Each act is evaluated on 5 different Scoring Categories:

• Blues Content – the sound and feel of the music, which should be true to the blues. This includes all sub-categories (traditional, contemporary, soul, country, rock, etc.)
• Vocals – the Act’s vocal skills, including concepts such as tone, musicality, meaning, and expression
• Instrumental Talent – the ability level on all instruments featured in the Act
• Originality – original works are encouraged (covers are OK, but should reflect the Act’s own aesthetic)
• Stage Presence – the Act’s visual appearance, personality, charisma, audience engagement, etc

Each Category has a different weight, by which each judge’s raw scores will be multiplied:

• Blues Content = 4
• Vocals = 3
• Instrumental Talent = 3
• Originality = 2
• Stage Presence = 2

Each act is scored from 1-10 for each Scoring Category based on the following guidelines:

• 1-3: typical of a beginning blues band
• 4-5: typical of a local weekend band
• 6-7: typical of an advanced local band not yet ready to headline a major blues club
• 8-9: typical of blues artists that headline major blues clubs
• 10: typical of blues artists who play the main stage at major festivals

Penalties:

• Acts finishing their performance with more than 3 minutes remaining will incur a one-point penalty to their Average Weighted Score.
• Acts’ performances exceeding 25 minutes will incur a one-point penalty to their Average Weighted Score for every 10 seconds, or portion thereof, in excess.
• Acts that are unable to perform following their scheduled preceding act may perform later, but will incur a ten-point penalty to their Average Weighted Score.

Determining Winners:
Judges’ raw scores in each Scoring Category are multiplied by the Category Weight. Weighted scores are summed to determine the acts’ Weighted Totals for each judge. The Acts’ Weighted Totals are summed and divided by the number of judges to decide on their Average Weighted Score. Penalties incurred by an act will be subtracted from their Average Weighted Score. The act in each Performance Category with the highest Average Weighted Score, minus penalties, will win that Category.

In the event of a tie for 1st place in any Performance Category, the winner will be determined as follows:

• The act with the highest Weighted Total from any judge
• The act with the highest Average Weighted Score in each Scoring Category (in preferential order):
  • Blues Content
  • Vocals & Instrumental Talent (combined)
  • Originality
  • Stage Presence
• A majority decision from the judges