More 2016 APMAs Performers Announced – Of Mice & Men, Issues, The Maine and Mayday Parade to Perform at the 2016 Journeys Alternative Press Music Awards, Fueled By Monster Energy

Of Mice & Men, Issues, the Maine and Mayday Parade will perform at the 2016 Journeys Alternative Press Music Awards, Fueled by Monster Energy. The 2016 APMAs also will feature a special appearance from Spencer Chamberlain and Aaron Gillespie of post-hardcore favorites Underøath, who just finished their 2016 “Rebirth” tour. Gillespie is nominated in the Best Drummer category, presented by DW Drums. They join the ranks of Good Charlotte, Yellowcard, Papa Roach, BABYMETAL and Beartooth who were announced as performers earlier this month. More performances, guest appearances and the first round of presenters for the 2016 APMAs will be announced soon.

This year’s APMAs, hosted by Alex Gaskarth and Jack Barakat of eight-time AP cover stars All Time Low, will broadcast live the evening of July 18 from the Schottenstein Center in Columbus, Ohio (schottensteincenter.com). This year, the APMAs are offering a “punk-rock convention” as an alternative to the Republican National Convention taking place in the magazine’s hometown of Cleveland that night.

Of Mice & Men are gearing up for the May 27 release of Live At Brixton, a special double-disc set filmed by longtime collaborator Jon Stone in 2015 at London’s Brixton Academy. The Brixton concert was the band’s largest headline show to date-a blistering set in support of their Restoring Force: Full Circle reissue, which has sold just south of a quarter-million copies in the U.S. Experiencing Live At Brixton will get fans excited about the band’s upcoming summer tour with Slipknot and Marilyn Manson, a riotous roadshow that kicks off June 9 at the USANA Amphitheatre in Salt Lake City. They’ll also be headlining a stage at Slam Dunk Festival in the UK, as well as taking on a mainstage slot at Germany’s Rock AM Ring and Rock IM Park. Of Mice & Men-vocalist Austin Carlile,  guitarists Alan Ashby and Phil Manansala, drummer Valentino Arteaga and vocalist/bassist Aaron Pauley-exploded with the release of Restoring Force, which hit No. 4 on the Billboard Top 200 Album Chart and No. 1 on both the Billboard Top Independent and Top Rock Albums Charts.  With over 20 million YouTube views and close to five million social media followers, Of Mice & Men are nominated in the Song Of The Yearcategory, presented by Epitaph Records, for their single “Would You Still Be There.”

Of Mice & Men drummer Valentino Arteaga states, “We’re absolutely thrilled that our song ‘Would You Still Be There’ is nominated for Song Of The Year at this year’s APMAs and we can’t wait to ROCK this award show!”

Atlanta-based rock band Issues have announced a May 20 release for Headspace (Rise Records), which Alternative Presscalled “one of the most anticipated records of 2016.” Issues-vocalists Tyler Carter and Michael Bohn, bassist Skyler Acord, guitarist A.J. Rebollo and percussionist Josh Manuel-wrapped their headlining slot on this year’s Monster Energy Outbreak Tour and will be a mainstage feature on the Vans Warped Tour, which kicks off June 22 in Anchorage, Alaska. Issues broke big with their 2014 self-titled debut, which entered the Billboard Top 200 chart at No. 9 and hit No. 1 on Billboard‘s Top Hard Rock Albums, Top Modern Rock and Top Independent Albums charts. Since the release of 2012’s debut EP Black Diamonds (which hit No. 1 on Billboard‘s Top Hard Rock and Top independent Albums charts), Issues has earned “Artist of the Year” honors at the 2015 Alternative Press Music Awards, amassed over 40 million Spotify streams and 20 million YouTube views and built a diehard international fanbase whose members number in the hundreds of thousands. This year, Issues is nominated for Most Dedicated Fanbase, presented by Fearless Records, Best Live Band. Skyler Acord is nominated for Best Bassist, presented by Razor & Tie Records.

“We put a lot of work into our music on and off stage, inside and out, and even to be nominated and recognized for that work is already a huge accomplishment,” says Issues vocalist Tyler Carter. “Thanks for the appreciation, that’s all we-any of us-can really ask for.”

“The APMAs are special,” adds Acord. “It’s a night that truly belongs to the rock scene. It’s an honor to be nominated for best live band, and more importantly, most dedicated fanbase because we wouldn’t even be nominated were it not for all the support we get from the hooligans young and old, and showgoers everywhere who believe in our band.”

The Maine is gearing up for the release of their second covers EP, Covers (Side B). The first single, a version of Justin Bieber’s “Love Yourself,” was released last week and made waves on social media, trending on both Facebook and Twitter. The band is gearing up for their third full summer on the Vans Warped Tour, performing favorites from their most recent full-length, 2015’s American Candy,which made a Top 40 debut on the Billboard200. Last month, the band premiered the music video for the single “Am I Pretty?”-which carried a strong message of self-love to their fans. At this year’s APMAs, the Maine is nominated in the Most Dedicated Fanbase category,presented by Fearless Records, and Album Of The Year, presented by Journeys.

The Maine frontman John O’Callaghan states, “It’s cool to be invited to parties. To be asked to play at said parties is even cooler, which is why we are so elated to be performing at this year’s APMAs-the biggest party of them all! Though we can’t just yet divulge who and what we’ll be wearing-or even if we’ll be wearing anything at all-you can be certain it will be a sight to see.” 

Ten years ago, a group of friends from Tallahassee, Florida, formed a band and traveled the country, building a following from the roots up, one fan at a time. Mayday Parade has garnered a lifelong, massive dedicated fanbase in their evolution from hard-working local band-selling their CD in parking lots at Vans Warped Tour to anyone who would listen-to a global force. The band has delivered their most refreshing, passionate release to date with Black Lines. The collection of 12 stunning tracks blends driving rock riffs with heartfelt lyrics into a whole new take on their sound, without losing what is quintessentially Mayday Parade. While raising the bar musically, the band constantly reminds fans and industry why they are leaders in their field. At this year’s APMAs, Mayday is nominated in the Most Dedicated Fanbase category,presented by Fearless Records.

Mayday Parade frontman Derek Sanders states, “It’s an honor to be performing at the APMAs this year, we will do our best to make it a special performance for everyone.”

In addition to the award nominees mentioned above, visit the APMAs Vans Voting Site at altpress.com/apmasvote2016 to check out all of this year’s nominees and vote for your favorites now! Voting has become an international phenomenon, with ballots coming in from over 130 countries. Also, visit this location for information regarding future performing artists, honorees and presenter announcements, tickets and VIP packages, pre-show parties, red carpet appearances and beyond.

Alternative Press Music Awards tickets are on sale now via Ticketmaster here, and VIP experience packages are available via SoundRink-An Experience Company! SoundRink VIP packages will include limited merchandise, elite access to the red carpet and prime indoor seating and VIP meet-and-greets. The APMAs is also partnering with PromoWest Fest (www.promowestfest.com, Columbus, July 15 to 17), so tickets will be available via their box office through Ticketmaster as well.

Last year’s event earned the title of “The GRAMMYs of Alternative Music” from TIME Magazine. The 2015 Alternative Press Music Awards achieved over one million views on AXS TV and over three million views on YouTube. Re-live 2015’s best moments via the highlight reel here. The APMAs have featured performances by some of today’s biggest rock artists and bona fide legends-from Fall Out Boy, Twenty One Pilots, Panic! At The Disco and Paramore’s Hayley Williams to Weezer, Joan Jett and Guns N’ Roses co-founder Slash.

Building upon the success of last year’s event, the APMAs is thrilled to once again be supported by returning title sponsor Journeys, a leader in the teen specialty retail scene focused on lifestyle-driven branded footwear and accessories in over 800 stores across all 50 states, Puerto Rico and Canada. In addition to Journeys, the APMAs also welcomes fellow sponsors Monster Energy, CreativeLive, DW Drums, CD Baby, Disc Makers, Rise Records, Eleven Seven Music, Better Noise Records, Musicians Institute, EarthQuaker Devices, Razor & Tie, Hopeless Records, Sub City, Roadrunner Records, Fueled By Ramen, Ernie Ball, Epitaph Records, Equal Vision Records, MerchNOW, Vans, Fearless Records, Jeffree Starr Cosmetics, AKT and SoundRink.

Don’t miss the 2016 Alternative Press Music Awards and your chance to cast your vote for your favorite bands! Check altpress.com/apmas over the coming weeks for new announcements and information.

The APMAs are produced by Mike Shea, Joe Scarpelli, Josh Bernstein, Kevin Lyman and Marc Grant.