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AIM 2025 Submissions Thread

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*** This thread is for SUBMISSIONS AND CONTEST UPDATES ONLY. Please use the DISCUSSIONS THREAD for any COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS!! **


Hello everyone and welcome to the 12th Art-Inspired Music Contest! This annual Newgrounds compo challenges composers to create music inspired by a piece of art uploaded to the Newgrounds Art Portal.


This year’s promo art is done by @DrSaturn2. Thank you so much for your charming and vibrant work of art! Please check out more of @DrSaturn2's amazing work!


iu_1385924_4990163.webp


IMPORTANT

This thread is only for SUBMISSIONS and updates related to the contest from the organizer or another user authorized by the organizer. Use the discussions thread for any questions or comments! Non-submission posts are subject to removal.


HOW TO ENTER

  1. Review the rules to understand what's allowed and what's not!
  2. Pick a single piece of art from the Newgrounds Art Portal.
  3. Create a piece of music inspired by that art.
  4. Upload your submission to the Audio Portal, include "AIM" in your song title (e.g. AIM - Strawberries) and tag your track with AIM2025.
  5. Review the rules again, then post a link to your submission and a link to the art inspiration in this thread. If selecting a multi-image work, specify which image you used as your art inspiration.
  6. After submission, I will check over your entry to ensure it is eligible for judging. If it meets the criteria, it will be added to an Approved Entries playlist (which I will link in a later post once created). If it is not eligible for judging, I'll reach out in your Newgrounds DMs to let you know why the entry was not accepted. You will be able to update your entry or create a new one up until the end of the submissions period.


TIMEFRAME

  • You have until Monday, June 16th at 11:59 pm PDT (GMT-7) to post your submissions to this thread. I will post 1 week and 24 hour warnings to this thread to help keep you stay on track.
  • Once the submissions period closes, the judging period will follow. A Fan Voting thread will be posted shortly after the judging period starts in this thread and all non-judges will have a chance to pick their favourite entries for the Fan Favourite prize!
  • The judging period generally runs for about 3-4 weeks (depending on the number of entries received), but a 24 hour advance notice will be given when the Fan Favourite thread closes and the results are announced shortly after. 


JUDGES AND SCORING

Here are your judges for this year's AIM:


@bossimusic

  • “Hey there! Nice to meet ya, I’m bossi – a newer face around here and excited to be part of the AIM 2025 judging panel. I’ve judged a few contests outside of Newgrounds and have been composing for about 10 years with a classical violin background, mostly writing in lo-fi, classical, jazz, and ambient styles. Really looking forward to diving into the entries and hearing everyone’s music!”


@AED4

  • “AED4 here, another returning judge from AIM '24. Around here I'm probably most known for hosting last year's NGADM, and doing pretty much anything but finishing my own tracks. On the rare occassions that I do get around to that, one can expect to hear some oldschooly trance bops.”


@L-Mity

  • “Hello! I'm L. Mity, and I had the pleasure of serving as a judge for AIM 2022 before. as mainly active as a solo piano composer on Newgrounds. I'm excited to once again hear all the passionate and heartfelt works submitted for AIM 2025. As a judge, I’ll be focusing on the emotional of the melodies and how fit the art.”


@Creeperforce24

  • "Yo, I’m Creeperforce24, or CF24 for short. I dabble in the pixel art once in a while, but my main passion for the last 3-4 years has been music and reviewing! Perhaps you’ve seen me around, I’m kinda all over the place. Favorite kinds of music are Techno/Orchestral & Breakbeat, I make a bunch myself. I also want to review some more music, and this AIM seems perfect to do so! Can’t wait to hear what you have to offer!"


@Random-storykeeper

  • I’m Random-storykeeper or RSK for short. I’ve been an organizer and judge for the Art-Inspired Music Contest since 2019. It’s always exciting to see many returning composers and newer musicians alike, and I look forward to hearing what you’ll produce this time around. Outside of AIM, I have composed for several indie games and I also enjoy editing wikis. 


Approved entries will be scored by the judges in the following four categories:


  • Composition/Structure: How well do the melodies and chord progressions flow from one to another? How is the track formed as a whole, in terms of its sections?
  • Production: How is the mixing of the track? Are the elements balanced or is one layer too overbearing?
  • Emotion/Atmosphere: How well does the track convey a sense of feeling or atmosphere? Is there anything that could be adjusted in the track to evoke the intended emotion/atmosphere more effectively?
  • Art Relevance: How inspired does the track feel from the art? Does the art feel incidentally picked or does it seem like the composer of the track took inspiration from this specific art?


WINNERS

There will be 21 winning entries in total:

  1. First Place
  2. Second Place
  3. Third Place
  4. Runner-Ups (17 entries total)
  5. Fan Favourite (more details below)


Winners are based on the entries with the highest total number of points.


Fan Favourite

The Fan Favourite vote is a chance for all non-judges to pick and choose the entries they like most from the contest! More details on how this works will be posted in a specific thread made just for the Fan Favourite vote after submissions close.


PRIZES

1 - Compilation Album

Your track will be included in the AIM compilation album on Bandcamp (see past AIM albums here)


2 - SoundPaint Gift Cards (TOP 3)

We introduced Soundpaint gift cards as prizes for the top 3 last year, and they are back again! They will be distributed as follows:


  • First place - $100 USD
  • Second place - $75 USD
  • Third place - $50 USD


More prizes may be added here as they are announced. 


END NOTE

Remember, here's the post with the rules and the link to the Discussions thread if you have any questions. Have fun and good luck with your entries!


AIM 2025 has begun! Entries are now being accepted until June 16th. See thread for details!

Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-04-18 15:51:03



Not working on Nightmare Cops.

Also last post.

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Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-04-19 10:43:13


Wow, I’m the second person, I had a bunch of things I have lying around snipbits and I turned it into this

Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-04-19 13:40:14


Hi all, we now have a playlist for all approved submissions! Check it out here:


I have also set up a Master List spreadsheet that will show a list of all approved entries and their art. There is also a tab for viewing stats about the contest.


And finally: when announcing the judges, I forgot to include one more person who I confirmed very early on. Please welcome to the judging panel @Creeperforce24!

  • "Yo, I’m Creeperforce24, or CF24 for short. I dabble in the pixel art once in a while, but my main passion for the last 3-4 years has been music and reviewing! Perhaps you’ve seen me around, I’m kinda all over the place. Favorite kinds of music are Techno/Orchestral & Breakbeat, I make a bunch myself. I also want to review some more music, and this AIM seems perfect to do so! Can’t wait to hear what you have to offer!"


This means that the subtotal scores per category will be out of 50 (instead of 40) and the grand total of all scores combined will be out of 200 (instead of 160).


I will arrange to have the main post updated with this newer information. Thanks everyone.


AIM 2025 has begun! Entries are now being accepted until June 16th. See thread for details!


I like making jazz & classical music

this is my 2nd entry: https://www.newgrounds.com/audio/listen/1420705

Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-04-21 05:11:41


I wanted join again until i go to make another concept album of my OC


Forg

BBS Signature

My entry!! Don’t know if I’ll make a second one yet though :3


Rawr! X3

BBS Signature

Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-04-23 02:00:48



Forg

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Hi!


Here is my entry for AIM 2025 :


Here is the art inspiration :


Enjoy!


BBS Signature

Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-04-24 09:31:29


Hey folks this is my weird entry :)


Habitat of an aspiring artist, who mostly creates music and games.

BBS Signature

Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-04-24 18:03:12



BBS Signature

At 4/18/25 03:00 AM, Random-storykeeper wrote:*** This thread is for SUBMISSIONS AND CONTEST UPDATES ONLY. Please use the DISCUSSIONS THREAD for any COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS!! **

Hello everyone and welcome to the 12th Art-Inspired Music Contest! This annual Newgrounds compo challenges composers to create music inspired by a piece of art uploaded to the Newgrounds Art Portal.

This year’s promo art is done by @DrSaturn2. Thank you so much for your charming and vibrant work of art! Please check out more of @DrSaturn2's amazing work!


IMPORTANT
This thread is only for SUBMISSIONS and updates related to the contest from the organizer or another user authorized by the organizer. Use the discussions thread for any questions or comments! Non-submission posts are subject to removal.

HOW TO ENTER

TIMEFRAME

JUDGES AND SCORING
Here are your judges for this year's AIM:

@bossimusic

@AED4

@L-Mity

@Creeperforce24

@Random-storykeeper

Approved entries will be scored by the judges in the following four categories (10 points per category for a subtotal of 50 points and a grand total of 200 points max. per entry):


WINNERS
There will be 21 winning entries in total:

Winners are based on the entries with the highest total number of points.

Fan Favourite
The Fan Favourite vote is a chance for all non-judges to pick and choose the entries they like most from the contest! More details on how this works will be posted in a specific thread made just for the Fan Favourite vote after submissions close.

PRIZES
1 - Compilation Album
Your track will be included in the AIM compilation album on Bandcamp (see past AIM albums here)

2 - SoundPaint Gift Cards (TOP 3)
We introduced Soundpaint gift cards as prizes for the top 3 last year, and they are back again! They will be distributed as follows:


More prizes may be added here as they are announced.

END NOTE
Remember, here's the post with the rules and the link to the Discussions thread if you have any questions. Have fun and good luck with your entries!


Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-04-25 09:44:05


(AIM) R34P3R

This is mine :)

Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-04-25 14:10:26



─▒▓██▄▀▌▐

Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-04-29 14:55:32


Hey guys :) I made a second entry, which i think turned out quite emotional :P


Habitat of an aspiring artist, who mostly creates music and games.

BBS Signature

Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-04-30 20:42:31


I'm not scouted, but I'm impatient.

I don't really want to win, I just want to participate, so it's fine that I'm not eligible for consideration.This is my song.


yo yo yo

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Hello everyone!

Here is my submission for AIM 2025!



Based on the original Slugg Dogg



Who appeared for the first time in the Party Collab!



Wishing you all the best!


Music dude

Slugg Dogg enthusiast

Nggyunglydnraahy ...

BBS Signature

Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-05-01 19:05:52


This is my submission:


Inspired by:


I had a lot of fun with it, I'll see if I can make a second one :)


bottom text

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Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-05-02 00:50:34


Hello! Here's my submission for this!

Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-05-03 12:15:20


This is probably our only submission for this. It was a bit rushed, but there were some experimentations, and was fun to make!



Time to gay all over the place :3c

BBS Signature

Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-05-04 00:57:12


Song:

Carbon Dream (AIM 2025)

Art:

Alone


Best of luck everyone!

I'm stoked to hear everyone's entries.

Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-05-05 01:02:07


Inspired by:

Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-05-05 17:39:33


Hello everyone!

Here's the new edit of Slugg Dogg SMS! I updated the audio!



Wishing you all the best!


Music dude

Slugg Dogg enthusiast

Nggyunglydnraahy ...

BBS Signature

Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-05-06 14:37:23


Here’s my second entryyyyy!!


Rawr! X3

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Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-05-07 07:51:17


Inspired by this drawing:

Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-05-10 12:00:52


My submission



BBS Signature

Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-05-11 02:04:53


Everything worked out and finally I'm here with my first contest song!

Inspired by:


Wish luck to everyone else here!

P.S. some details on the Author Comments!

Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-05-11 17:07:30


Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-05-12 13:51:39


Honestly had a blast making this one, probably some of my best work so far! Hope ya'll enjoy!



Inspiration: https://www.newgrounds.com/art/view/imcarbrrrrrrrr/skeb-3

Response to AIM 2025 Submissions Thread 2025-05-13 00:24:22


Hi!


Here is my entry #2 for AIM 2025 :


Here is the art inspiration :


Enjoy!


BBS Signature