Terms & Conditions

1. How to Enter

An entry fee payable digitally to VICE Digital Publishing LLC (VDP), is required with each submission to the VICE Playlist Project Song Contest (the “Contest”). Each submission requires a separate fee, and there is no limit to the number of entries per participant. Entry fees are non-refundable under any circumstances.

Submissions must be provided as valid public streaming URL links (e.g., YouTube, SoundCloud). VDP is not responsible for broken, private, removed, geo-blocked, modified, or otherwise inaccessible links. VDP also cannot accept physical .mp3 files.

All submissions must be received by the published deadline. Late, incomplete, or improperly formatted entries may be disqualified at VDP’s sole discretion.

Submissions may include compositions of any creative origin — fully AI-generated, AI-assisted, human/AI collaborative, or entirely original human works.

Submissions will be evaluated based on overall creative merit, including originality, artistic impact, execution, innovation, emotional resonance, and overall impression. Recording quality will not be evaluated except to the extent necessary to clearly present the work. No feedback will be provided.

2. Eligibility

The Contest is open worldwide to songwriters, artists, musicians, producers, technologists, collectives, or teams.

The following are not eligible:

• Employees, contractors, any and all employees of contractors, any and all affiliates of contractors, or affiliates of VDP, or their immediate family members (spouses, parents, children, siblings, and their respective spouses, regardless of where they reside).
• Contest judges, screeners, or contributors
• Employees of Contest sponsors
• Persons living in the same household as the individuals listed above.

By entering, you represent and warrant that all registration information submitted is truthful and accurate, that you have the full legal right and authority to submit the work, and that your submission does not violate any applicable law or regulation.

If you are under 18, parental or guardian permission is required. Void where prohibited.

Winners will be notified via email and/or phone. If a selected winner does not respond within seven (7) days, VDP reserves the right to select an alternate.

3. NIL Compliance & Rights Representations

By entering, you represent and warrant that you have all necessary rights, permissions, licenses, and authority to submit the work and grant the rights described in these Terms. You further represent that your submission does not infringe any copyrights, trademarks, publicity rights, privacy rights, contract rights, or other rights of any person or entity.

Human-Authored Works. If your submission is wholly or partially human-authored, you represent and warrant that you are the original author of all human-created elements of the submission, that such elements are original works of authorship, and that you have the full right and authority to submit and license them as set forth in these Terms.

AI-Assisted or AI-Generated Works. If any AI tools, models, or platforms were used in the creation of your submission, you represent and warrant that you have complied with all applicable terms of service and licensing requirements of any such tools, models, or platforms used. You assume full responsibility for the lawful use of any AI technologies used in the creation of your submission. Entrants acknowledge that copyright protection for AI-generated elements may be limited or unavailable under applicable law, and VDP makes no representations regarding copyright eligibility of such elements. 

NIL Compliance. Submissions may not simulate, replicate, imitate, or otherwise exploit the voice, likeness, name, image, or distinctive characteristics (collectively, “NIL”) of any identifiable individual, including but not limited to artists, celebrities, or public figures. This prohibition applies regardless of whether such simulation was produced by human effort, AI technology, or any combination thereof.

Ownership & Disputes. VDP is not responsible for resolving ownership disputes between collaborators, contributors, or third parties, including disputes involving AI tools, platforms, or generated content. Entrants assume all risk related to authorship, ownership, and rights associated with their submission. VDP is not responsible for any claims, restrictions, or disputes arising from the terms of service or licensing agreements of third-party platforms or AI tools used to create or host submissions.

Verification. VDP reserves the right, at any stage of the Contest, to request additional information regarding the creation of any submission. This may include prompts, workflows, tools or models used, and supporting materials. Failure to provide requested materials, or inability to reasonably verify the creation process, may result in disqualification at VDP’s sole discretion.

4. Content Standards

Submissions may not contain illegal, defamatory, or obscene material, hate speech, discriminatory content, or unauthorized use of third-party intellectual property.

Submissions that violate name, image, and likeness (NIL) rights, including unauthorized voice cloning or impersonation, are strictly prohibited.

VDP reserves the right to disqualify any submission that violates these standards or these Terms at its sole discretion.

5. Content & License

VDP does not claim ownership of submitted materials.

By submitting content, you grant VDP a perpetual, non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to use, stream, transmit, display, reproduce, distribute, and excerpt your submission for purposes of administering, judging, promoting, marketing, and announcing the Contest and its results, across any media now known or hereafter developed.

You agree that VDP may use your name, likeness, artist name, biographical information, and details about your creative process in connection with Contest promotion without additional compensation.

VDP’s use of submitted works does not constitute endorsement of any AI platform or technology. VDP reserves the right to remove or disqualify submissions that become inaccessible or violate these Terms.

6. Judging and Winner Selection

This Contest is a creativity-based event. Submissions will be evaluated based on overall artistic merit, including lyrical composition, melodic strength, originality, emotional impact, and creative execution.

Entries may be screened by industry professionals, technology, technologists, artists, or VDP editorial staff. Finalists and winners will be selected at the sole discretion of VDP and/or designated judges, and all decisions are final.

VDP reserves the right to verify submissions, including the creative process and AI usage, prior to selecting or confirming any winner.

Odds of winning depend on the number and quality of entries received.

7. Prizes

Prizes will be described on the Contest website or in promotional materials.

Prizes are non-transferable and not redeemable for cash except at VDP’s sole discretion. VDP reserves the right to substitute any prize with one of equal or greater value.

Winners are responsible for any applicable taxes, fees, or expenses associated with prize acceptance or use. If a selected winner declines a prize or fails to comply with Contest requirements, VDP reserves the right to select an alternate winner.

8. Promotion & Publicity

By entering the Contest, and agreeing to Section 5 (Content and License), you acknowledge that VDP, its partners, and sponsors may promote the Contest across digital, social, editorial, and paid media channels.

Entrants may be featured in promotional materials, including but not limited to social media, editorial content, email campaigns, and advertisements. Participation in such promotion does not guarantee selection as a finalist or winner.

Entrants agree not to misrepresent their status in the Contest or imply endorsement, partnership, or selection beyond what has been officially communicated by VDP.

Entrants agree to release and hold harmless VDP, its sponsors, partners, and affiliated entities from any and all liability, claims, or damages arising from participation in the Contest or the acceptance, use, or misuse of any prize.

Sponsors are not responsible for the administration of the Contest unless explicitly stated and are not liable for any claims arising in connection with participation.

Note: Promotion Details (prizes, dates, name, additional terms, etc.) to be added

9. Indemnification

By entering, you agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless VDP, its parent companies, subsidiaries, affiliates, officers, directors, employees, agents, partners, sponsors, licensees, and successors (collectively, the “VDP Parties”) from and against any and all claims, demands, actions, damages, losses, liabilities, costs, and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees) arising out of or relating to: (a) any breach of your representations, warranties, or obligations under these Terms; (b) any alleged or actual infringement of any copyright, trademark, trade secret, publicity right, privacy right, or other intellectual property or proprietary right of any third party arising from or related to your submission; (c) the unauthorized use, reproduction, distribution, or display of any copyrighted material, including but not limited to samples, interpolations, sound recordings, musical compositions, lyrics, artwork, or other protected works incorporated into your submission, whether created by human effort, AI technology, or any combination thereof; (d) any violation of NIL rights, including but not limited to unauthorized voice cloning, likeness replication, or impersonation of any identifiable individual; (e) the unlawful or unauthorized use of any AI tools, models, or platforms in the creation of your submission, including any breach of the terms of service or licensing agreements of such tools or platforms; (f) any dispute between you and any co-author, collaborator, contributor, or third party regarding authorship, ownership, or rights in your submission; and (g) any claim by a third party that your submission, or VDP’s authorized use thereof, infringes or misappropriates such third party’s rights.

Your indemnification obligations shall survive the conclusion of the Contest and any termination of these Terms. VDP reserves the right, at its own expense, to assume exclusive defense and control of any matter otherwise subject to indemnification by you, in which case you agree to cooperate fully with VDP in asserting any available defenses.

10. Limitation of Liability

VDP shall not be responsible for technical failures, internet interruptions, streaming link errors, lost submissions, or unauthorized access to submissions.To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, the VDP Parties shall not be liable for any claims, damages, losses, or expenses — whether direct, indirect, incidental, consequential, special, or punitive — arising out of or related to: (a) participation in the Contest or acceptance, use, or misuse of any prize; (b) the content, creation, or submission of any work, whether human-authored, AI-assisted, AI-generated, or any combination thereof; (c) any intellectual property infringement, ownership dispute, or rights claim arising from or related to a submission; (d) the terms of service, licensing restrictions, or downstream claims of any third-party AI tool, model, or platform used in the creation of a submission; or (d) any failure or delay resulting from circumstances beyond VDP’s reasonable control, including acts of God, natural disasters, pandemics, technical outages, platform failures, or governmental actions.

In all cases, VDP’s total aggregate liability to any entrant shall not exceed the Approximate Retail Value (ARV) of the prize at stake.

11. Right to Modify or Cancel

VDP reserves the right to modify deadlines, entry fees, prizes, categories, judging criteria, or Contest details at any time. VDP may cancel or suspend the Contest due to technical, legal, or operational issues.

12. Governing Law

This Contest is governed by the laws of the State of Tennessee without regard to conflict of law principles.

13. Dispute Resolution

Any dispute, claim, or controversy arising out of or relating to this Contest shall be resolved exclusively through final and binding arbitration administered in the State of Tennessee.

By entering, you agree to waive any right to participate in a class action lawsuit or class-wide arbitration. All claims must be brought in an individual capacity.

You further agree that any arbitration shall be conducted on a confidential basis and that judgment on the award rendered by the arbitrator may be entered in any court of competent jurisdiction.