Jamelia searches for musical city

Jamelia is supporting Birmingham in the search to find the most musical city

Jamelia, Sting, Richard Hawley and Engelbert Humperdinck are backing a campaign set up by the Arts Council to find England's most musical city.

Celebrity representatives are lending their support to one of the 10 cities that have signed up to compete.

Jamelia, who is from Birmingham, wants the city to win because it is a "diverse musical melting pot which represents a city's people".

A public vote will decide the winner, who will be announced in June.

'Exciting musical moments'

Mary-Alice Stack from Arts Council England said: "Music is at the centre of our culture, one of our greatest exports and an endless source of debate."

Atomic Kitten's Jenny Frost and Suggs from Madness are also supporting the campaign.

It is part of the Arts Council's Take It Away scheme, which makes musicianship accessible and affordable for all.

Unsigned bands and solo artists can also register online for the chance to represent their musical city at a music festival in September.

The winner, who will be determined by a panel of industry experts, will perform at this year's End of the Road gig in Dorset.

Event organiser Simon Taffe said: "Supporting new acts is very important to us, and that's not just out of a sense of musical conscience, but simply because they provide many of the festival's most exciting musical moments."