Perhaps the most common songwriting mistake that I've seen kill a song... If I had to choose one songwriting mistake I've seen over and over in mentoring sessions through the years, it would be "writing clever instead of writing real." Throughout the entire writing process I am asking myself, does this feel real?...
Co-writing: The art of sharing your heart felt ideas with another person and trusting the two of you will create songwriting magic. This can be tremendously rewarding and often frustrating. But there are some guidelines to make this experience more often than not a great one. If Moses came down from the mountain...
One of the awesome things I've learned about songwriting over the years is... No matter what your goal is, learning to improve your craft will get you closer to that goal. My SongTown co-founder, Marty Dodson, and I started our songwriting careers later in life than most folks. Heck, I didn't even...
Download Clay's Recommended Studio Setup Blog - Taking a Song From Demo to #1 Multi #1 songwriter Clay Mills takes you behind the scenes, documentary style, of his home studio set up. Clay has...
Yesterday during a mentoring session I was asked the question, “When did you decide to be a songwriter/musician?” I thought about it a couple moments and realized it was never a conscious decision. It was more like music made me. Music made me a musician by always being there. When everything else...
These three songwriting exercises are designed to get you into the flow of writing without thinking. Your best ideas come from the subconscious, and you can tap into this with regular practice. Remember to do these exercises quickly, spending three minutes on each in rapid fire succession. I set the timer...
Stage Acting, Improv, and Songwriting... Recently I went to see my friend and talented actress Becky Wahlstrom doing improv night at Bongo Java's in Nashville. The group she performed with, the Nashville Improv Company, were amazingly witty, intelligent, and lightning quick in making stuff up. I was struck at how similar...
1.Believe: As creative people, we tend to be self-doubters. It's what drives us to look inward, to constantly question life around us, and, if channeled properly, will drive us to write great songs. It's perfectly natural to struggle with believing in ourselves and our art, but ultimately, we must...
Following your dreams... When I was 19 years old, I decided to leave my small Alabama hometown and strike out on a journey to the Big Apple: New York City. It took a combination of naivety and hard-headedness, I suppose. After all, I didn’t know anyone in New York City,...
Throughout my 20 years as a professional songwriter, I’ve noticed there isn't always a large difference in talent level among creative people. Why, then do some songwriters seem to have an over abundance of fans buying their music while others struggle to sell the first song? The answer is there is not a...