UploadSounds 2024: Supermarket wins. Cheyenne and Tom Joseph also on the podium. Best under 21 is Rico
The winners of the UploadSounds 2024 contest, now in its sixteenth edition, are Supermarket. The verdict came after a long day of auditions held at Basis in Silandro on Saturday, October 26. Twelve finalist projects, selected from among 130 entries on the Euregio music platform, performed before a jury of prominent industry professionals.
It was a tough choice for the judges, who had to decide after listening to live performances by some of the most interesting young musical talents from Trentino, South Tyrol, and Tyrol. In the end, Supermarket emerged as the winners: more than just a band—what they prefer to call "a collective"—and a label for songwriters, rappers, and producers from South Tyrol. Founded in 2021 by producer Ocra.m and songwriter/producer Thomas Traversa, Supermarket now includes around fifteen members, all with a single goal: to create music outside the bounds of labels and competition. The collective manages every aspect of the Supermarket project, independently handling production, recording, graphics, videos, and releases, drawing from hip hop, R&B, electronic, and reggae influences. Their debut album, SUPERMARKET Vol.1, was released in 2023, following three singles, Sogno Nitido, Mary Pain, and Maniche Larghe, which garnered significant attention, especially in Bolzano and surrounding areas. Also in 2023, Supermarket won the Suoni Universitaricontest, which gave them the opportunity to open for BNKR44 and Sethu in concert.
In second place in the contest was the project Cheyenne, the stage name of Patrizio Mimiola, born in 1999 in Riva del Garda and a graduate in jazz drums and percussion from the Trento Conservatory. His instrumental music fuses modal jazz with electronic elements, using synths and effects. Accompanied by Lorenzo Amarri on keyboard, Tufix on trumpet, and Zait on bass, Cheyenne takes listeners on a journey with UK jazz atmospheres, which impressed the UploadSounds judges. In third place was Tom Joseph, a well-regarded solo project by Andreas Steiner, an artist, producer, and manager from Völs in Tyrol. With just guitar, voice, and a rich atmosphere, he explores a blend of indie folk, blues, neo-soul, and pop.
The award for the best under-21 project went to rico, the musical project of Rico Trentini, a young talent from Trento who started playing music self-taught at the age of 13. A participant at the 2023 Upload School, rico plays guitar, keyboard, and drums, writes, records, and produces his own songs. He also has experience as a keyboardist in other bands and is currently studying at the BIMM College of Music in Dublin.
The four winning projects were awarded on stage at Basis, just before the final party. This year, the value of the prizes for the top winners was significant, with a total prize pool of 16,000 euros, to be used through targeted services to support the professional and musical growth of the respective music projects. The Supermarket, as first place winners, receive 7,000 euros, 3,500 euros go to the second-place winner and the best under-21, and 2,000 euros are awarded to the third-place winner.