Posts by Marty Dodson
6 Questions To Help You Critique Your Own Songs
Do you ever finish a song and wonder if it’s good enough to pitch to an artist or publisher? Hit Songwriter Marty Dodson shares 6 questions to ask yourself to help you critique your own songs and make them stronger and more pitch-able! SongTown on Songwriting Podcast Powered by Sweetwater.com – The best place for musical gear…
Read MoreThe Perils Of Writing Up
How do you break through in songwriting and how do you “write up”?! Hit Songwriters Clay Mills and Marty Dodson discuss how writing up may not always be the best thing to do and how you can break through in your songwriting career in the best, most organic way possible. YOU ARE INVITED SongTown’s 8th…
Read MoreHave You Asked Yourself, “Am I A REAL Songwriter”
Are you a REAL songwriter? I can’t count the number of times someone has said to me “I’m a songwriter – well not a really, because I haven’t had any cuts.” Believe me; I felt the same way early in my career. Have you felt like you needed to somehow qualify or justify yourself in…
Read More4 Songwriting Tips From Seasoned Pro
I’ve been a professional songwriter for more than 20 years. In that time, I’ve learned a lot by making lots of mistakes. Here are some tips that can help you learn to write better songs WITHOUT making the same mistakes I made. Write From Your Heart – Edit With Your Head If you try to…
Read More5 Ways To Complicate Your Songs and Confuse Your Listeners
There’s a number of common songwriting errors that complicate the lyric and confuse the listener. If you want to leave your audience scratching their heads (not recommended), try these techniques for songwriting confusion. Switch your pronouns around. Include several female characters in your song and then use the pronouns “she” or “her”. This gets them…
Read MoreBobby Pinson “The Shave” Inspirational Story
After taking a hiatus from his artistry, Grammy nominated, #1 hit songwriter Bobby Pinson shares his inspirational journey back to writing his own songs and releasing his newest single, “The Shave” which was inspired by his late father. Bobby also gives some great advice for aspiring songwriters! YOU ARE INVITED SongTown’s 8th Annual Creative Xperience…
Read MoreHelping You Write Your Best Song
The heart of SongTown is helping you write YOUR best song. At the end of the day, that’s all any mentor or guide can do for you. I can connect you with many of the top people in the business, but if you don’t have a GREAT song, it’s not going to help you. If…
Read MoreHow Do Publishers And Songwriters Split Royalties?
We get lots of music business questions in SongTown and how publishers and songwriters split royalties is a common one. So, I thought I’d answer it in today’s post. The business side of music is not as complicated as it seems. Here are the basics of writer/publisher deals and how money is split. There are…
Read MoreBusiness Mistakes Touring Artists Make – Dean Sams of the band Lonestar.
Touring with a band can be challenging. With 30+ years of touring experience with the band Lonestar, Hit Songwriter/Artist Dean Sams shares advice on how to avoid early mistakes in touring as well as important business details that can help you and your band avoid business conflicts. Write better songs faster! Clay & Marty’s 10-day…
Read MoreFight The Hype! Don’t Compare Yourself To Someone’s Highlight Reel
In today’s world it is so hard NOT to compare yourself to others… Hit Songwriters Clay Mills and Marty Dodson talk about how feeding the hype can sabotage and take away your creativity. Listen in and find the motivation to unplug from the constant highlight reels and take back your creative power! Write better songs…
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