Posts by Clay Mills
Songwriting To Drum Loops: Creating The #1 Song Beautiful Mess
One great tool every songwriter has at their disposal today songwriting with drum loops. Whether you have a computer handy, a drum controller, or a smart phone, there are amazing apps for beats that were not available even a few short years ago. Loops are a quick way to add energy and style to your…
Read MoreWriting In The Moment: How I went From Stuck On A Song Lyric To My First Major Artist Cut
Back when I was beating the streets of Nashville looking for my first cut as a songwriter, I was asked to write a theme song for a TV show about Sisters. They wanted something in the vibe of Sarah McLachlan. As luck would have it my parents had just given me my childhood piano and…
Read MoreFinding Inspiration In That Song That’s Stuck In Your Head
Pro songwriter Clay Mills shares how to turn that old classic song you can’t stop humming for the last 2 days, into inspiration for your own classic! Check Out SongTown and get 10 free videos to level-up your songwriting.
Read MoreThe Real Truth About Pitch To Publisher Events And Your Songwriting Career.
Every week I see determined hardworking songwriters flocking to pitch to publisher events to play their songs for publishers. I see whole businesses existing on this model of setting up pitch to publisher events. I’ve seen it for 25 years! While there might be some networking potential to find co-writers, etc, I have not heard of…
Read MoreVideo Songwriting Lesson: Finding the Heart of Your Song
Finding The Heart & Soul Of your Music Takes Courage… And A Few Tricks! Multi #1 songwriter Clay Mills will show you how to find the “true heart of your song” and create music that matters. This video is part of a weekly lesson series for members at SongTown.
Read MoreThe Darius Rucker Effect: How 2 Hours Can Change A Songwriter’s Life
ASCAP #1 Songwriter Party for Clay Mills & Darius Rucker I remember 6 years ago driving with my publisher Kurt Denny from Tennessee to Kentucky, where I was about to climb on the Hootie and the Blowfish tour bus. Kurt had arranged my first major artist co-write with rocker Darius Rucker. I was quiet the…
Read MoreHow To Break Out Of Your Songwriting Rut And Feel Inspired Again
Do you feel like your melodies are dated? Are you in a creative rut? It happens to us all. We start rolling and write a bunch of songs we really love, and then one day we wake up and everything starts sounding the same. Every new idea we create seems familiar. And worse, those ideas…
Read MoreQuick Biz Tip: Songwriter Performance Royalties 101
Songwriter performance royalties account for roughly 35% of a writers/publishers income. What is a performance royalty? Simply put: A songwriter performance royalty is owed to the writers and publishers of a particular song whenever that composition is broadcast or performed in public. This includes: Airplay on terrestrial and satellite radio (Sirius, XM, etc) Plays on…
Read More5 Things We Bet You Didn’t Know About SongTown
1) Marty Dodson and Clay Mills wrote together years ago, but were not frequent collaborators when they started Songtown. Now, they talk multiple times a day. Every day. 2) The big question Marty and Clay wrestled with before starting Songtown was “Will people stick around if we tell them the truth?” They saw multiple Songwriting…
Read MoreSongTown Say Whaaaa? Sometimes Songwriting Can Be A Crazy Music Business!
In today’s episode of sometimes songwriting can be a crazy music business… I recently got an email from a talented SongTownian who asked me if it was a good idea to sign a contract that allowed his co-writer to negotiate contracts on their song on his behalf. AND give the co-writer 100% of the publishing…
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