United States of Song 2022 - Theme Reveal

Theme

Music shares a harmony parallel to nature. Music is the missing voice of what nature lacks to speak. And just like how music is a form of art, art finds its form in nature too. This year's contest will take us to a unique place, one that is naturally musical!

Portland is not only at the crossroads of four magnificent landmarks of nature (the large Washington rainforests & Columbia River to the north, the Pacific Ocean to the west, Mt. Hood -- Oregon's tallest mountain -- to the east, and the Willamette Valley to the south), but it is also the cultural and artistic center of the Pacific Northwest. You can experience the greenery of the Arboretum, partake in Portland's thriving art scene, and take a bicycle ride on any of its over 380 miles of bike paths. It is one of the most supportive cities to bike in all of USA. This year's theme brings together the wondrous nature of Oregon and its music.

(I went through a few different versions of the slogan. All were similarly cheesy, so here you go. At least I didn't make it Oregon Trail themed!)

Logo

The logo includes artistic renditions of the four landmarks mentioned above. They are seagulls flying over the Pacific, a Northwest rainforest, a deer roaming the fertile farmlands of the Willamette Valley, and Mount Hood. These simplified art pieces are sectioned in a similar way to the orientation and dimensions of the city flag of Portland, which celebrates its 20th birthday in September. There are a lot of different colors, which reflects the various scenes and people of Portland, as well as our contest. There's a reason they made Portlandia the way it is. 
State Designs

Along with this year's theme announcement, each confirmed participant - for the first time - will receive their own unique postcard design. Your design, just like the painterly background used to make the banner above, will be randomly generated. We will take elements of your state's name, location, artist, and song title into consideration, and come up with a unique design that will be all your own. I cannot predict what it will look like, but you can expect to see it in some shape or form throughout your experience in this year's edition, and certainly in the music recaps too. It's not as ambitious as it sounds, but I'm very excited to see how it turns out.

(the more I write this out the more it starts to sound like I'm making NFTs, I swear to god it's not that lol)

Below is an example, using the keywords "United States of Song Portland Oregon Naturally Musical 2022":


What do you think of the theme? Let us know your thoughts below. ^v^

Now that the theme is completed, I can actually move on to working through the submitted entries and we can start working with y'all to approve them. Because of that, I'm moving the deadline for song submissions back a week, to the 20th. I've posted more about it in the update thread. Once your entry is confirmed, you can publicly post it if you wish and we will send you your unique naturally musical design!

Good luck!