Get ready to hit the stage! The Idol Festival is a showcase of J-pop, K-pop, and idol dance cover groups. Perform in a casual, low-pressure setting or go all-out for a competitive event!
Come ready to perform, and get ready for your moment in the spotlight!
Important note: The Idol Festival Showcase will be on an outdoor stage. All outdoor programming is weather permitting. There is no guarantee of an indoor alternative should the weather be deemed unsafe to perform and outdoor programming is cancelled.
Performances are scheduled consecutively. Groups are allowed to enter either the contest or the Showcase, but not both.
Groups who are competing will have their entire setlist judged, regardless of total performance time.
If Idol Festival receives more entries than available time, one of the following will occur:
In the event Idol Festival receives many entries, audition videos will be used to select participants.
The maximum duration of an Idol Festival event is 2 hours. Event time is subject to change based on stage availability. All participants require valid admission for the day of their performance, no exceptions. Any changes to the event will be communicated via email.
Check-in for both events is required on the day of the event.
Participants will have the opportunity to double-check audio for any errors during check-in. Additionally, any changes to the event will be communicated at this time, including cancellation of outdoor events, location changes, or availability in indoor event if scheduled on the same day.
No changes to setlist order, addition of songs, or of members to groups will be accepted during check-in. However, you may request to drop song(s) or members during the check-in process.
Participants who fail to check in will lose the opportunity to perform. If something prevents you from attending the check-in time, email idolfestival@otafest.com as soon as you know, prior to the end of the check-in time. Emails received after check-in ends will not be considered.
If there are enough participants, the competitive aspect of the event will continue. In the event that there are not enough competitive entrants, non-competitive entries will be scheduled in the Idol Festival Contest. Competitive entries will perform before non-competitive entries, similar to the Cosplay Contest’s walk-ons before skits methodology.
Please note that the contest will only move forward if there is enough interest. In the event Idol Festival Contest is cancelled, participants will be informed that the event is changing to a non-competitive event.
Depending on the number of entries, participants may be divided into solo vs group categories, that would then be further divided into 3 sub-categories (Novice, Apprentice, and Idol)
Please note, these are only guidelines to help participants determine which category best fits. Final placement of the participant into a category is determined solely by the coordinator.
Unless the Idol Festival Contest does not proceed, the following awards will always be available to win:
The number of available awards and/or wording of awards may vary.
Groups are judged on several categories. If a category does not apply, it will not affect the group’s overall score. To maintain fairness, all final scores are presented as a percentage.
All categories are scored 1-5 and N/A for performances to which a category does not apply. The lowest any group can score is 20%.
All audio you wish to use for your performance must be submitted via the application form or emailed to idol.festival@otafest.com prior to April 7, 2026. We cannot accept any last-minute changes, or changes submitted after this date.
Only audio submitted on the form or via email will be accepted, we cannot accept other forms of audio submission (e.g. USB stick).
Groups will receive an acceptance, rejection, or waitlist email by April 30. If this timeline changes, you will be notified via email.
The rules regarding performance time are the same for both Idol Festival events. All groups are permitted 2 songs or 10 minutes of performance time, whichever comes first.
Yes! If you are competing, your entire setlist will be judged.
No. Participants are limited to performing with a single group to keep the contest fair for everyone.
If you have just missed the deadline, you may still be able to be added to the waitlist for the event. Send an email to idolfestival@otafest.com to inquire.
Joining the waitlist does not guarantee entry. We will only contact you if a spot becomes available after initial applications have been processed.
It depends on the change you want to make.
You can still make these changes after the deadline:
We cannot accommodate these changes after the deadline:
No. Groups that miss the designated check-in time will not be permitted to perform. We are unable to make exceptions for late arrivals.
Yes! To request your judging card, please send an email to idolfestival@otafest.com and specify the name of your group.
You can inquire about past judging scores by emailing idolfestival@otafest.com. Please include the name of your group and the year you participated.
While we do our best to maintain all records, we cannot guarantee that we have documentation for every year.
While we can’t guarantee every performance is filmed, you can request your video by emailing idolfestival@otafest.com.
Please allow 4-6 weeks for our team to search for the footage and send it to you.