With music and food at hand, nothing could be better. Taco Bell has once again made the combination possible with its sixth annual Feed The Beat program, which will give 100 artists $500 in Taco Bell gift cards. Taco Bell’s motto for the competition continues to be: Great Music. Free Food. No Strings Attached. That’s a perfect motto for a yummy prize.

The 2011 Feed The Beat program is now accepting submissions until September 9th. If you are an artist, we definitely suggest you submit an entry because who knows, you could end up joining the program’s impressive alumni, which consists of Passion Pit, Girl Talk, Best Coast, Wavves, Dr Dog, Cults, The Gaslight Anthem and more.

The food is great and all, but the Feed The Beat program can also present further opportunities for artists. In the past year, Feed The Beat has played music in national advertising campaigns, had an artist play the MLB All-Star Weekend, live streamed a concert to Taco Bell’s seven million Facebook fans, hosted a showcase at SXSW and much more. You should take a look at the musical path Philadelphia’s Chiddy Bang has taken since being selected into the 2010 Feed the Beat line-up. Chiddy Bang’s song “The Good Life” was featured in a national Taco Bell TV commercial. As a result, Chiddy Bang saw a 330 percent increase in “The Good Life” downloads after the first week the Taco Bell commercial aired.

To pass up on the chance to get food and musical exposure is entirely the wrong path to take. So, we’ll make it easier for you, Shockya readers. If you’re interested in the program, which you should be, all you have to do is click here and apply by filling out an online submission form. A panel of judges will select the Feed The Beat artists based on performance and musicianship, originality and material selected, as well as overall appeal and personality. Artists will be announced on Monday, September 26. Good luck!

by Lonnie Nemiroff