The Music Lab: Verses Are The New Chorus
One of the most noticeable style shifts in songwriting over the last few years is the emergence of chorus-like hooks in verses. For the longest time, if you had a memorable and “hit” sing-a-long chorus you were golden. Your chances of finding an audience for your songs were pretty good. Even if you were the…
Read MoreHow KISS will Transform your Songwriting
Hit songwriter Tom Douglas once said, “You can’t write a great song trying to write a great song.” Over the years, we’ve listened to many songs that fail because they try too hard to be brilliant, either lyrically or melodically. Douglas and co-writer Allen Shamblin wrote Miranda Lambert’s “The House That Built Me” – a…
Read More4 Keys to Co-Writing Songs With A Band
Someone asked me the other day, “What is your secret to co-writing with a band?” Over the years I’ve been blessed to co-write songs with great bands like Lady A and Little Big Town. As a songwriter, it can be tricky to sit down with three or four other people in one room and make…
Read MoreSongwriters: Do You really need that expensive song demo?
One of the top questions Marty and I get in the SongTown Mailbox is “what is a reasonable song demo price?” It seems a common myth exists that says in order to have a record company or artist pick up your songs, you have to produce a song demo that sounds like a finished record. Fortunately…
Read MoreSongwriting Jumpstarts
Are you in a songwriting rut? In this episode of the SongTown On Songwriting podcast, Marty and Clay share their top songwriting tips for jumpstarting your writing and taking it to the next level. Clay & Marty’s 10-day video series: This video series will help you level-up your songs and finish them faster. CLICK HERE to begin! …
Read MoreHow We Raise The Tide As Songwriters
In SongTown, we try to remind everyone often that we rise by lifting each other up. As some of us improve, the bar gets raised and others improve trying to reach for that bar. In some ways, the music business is a cut-throat competition, with some similarities to the hunger games. Some people look at it…
Read More5 Ways To Stay Motivated As A Songwriter
Sometimes, it can be hard to stay motivated as a songwriter… Whether you write books, songs, poetry, plays or any other kind of “word” work. When the progress seems slow (or non-existent) and the rewards seem small, here are things I try to do to keep my head in the game. Write what I like.…
Read MoreWhat To Do If You Don’t Know Anyone In The Music Business
Hit Songwriters Clay Mills and Marty Dodson share their stories of how they made it in the music business as songwriters. They also share encouragement and strategies that you can use to navigate the music business even if you don’t know anyone in the business. Hit Songwriter Clay Mills has six #1 Hit Singles, 2…
Read MoreWriting A Song For An Audience of One
It’s fun writing for others… Much of my time is spent writing songs with mass appeal. I enjoy that. It’s fun to have people record your songs, to hear them on the radio, and to watch audiences singing along. But, at times, the pursuit of commercial success can take away some of the pure joy…
Read MoreAre You Falling Into The Arrogant Songwriter Trap?
As a songwriter, I am a “lifer.” I’ve spent many hours everyday writing with, teaching to, and in online forums conversing with songwriters. It’s not uncommon to hear songwriters say things like, “You can’t learn songwriting. You either have it, or you don’t.” Or, “This song came from my inner soul, so it’s perfect just like it…
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