How matchups work

A matchup is one week of CutClub. Theme in, songs in, votes cast, winner declared.

The theme

Every matchup starts with a theme -- a prompt that everyone has to answer with exactly one song.

Themes come from a few places:

• You write them -- hosts and players can submit theme ideas before the season starts
• The theme library -- a curated collection of prompts you can borrow
• The AI theme generator -- surfaces unusual, argument-starting prompts when your brain goes blank

The weirder the prompt, the more interesting the picks. "Songs for the afterparty" gets Daft Punk. "A song that sounds like the color blue" gets something nobody expected.

Submissions

Once the theme drops, everyone has until the deadline to submit their cut. One song, one shot. You can link from Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, SoundCloud, or Bandcamp -- wherever you listen.

Submissions are anonymous until voting closes. No one knows who picked what until the reveal.

The reveal

When the submission window closes, voting opens. Players see all the songs (still anonymous) and vote on their favorites. After voting closes, the reveal happens: picks get attributed, scores post, and the comment section gets loud.

Reacting and commenting

After results go live, players can react to songs and leave comments. This is where most of the trash talk happens. Reactions and comments are visible to everyone in the club.