A Soundscape Creative Catalytic Program
Upstart is where the next sound starts.
One programme. Five tracks. Exchange, funding, stages, broadcast and a weekly room called Loud Friday — built for artistes, DJs, producers, creators and exotic talents who are ready to be heard.
- Cycle
- October 2026 — April 2027
- Tracks
- 5 talent tracks
- Grants
- 15 funded creatives
- Loud Friday
- Every week
What Upstart is
A catalytic pipeline, not a talent hunt.
Exchange knowledge, fund the work, showcase the outcome, tour it nationwide, then award it on Africa's biggest music stage — and keep a weekly room open for everyone coming up behind.
UpstartX Exchange
Peer-to-peer exchange, residency and studio blocks across five tracks.
The Upstart Fund
15 catalytic grants — three per track — awarded live on stage.
An Evening with Morres Sticks
The filmed showcase where the cohort becomes public.
Upstart MVP Category
A permanent emerging-talent category at the Soundcity MVP Awards Festival.
Campus Tour Series
12+ campuses: perform, teach, recruit the next cohort.
Loud Friday
The weekly sonic explosion that sets the weekend rhythm of the city.
Five tracks
Pick the lane you already live in.
Artiste
Singers, rappers, performers. Write, record and perform a finished body of work with a live band behind you.
DJ
Selectors and turntablists. Build a signature set, learn the club economy, hold down a Loud Friday slot.
Producer
Beatmakers, engineers, sound designers. Studio blocks, mix clinics and placement sessions with working A&Rs.
Creator
Directors, editors, photographers and writers documenting the scene. Brief in, campaign out.
Exotic Talent
Dancers, instrumentalists, hype performers and stage acts that make a room move.
Loud Friday
The weekly sonic explosion.
Bootcamp graduates debut as opening acts, residency artists test new material, and international SoundX participants showcase their Lagos-made music. This is the room every emerging artist wants to be in — because the crowd is already listening for what's next.
The foundation
The numbers, unvarnished.
15+
States active
National coverage
150+
Venue destinations
Audience-ready
12+
Campuses
Term-owned partnerships
10k+
Creators waitlisted
Across five tracks
15
Funded creatives
3 grants × 5 tracks
52
Loud Fridays a year
Weekly, without fail
The arc
Seven months. Four moments. One weekly room.
Each phase feeds the next, and Loud Friday runs underneath all of it.
Phase 01
November 2026
UpstartX — the Exchange
Open call, selection and a peer-to-peer exchange pairing emerging talent with working professionals and the international network. Residency and workshops inside the Morres Sticks AV Studio.
Phase 01B
November — December 2026
The Upstart Fund
Small catalytic grants, deliberately sized: enough to finish the record, shoot the video, buy the controller, press the merch. Three creatives funded per track, judged on exchange output.
Phase 02
December 2026
An Evening with Morres Sticks
The showcase after the exchange, at Curate Lagos. Intimate, filmed, industry-heavy — the night the cohort becomes public and the Fund winners are announced on stage.
Phase 03
December 2026
The Upstart MVP Category
A permanent emerging-talent category — Music, DJ and Producer — inside the Soundcity MVP Awards Festival. Broadcast surface no activation can buy.
Phase 04
January — April 2027
Upstart Campus Tour Series
Morres Sticks and The Setup Band, with the exchange counterparts, tour selected campuses. Perform, teach, recruit the next cohort.
Always on
Every Friday, year-round
Loud Friday
The weekly sonic explosion that defines the weekend rhythm of the city. Bootcamp graduates debut as opening acts, residency artists test new material, and international SoundX participants showcase their Lagos-made music.
Applications open
Put your name in the room.
Registration for the October 2026 — April 2027 cycle takes two minutes. Shortlists are published by track.