A ‘Battle of the Bands’ style initiative to find an official FA Cup Anthem enters its third phase this week, with indie rock band The Pigeon Detectives to perform live at Stadium mk ahead of the Fifth Round FA Cup tie between MK Dons and Barnsley.
A six-strong shortlist of some of the UK’s biggest music acts are battling it out to produce the soundtrack to the world’s oldest domestic football competition, with the winner to be chosen by the British public ahead of The FA Cup Final.
MOBO-award-winning rapper Lethal Bizzle kicked off the search in the Third Round, with VMA-nominated Devlin taking to the stage ahead of Manchester City’s defeat of Stoke City at the Britannia Stadium in the previous round.
The initiative, which forms part of a series of events to mark The FA’s 150th anniversary, will see four more six shortlisted acts including The Pigeon Detectives perform live at selected football grounds across the country, with fans voting for the official anthem after the Semi-Finals.
The winning composition will then greet players as they step on to the Wembley turf for the Final of The FA Cup with Budweiser on 11 May 2013. Fans will be given the chance to vote for their favourite on The FA Cup website (TheFA.com/TheFACup) in the lead up to the Final.
The Pigeon Detectives frontman Matt Bowman commented: “It’s every schoolboy’s dream to play in The FA Cup, and while we’re not lacing up our boots and running onto the pitch it’s still a massive buzz to be involved - winning the competition and being behind the official FA Cup Anthem would be something we would all be really proud of. Although not as proud as our dads would be - they all wish we were footballers really.”
The Pigeon Detectives will perform their track ‘Animal’ live at Stadium mk on Saturday 16 February, with further acts and live performances to be announced as the competition progresses. Voting will open after the Semi-Finals, with the winner announced ahead of The FA Cup Final on Saturday 11 May.
To hear more from The Pigeon Detectives on the initiative see below.
Videos of each performance and artist updates will be available to view on The FA Cup website and on the official FA Cup Facebook page (www.facebook.com/TheFACup) after each round.
