The Lottery League 2008 was a musical event that took place from February 2 through April 12 in Cleveland, Ohio.
The organizers of the event, a group of Cleveland musicians known as "the Council of Chiefs," held a lottery wherein roughly 150 musicians were placed in 33 semi-randomly generated bands. One of the few guidelines was that none of the people in the bands were to have played with, worked with, or had "intimate relationships" with one another.
The Lottery League 2008 began with a Draft Night. Shortly thereafter, the participants had 10 weeks to create and rehearse music to be performed at Cleveland music venue, The Beachland Ballroom and Tavern. The showcase was given the name of The Big Show, and would feature all participating bands on three stages within the span of six hours. This show took place on April 12, 2008, to a crowd of several hundred people.
As part of the Lottery League 2008, each band was to submit recordings for their work. Additionally, video and photo footage of band rehearsals, interviews, and footage from the Big Show was also taken. All of these will be gathered into a special CD/DVD release, slated for Fall 2008.
While many Lottery League groups made no plans to continue performing beyond the night of the Big Show, others have chosen to forge ahead, writing songs, booking shows, and recording more new music.