For more than 20 years, the Thousand Oaks Teen Center has hosted the event Battle of the Bands, where teens in the area can express themselves with their music style in a friendly competition. The Battle of the Bands is a well-known event that happens all over the world, in many different countries. The idea to start this event at the Thousand Oaks Teen Center occurred when teenagers in the center’s advisory committee heard how popular this event was and “wondered if there were any teens in the area that wanted to compete against each other,” said Jay Dodwell, the organizer of the event. To their surprise, there was lots of interest, and ever since, The Battle of the Bands has become a yearly event at the Thousand Oaks Teen Center. Dodwell says the goal of this event was “to not only bring a number of teen bands together but to be able to bring an audience to watch them and appreciate the music.” Music for many can be an escape from reality, an expression of speech and an art. Many wait for the chance to be able to showcase their musical talent, but don’t have the opportunity to show it in a place where they can relate to the people they are playing to. This is one of the reasons why The Thousand Oaks Teen Center decided to do this.“…there are a lot of teen bands that are out there…that never get a chance to show their stuff so to speak and we do it in a really nonthreatening environment,” Dodwell said. With this event, bands can have the opportunity to learn more about the music industry, reflect and expand with this experience in an environment where they can be with others who relate to them. This event also allows the bands to launch their career by exposing them to the challenges of performing, “building self-esteem and confidence so they can go on to bigger and better things,” Dodwell said. This event exposes teenagers to working with professionals. The judges at this event are all professionals in the music industry. One judge in particular is Ron Harris, a professional music producer, who has worked with many different stars. Bands can apply to perform by submitting an application located on the Thousand Oaks Teen Center’s website, and sending them a link to their music. The center receives many applications from many skill ranges, however must choose about five to seven of the bands that have applied to perform. How the selection process works is the teens in the advisory listen to every applicant’s music and choose whose music sounds best. The bands they like will then be the ones that will perform against each other to win a variety of prizes. In past years the prizes have been a $500 dollar gift card to a local music store for the first-place winner and objects worth up to $100 dollars for both second and third place. Not only is this event a good opportunity for the teenagers who perform but it is also almost guaranteed that the people who go out to support the bands have a good time. According to Dodwell, the bands “really get pumped up and have a lot of adrenaline flowing… some kids really take their performance to the limit.” One of the requirements for a band performing at this event is to be able to draw an audience. The bands take this requirement seriously and deliver. This year’s Battle of the Bands took place on Dec. 2, 2023, and generated over 300 people in the audience. This event allows you to explore and discover many different music styles while having a great time with friends and kids your age.