Hard Rock Cafe and Coca-Cola have launched Hard Rock Rising, a global music competition spanning 34 countries and 64 Hard Rock Cafe locations designed to give emerging singer-songwriters, bands, and DJs a career-launching platform. The program represents one of the most expansive live-music activations Hard Rock has staged, directly tying guest traffic to a multi-round performance series running through October.
How the Competition Works
Artist submissions are open now through August 18, with each applicant required to submit two original songs. Live competition rounds take place September 2, 9, 16, and 23 at participating Cafes, where local fan votes determine who advances. The Coke Studio team then selects a single grand prize winner, who receives a Coke Studio recording session, $10,000, and a featured performance at Hard Rock Cafe Orlando. The global winner will be announced October 5.
For restaurant operators, the structure is notable: every round is tied to in-venue performance nights, giving individual Cafe locations a built-in reason to drive repeat visits across four consecutive weekends. Hard Rock is pairing the competition with a limited-time menu featuring cocktails made with Coca-Cola products, adding a food-and-beverage revenue layer alongside the entertainment draw — a model increasingly common in experiential dining and live-event hospitality.
The Partnership Rationale
"Hard Rock Cafes have always connected people through the power of music with local artist residencies, open mic events, Battle of the Bands competitions, and pop culture memorabilia," said Eric Martino, President of Hard Rock Cafe and Retail at Hard Rock International. "Now, Hard Rock Rising is a natural extension of that mission to empower emerging artists to perform their original music."
On the Coca-Cola side, multi-platinum, GRAMMY- and Juno-nominated executive producer Rob Rettberg leads the Coke Studio team. "This partnership taps into Hard Rock's unparalleled reach and iconic stages while leveraging Coke Studio's production expertise to transform talented musicians into the next generation of recording artists," Rettberg said. Coke Studio, already established as a global music production platform through Coke Studio L.A. Live, adds a ready-made recording infrastructure that Hard Rock could not replicate alone.
Beyond the Stage
The activation extends into retail with co-branded merchandise available at Hard Rock's Rock Shops and shop.hardrock.com, including a collaboration with streetwear label Cult of Individuality on a Hard Rock Rising tee and co-branded apparel collection. The merchandising angle underscores how hospitality brands are increasingly treating music programming as a full lifestyle platform rather than a one-night event — a dynamic well-documented in restaurant and beverage brand partnership trends.
The competition's geographic scope — 34 countries across 64 locations — also positions Hard Rock Rising as a meaningful international talent pipeline at a time when live-music venues and restaurant concepts are competing aggressively for younger consumer attention. For Coca-Cola, the tie-in with on-premise beverage menus at Hard Rock Cafes provides direct exposure during high-engagement, high-dwell-time occasions. Artists can apply and find participating Cafe locations at cafe.hardrock.com/hard-rock-rising.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
