Moore Guitars × Jared James Nichols
Manny Watts won the Way Back Challenge with his solo over Jared James Nichols' single "Way Back." He takes home the Gibson Custom Shop Futura with a custom black pickguard signed by Jared. Thank you to everyone who recorded a solo, and to everyone who voted.
The winner was announced October 1, 2026 on the Moore Guitars Instagram.
Jared James Nichols with his Futura
The prize
In 1957 Gibson sketched a radical new shape and built a small number of prototypes. Perhaps four to six exist. Then they shelved it, reworked the body, and the world got the Explorer instead. The Futura became one of the great what ifs in guitar history.
Those original prototypes were mahogany. When Gibson revived the shape as a Custom Shop model years later they built it in korina. This reissue goes back to mahogany, which makes it the version that finally gets the original spec right.
Two unpotted Custombucker humbuckers with Alnico 3 magnets, hand wired, Antique Natural nitrocellulose over a two piece mahogany body, aged gold hardware, VOS treatment, and a Lifton historic reissue case.
And one thing no other Futura has. Jared runs a black pickguard on his own mahogany Futura, cut for him by a maker in Nashville. We have had the same maker cut one for this guitar, and Jared has signed it. The winner gets both guards, so they can run it exactly like his or hang the signed one on the wall.
The actual giveaway guitar, signed guard fitted
| Finish | Antique Natural VOS |
| Body | Two piece mahogany |
| Pickups | Unpotted Custombuckers, Alnico 3 |
| Hardware | Aged gold |
| Case | Lifton historic reissue |
| Pickguards | Stock white, plus a custom black one signed by Jared |
| Retail value | $5,499 |
The artist
Jared plays blues rock the loud way. No pick, fingers on the strings, straight into the amp. He is the most visible champion of the Futura today, and the mahogany one he plays is the same model we gave away.
“Way Back” is the single from his new album Louder Than Fate, out now on Frontiers Music. It is the track every entrant soloed over. Stream it wherever you listen, and watch the official video right here.
Jared on the Way Back Challenge
How it worked
Entries closed on September 18. There were three steps from there to a winner.
We reviewed every eligible entry against the published judging criteria and posted the top 30 solos on the Moore Guitars Instagram. Entries posted on YouTube, TikTok or Facebook were reposted there so everyone was judged in one place.
A like on a finalist's post on our Instagram was a vote. The ten with the most likes on September 29 went through to the judges.
Jared James Nichols, a judge from Vintage Guitar magazine and a representative from Moore Guitars scored the final ten. Manny Watts was announced as the winner on October 1.
Thank you for playing. Winners are contacted at the email address they registered with.
What is being won
| Prize | How it is won | How many | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gibson Custom 1957 Mahogany Futura Reissue VOS With the stock white pickguard plus a custom black one signed by Jared |
Judged on the video | 1 | $5,499 |
| Seymour Duncan JJN P90 Silencer pickup | Judged, second and third place | 3 | $149 ea |
| Signed copy of Jared's album Louder Than Fate | Random drawing, everyone who registered | 10 | |
| Moore Guitars store credit | Sent to everyone who registered | All entrants | $25 |
Everyone who registered is in the drawing for a signed album, with or without a video. The guitar and the pickups are judged on playing.
How it gets judged
We shortlisted the top 30 on these four criteria. The community voted those down to 10. Then the judges scored the final ten on the same criteria and picked the winner.
Does the solo actually say something over this particular track.
Players who sound like themselves. Copying Jared note for note is not what wins this.
Attitude, touch, and commitment to the take.
Audio we can hear and video we can watch. A phone is completely fine. This is not a production contest.
The judges: Jared James Nichols, a judge from Vintage Guitar magazine, and a representative from Moore Guitars. Judges scored independently before conferring, and Jared had the final say on any tie.
Gibson and Vintage Guitar magazine both backed the challenge.
Entries
The entry period ended September 18 and the winner was announced October 1. Thank you to everyone who recorded a solo and posted it.
Follow us for the next one.
The fine print
Manny Watts. We announced it on October 1, 2026 on the Moore Guitars Instagram, and you can watch his solo there.
From September 22 to September 29, a like on a finalist's post on the Moore Guitars Instagram was a vote. Likes on the player's own original post did not count, because entries came in from four different platforms and this was the only way to count everyone the same way. Voting was free and no purchase was necessary.
No. The vote decided which ten of the 30 went through. The judges then scored those ten on the published criteria and picked the winner.
US residents aged 18 or over, or the age of majority in your state if that is higher. Employees of Moore Guitars, Gibson, Seymour Duncan, Vintage Guitar magazine and their families were not eligible, and neither were any players we invited to post demonstration entries.
Entries closed September 18 at 11:59pm Central. The top 30 were posted September 22, community voting ran through September 29, and the winner was announced October 1.
One video entry per person. If a player posted more than one, the last one posted before the deadline was the one we judged.
By the tags. Every entry was a public post tagging @mooreguitars and @jaredjamesnichols with #WayBackChallenge and #contest in the caption, matched to a registration by the handle the player gave us.
By entering you give Moore Guitars and our partners permission to repost, edit and use your video in marketing, including paid advertising, and to feature you in the entry gallery. You keep ownership of your performance. You must be the person playing, it must be filmed by you, and it cannot contain anybody else identifiable without their written permission.
It happens, because Instagram, YouTube, TikTok and Facebook all run automatic music matching on commercially released songs. You will not be disqualified for something the platform did. If that happened to your entry, keep your original video file and message us, and we will get it judged from the original file if we have to. Hang on to that file until the winners are announced.
Yes. The guitar has a retail value of $5,499 and prizes of this size are taxable income. We will issue the required tax form and the winner is responsible for any tax owed. We recommend speaking to a tax advisor. The winner will need to complete a W-9 and an eligibility affidavit before the guitar ships.
The complete official rules cover eligibility, the entry period and time zone, judging criteria and panel, odds for the album drawing, the content licence, publicity release, prize conditions and substitution, liability, governing law, dispute resolution and the winners list.
Sponsor: Mulzer Music LLC, doing business as Moore Guitars, 301 N Royal Ave, Evansville, IN 47715. This promotion is not sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Instagram, Facebook, Meta, YouTube or TikTok.
The Futura has a home. Congratulations to Manny Watts, and thank you to every player who took on the Way Back Challenge.
Questions? Call us at (888) 794-8482.
