How to Enter — Step by Step

Entering takes about ten minutes, and you don't need to be a computer person — this page walks through every click. Doors open at noon on July 24, 2026 at lyrics4life.ca/competition.

Before you start, have these ready

  • An email address you can check right away (your sign-in code arrives there)
  • Your song, recorded as audio — total runtime about 4 minutes (hard limit 4:30)
  • A free SoundCloud account with your track uploaded (Step 3 shows you how)
  • Your typed lyrics, a few sentences on what the song means to you, and $20 for the entry token
  • Under 18? Have a parent or guardian nearby — we'll need their consent

Step by step

1

Sign in with your email

Go to lyrics4life.ca/competition and choose Sign in / create account. Type your email — there's no password, ever. We email you a six-digit code; type it in and you're through.

Code not arriving? Give it a minute and check your spam or promotions folder.

SHOT 1 — the competition landing page with the "Sign in / create account" button
SHOT 2 — the six-digit code screen
Use the same email every time you come back. Signing in with a different address creates a brand-new, empty account — and your entries will look like they've vanished. They haven't; they're on the other email.
2

Set up your artist profile

This is the package the curators (and your fans) will see: your artist name, your category — Youth 13–18, Emerging 18+, or Established 18+ — a bio of roughly 150–300 words, photos if you have them, and your social links.

Tick the Terms of Service box at the bottom (required before entering) and hit Save profile. Under 18? This is where your parent or guardian's name, email, and consent go too.

SHOT 3 — the artist profile form (top half: name, category, bio)
SHOT 4 — the Terms of Service tick box and Save button
Not sure which category? Pick your best honest fit — the competition page describes all three, and L4L may adjust it to keep the playing field level. No hard feelings either way.
3

Put your song on SoundCloud

Your track lives on your own SoundCloud (free account is fine): sign up at soundcloud.com, hit Upload, and add your song as audio.

Two settings matter: make the track public or unlisted (private tracks can't be played by our screening team), and keep the runtime to about 4 minutes — anything over 4:30 is automatically marked ineligible, because stage time at the live final is tight.

Then copy the track link: open your song, press Share, and copy. The right link looks like soundcloud.com/yourname/your-song — not your profile page, not a playlist. (Short on.soundcloud.com links from the phone app work too.)

SHOT 5 — SoundCloud's Share dialog on a track, with the link highlighted
Need to shorten your track later? SoundCloud won't let you swap the audio on an existing track — upload the trimmed version as a new track and paste the new link when you resubmit. It won't cost another token.
4

Create your entry

Back at the competition, hit + New entry. You'll add your song name (12 words max), your typed lyric sheet, what the song means to you (up to 250 words — the curators genuinely read these), your SoundCloud link, and album art if you have it.

Last box: confirm the song is fully yours and original — no AI, no uncleared samples, no publisher owning a piece of it.

SHOT 6 — the New Entry form, filled in
5

The entry token ($20)

Each entry needs one $20 token, and every token supports CHEO. When you save an entry without a token, we'll send you straight to checkout — it opens in a new tab, and when you're done your entry completes itself.

You can also buy a token ahead of time and it'll be waiting in your balance. Either order works.

SHOT 7 — the token checkout page
If the $20 is a barrier right now, we still want to hear your song — email assist@lyrics4life.ca and we'll quietly sort something out. Music first.
6

You're in — here's what happens next

Your entry appears under My entries with a status chip, and we email you at every milestone. What the chips mean:

Needs a token Saved, but waiting on its $20 token.
Pending song URL Paid and saved — just add your SoundCloud link to finish.
Submitted Complete and in the screening queue. Sit tight!
Accepted Passed screening — you're officially in front of the curators. 🎉
Ineligible Something needs fixing; the note on your entry says what. Most entries can be edited and resubmitted free.

You can edit your entry any time until it's accepted. Enter as many songs as you like (each needs its own token) — only one can advance to the final.

SHOT 8 — My Entries showing a couple of entries with status chips

Stuck anywhere along the way? Email info@lyrics4life.ca and a real human will get you unstuck.

The full rules live on the competition page, and quick answers on the FAQ.