting? We are looking for sponsors. Every dollar go straight to promoting the videos. If interested reach out – Matthew@EventSantaCruz.com
Arts Council Santa Cruz County is proud to support New Music January as part of our mission to foster a vibrant and inclusive arts community. By providing local musicians with a platform to showcase their new work, we amplify artists’ voices and strengthen our community’s cultural fabric—connecting musicians, audiences, and collaborators in celebration of Santa Cruz County’s rich and diverse music scene.
Check out the previous years: 2025, 2024, 2023, 2022, 2021
Call for Musicians. Interested in participating? Reach out! Details below 👇
If you’re not familiar with New Music January, here’s the quick rundown:
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Send us a video file.
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It must be a new, never-before-posted video.
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It can be a brand-new song, a new arrangement, an acoustic version, a cover—anything you want to share (full song).
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We’ll upload it to the Event Santa Cruz YouTube channel, and throughout January we’ll promote it like crazy.
What’s new for New Music January 2026?
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Like every year, we’ll be putting paid promotion behind the videos. Some videos from last year hit nearly 70,000 views.
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BUT what we’re really excited about is YouTube’s new collab posting feature.
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The videos will originate on the Event Santa Cruz channel,
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Then we’ll invite you to co-post it on your channel,
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Plus up to three more channels of your choice.
This should massively increase reach and engagement.
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We’re also turning this into a fundraiser for the new monthly music series, Legends: Live & Local, launching in February—where we bring well-known musicians to perform with local musicians. We did a test event a few months ago with Jane Wiedlin from the Go Go’s – Watch here
Interested in being part of New Music January?
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Reply to confirm you’re in (the sooner the better). Matthew@EventSantaCruz.com
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Submit your video file anytime between now and December 20th (Google Drive, WeTransfer, Dropbox, etc.).
This is going to be our biggest New Music January yet, and we’d love to have you join us!
