Posts by Clay Mills
Setting Yourself Up To Fail As A Songwriter
Putting a specific time limit on your songwriting success just might set you up for failure. Hit Songwriters Clay Mills and Marty Dodson talk real about the music business and the different factors that come into play to “make it” in the music business. Write better songs faster! Clay & Marty’s 10-day video series will…
Read More5 Songwriting Lessons From Master Yoda
Want to become a Master “Songwriting” Yoda? Here are my top 5 tips! 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…
Read MoreSongwriting Success Was Just Around The Corner: How Could We Have Known?
I remember sitting in my small, cramped writing studio in Nashville 10+ years ago chasing this crazy dream of songwriting… One day I was co-writing with my two best friends and co-writers, Sonny LeMaire and Shane Minor. We’d been writing together for two years, mostly because we loved hanging out with each other and creating…
Read MoreThe Out-Of-Town Songwriter: Getting A Major Artist Cut If You Don’t Live In Nashville, NYC, or LA
The number one question that fills our email inbox is “How do I get a song cut by a major artist if I’m an out-of-town songwriter?” “I don’t live in a big music city” is the challenge. This strikes at the very core of why Marty Dodson and I created this virtual SongTown of kindred…
Read MoreMind Your Own Business
If you are a songwriter you must know and understand the business side of songwriting if you want to be successful. Hit Songwriters Clay Mills and Marty Dodson talk about mechanical licenses, record keeping, negotiating deals with artists and your co-writers, and how to take charge of your own songwriting business in this do-it-yourself world.…
Read MoreSplit Sheets Vs Sh*t Sheets
What do you do when songwriter split sheets turn into sh*t sheets?! Hit Songwriters Clay Mills and Marty Dodson give practical advice on how to handle co-writer splits as well as what an actual split sheet is used for. Write better songs faster! Clay & Marty’s 10-day video series will help you level-up your songs…
Read More#SongwritingHack 1.15 – How I Wrote “One Day You Will” With Lady A
Clay here, coming to you with a video this week because there’s something that’s been on my heart. A couple of days ago, Songtown member Andrew Cavanaugh sent me a link to a video, a Lady A video. It was a song that I had wrote for their first album that I wrote with the…
Read More10-Time Grammy Winning Producer/Engineer- Gary Paczosa
Gary Paczosa is known for some of the best “ears” in music production. In this episode of “On Songwriting”, Gary talks everything from his production style & approach, to his mic-ing techniques while working in Americana, Country, Jazz, and Bluegrass genres. Gary has worked with legendary artists Nickel Creek, Alison Krauss, Sarah Jarosz, Harry Connick Jr., John Prine, and Dolly…
Read MoreThe Magic Behind One-Chord Songs
I’m obsessed with looking under the hood of great songs to figure out what makes them hum. If we listen closely, some feature cool rhythm patterns in the melody, others defy the norms of form, while other songs showcase unique chord progressions. But, what kind of voodoo pulses through the veins of one-chord songs? Let…
Read MoreSharks In The Water
There are sharks in the music waters and Hit Songwriters Clay Mills and Marty Dodson want to help protect you from them! Listen in as Clay and Marty talk real about the music business and share advice on how to avoid bad deals and scammers. Write better songs faster! Clay & Marty’s 10-day video series…
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