Rules

Official Contest Rules

Eligibility

Entrants must be 21 years of age or older at the time of entry.

Entrants must submit all required information and materials by the stated deadline to be eligible for consideration.

All entries are subject to review and approval before becoming publicly visible or eligible for voting.

Groove Cruise/Whet Travel and DJ Lovers Club reserve the right to reject or remove entries that are incomplete, fraudulent, inappropriate, violate contest requirements, or otherwise fail to meet eligibility standards.

Co-Sponsors and Judging Partner

The Contest is co-sponsored by Groove Cruise/Whet Travel and DJ Lovers Club, collectively referred to in these Rules as the “Sponsors.”

DJ Lovers Club will participate in Contest administration, entrant review, promotion, and judging as described in these Official Rules.

DJ Lovers Club will participate with Groove Cruise/Whet Travel in the Top 20 review used to select the Top 10 finalists.

The final winner will be selected by the designated artist judging panel.

Submission Requirements

Entrants must submit a 30-minute DJ mix.

Video submissions are highly encouraged, but audio-only submissions will also be accepted.

For video submissions:

• Entrant must be visible performing the DJ mix.
• File format must be MP4.
• Maximum file size is 10 GB.
• ZIP files are not accepted.
• Recommended video bitrate is 5,000–6,000 kbps.
• Editing software may be used for final video assembly.
• Background visuals are permitted.

Audio-only submissions must be provided using an approved upload or supported link method made available through the Contest platform.

Submission of a video does not guarantee advancement, and submission of an audio-only mix does not automatically disqualify an entrant.

Entry Information

Entrants may be asked to provide:

• First name
• Last name
• Stage or artist name
• Email address
• Phone number
• Country
• Location
• Social media handles
• Short artist bio
• Previous performance experience
• DJ mix
• Other information reasonably required to administer the Contest

Social media handles, artist bio, and previous performance experience may be optional unless otherwise stated on the entry form.

Public Voting

Approved entrants will participate in the public voting round.

Eligible individuals may cast one free vote per day for each entrant through the official Contest platform.

Fans may also generate additional votes for an entrant by making a qualifying donation through the official Whet Foundation Tiltify campaign.

Votes will be calculated as follows:

• Each eligible free vote counts as one (1) vote.
• Each $1.00 USD donated through the authorized Tiltify campaign counts as two (2) additional votes for the DJ identified by the donor.

Free and donation-generated votes will be combined to determine the twenty (20) entrants advancing from the public voting round.

Voting totals are used only to determine the Top 20 and do not carry forward into subsequent judging rounds.

No donation or purchase is required to cast an eligible free vote or enter the Contest.

Whet Foundation Donations

All qualifying donations must be made through the official Whet Foundation Tiltify campaign.

To receive credit for donation-generated votes, donors must enter the exact stage name of the DJ they are supporting in the donation comment field.

Each $1.00 USD donated counts as two (2) additional votes for the identified entrant.

There is no stated maximum number of donation-generated votes per donor.

Donations that are canceled, refunded, reversed, disputed, charged back, fraudulent, unauthorized, or otherwise invalid may result in the corresponding votes being removed.

If the DJ cannot be clearly identified from the donation comment, the Sponsors may be unable to assign the resulting votes.

Sponsors reserve the right to verify all donations and associated vote totals before confirming the Top 20.

Free Voting

No donation or purchase is required to cast a standard vote.

Eligible individuals may cast standard votes using the free voting method provided through the official Contest platform, subject to the frequency, verification, and other restrictions stated on the Contest page.

Use of the free voting method does not require a purchase or donation.

Voting Integrity

Entrants may promote their Contest page and encourage supporters to cast free votes or make qualifying donations through the authorized Contest channels.

The following activities are prohibited:

• Automated voting
• Bots, scripts, macros, or automated voting systems
• Fake or fraudulent accounts
• Fraudulent, unauthorized, or manipulated donations
• Chargeback schemes intended to generate temporary votes
• Exploitation of platform errors or technical vulnerabilities
• Purchasing votes through unauthorized third parties
• Falsifying identities or payment information
• Any other activity the Sponsors reasonably determine artificially manipulates Contest results

Sponsors may investigate unusual voting or donation activity at any time.

Sponsors may remove invalid votes, reverse donation-generated votes, suspend an entrant’s participation, or disqualify an entrant if the entrant or individuals acting on the entrant’s behalf violate these Rules.

All vote totals remain unofficial until verified.

Top 20 to Top 10 Selection

After Round 1 closes, the twenty (20) entrants advancing from public voting will be reviewed by Groove Cruise/Whet Travel and DJ Lovers Club.

Entrants will be evaluated using the following criteria:

1. Technical DJ ability
2. Track selection and programming
3. Creativity and originality
4. Flow and energy
5. Overall fit with Groove Cruise programming
6. Professional readiness and artist potential

Ten (10) entrants will be selected as finalists.

Public voting and donation-generated vote totals do not carry forward into the Top 20 review, Top 10 selection, or final artist-panel judging.

Final Winner Selection

The Top 10 finalists will be evaluated by a designated panel of Groove Cruise artists.

The artist judging panel will select the Contest winner using the stated judging criteria.

The winner is not determined solely by public vote totals, donation totals, follower count, or existing audience size.

The artist judging panel’s final determination will be subject to verification of eligibility and compliance with these Official Rules.

Data Sharing With DJ Lovers Club

Contest entry information will be shared with DJ Lovers Club as necessary for:

• Contest administration
• Eligibility and submission review
• Judging
• Finalist and winner selection
• Related Contest operations

DJ Lovers Club’s handling of personal information is subject to its Privacy Policy:

thedjloversclub.com/privacy

Providing information necessary to enter the Contest does not automatically enroll entrants in DJ Lovers Club marketing communications.

Optional DJ Lovers Club Marketing Consent

Entrants may separately choose to receive marketing communications from DJ Lovers Club.

The optional consent appears as an unchecked box:

☐ Yes. DJ Lovers Club can send me recurring automated marketing messages by email and text at the contact details I gave. Consent is not a condition of entering or of any purchase. Msg frequency varies. Msg & data rates may apply. Reply STOP to cancel, HELP for help. Privacy Policy: thedjloversclub.com/privacy. Terms: thedjloversclub.com/terms.

Consent is optional and is not required to enter, vote, advance, or win.

Groove Cruise/Whet Marketing Consent

Any Groove Cruise/Whet Travel email or SMS marketing consent is collected separately from the information required to administer the Contest.

Marketing consent is optional and does not affect eligibility, judging, voting, or winner selection.

Contest Deadline

Entries and Round 1 public voting close on:

November 8, 2026 at 11:59 PM Eastern Time

Entries received after the deadline may be deemed ineligible.