The Soundtrack of Your Year

The Prompt

In the Beat community, we know that music isn’t just background noise—it’s the heartbeat of our lives, marking the highs, lows, and everything in between. As the year comes to a close and Spotify Wrapped reveals our most-played songs, think about what your own year in music would look like. Which songs were there when you needed them most? What music played during your happiest days or accompanied you through moments of quiet reflection? Write an essay or story that weaves together your personal soundtrack of the year, showing how each song represents a chapter of your journey and resonates with your growth, resilience, or joy.

In order for your submission to qualify, it must be:

• A story, 1,000 to 2,000 words in length
• Must be published on Beat and include music embeds from Spotify, YouTube, etc. Your story will be disqualified if it is submitted to any other community.
• Submitted to the Beat community

The Prizes

• Grand Prize: $500
• Second Place: $200
• 15 Runners-Up: $25 each

For your story to be eligible, it must be between 1,000 to 2,000 words and adhere to our Community Guidelines.

Stories published on Vocal and entered into the contest up until January 2, 2024, at 11:59 PM EST will be entered for consideration. Official Rules for the Challenge can be found here.

The Soundtrack of Your Year Challenge is is exclusive to Vocal+ members. To learn more and upgrade to Vocal+, visit https://vocal.media/vocal-plus.

To be eligible to win the grand prize, second place, or runners-up prizes, you must be over the age of 13 and reside in a country where Stripe is available at the time of entry. A complete list of countries where Stripe is available can be found here—winners will need a Stripe account created and connected to receive prizes. Entrants located outside of these countries will not be eligible to win.