Local musicians have until Tuesday, May 25 to enter a contest for a chance to “Play at Home” during Surrey’s virtual Canada Day event.
The winner of the online vote, announced May 31, will receive a performance slot during the evening showcase on July 1, plus a $500 honorarium and $250 gift card to Central City Shopping Centre.
Performance videos should be submitted to the Surrey Canada Day website. From there, a special events committee will select three finalist videos, which will be posted to the event Facebook page from May 27 to May 31. The public will then be asked to vote for their favourite band in a Facebook poll.
Last year, funk-rock band Raincity won the Play at Home contest. Their performance during the livestream can be seen in video posted on the City of Surrey’s Youtube channel, starting at the 2:15:15 mark.
The 2021 virtual event will air July 1 starting at 6 p.m. on the Surrey Canada Day website (surrey.ca/canadaday) as a three-hour livestream, with a family-focused broadcast set to play that morning, from 10:30 a.m. to noon.
“We are so excited to continue to provide this opportunity to connect and engage with the community,” said Mary Rukavina, Special Events Manager at the City of Surrey. “The Play at Home Surrey contest is an excellent way we can safely support local musicians and showcase the incredible talent from Surrey and the Lower Mainland.”
Surrey’s Canada Day livestream will also include a car raffle for a 2021 Honda CRV courtesy of Surrey Honda. All proceeds raised will go to Surrey Firefighters Charitable Society and be dispersed to programs supporting mental health initiatives benefiting charities including Phoenix Society, Centre for Child Development, Sophie’s Place and Tong Louie YMCA.
Raffle tickets are $20, via surreyfirefighters.com/raffle-honda.
“We are thrilled to partner with the Surrey Firefighters Charitable Society and the City of Surrey to raise awareness and funds for mental health initiatives,” said Nasir Kamrudin, owner/GM of Surrey Honda. “This year’s proceeds will support local charitable organizations and critical programs including a new youth program run by Phoenix Society. Our goal is to raise $150,000 through this raffle with 100 per cent of proceeds going to these programs.”
Four of Surrey’s annual “major events” will be held virtually this year, and one is cancelled for 2021. The city’s International Children’s Festival is postponed until 2022. Looking ahead, online-only events are planned for Canada Day, Fusion Festival and also the Nov. 21 Surrey Tree Lighting Festival. The city’s Party for the Planet was held as a virtual event on Earth Day.
tom.zillich@surreynowleader.com
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