Job #1 As A Songwriter… Do Your Job!
Last week in a mentoring session I was offering tips to help a young writer understand a songwriter’s #1 job. One of the demos had an extremely long guitar solo after the first chorus. I suggested that: #1- Guitar solos typically are after the 2nd chorus and not the first. #2- The solo was so…
Read MoreHow K.I.S.S. Will Transform Your Songwriting Process
Ten-time #1 songwriter Marty Dodson reveals a technique he uses with his students to instantly level-up their songwriting. Keep It Simple Songwriters! Learn to write lyrics that hit your audience hard in their feels. Adding More Heart To Your Songs : Online CrashCourse Change the way the world hears your songs! 🔥 In this 3-week…
Read MoreNo Songwriter Excuses!
If there is one thing that I have learned in my journey through the music business it’s that songwriter excuses never made anyone a success in the music business. We’ve all heard them… “It’s harder than ever to get a cut” “You have to write with the artist to get a cut” “I write songs…
Read MoreVerses Need Hooks Too! #Songwriting Hacks
Video Summary: Today more than ever, it’s not enough that your song has a great catchy chorus. In the modern world you must pull the listener into your song and keep them listening. To do that you need to remember verses need hooks too! We’ve put together a video lesson that covers these and much…
Read MoreSongwriting: The Art Of Choosing
Where should I take the second verse? Should I switch to first person? What is the chorus missing? Is my set-up line better using the opposite technique? Songwriting choices. Many are conscious, and many are made so fast we don’t realize we’ve made them. But, no song can be written without making choices. Many writers…
Read MoreWhat REALLY Makes A Song A Hit
What really makes a song a hit? People often ask me if I KNOW that I’ve written a hit song when I finish it. The answer to that is a resounding “NO”. I generally know when I finish a song whether it is great or just good. Beyond that, so much goes into what makes…
Read MoreYour Ticket Into The Music Business: Writing Better Songs
Marty Dodson and I spend a lot of time preaching the gospel of “writing better songs.” Each time we blog about the power of a great song, we inevitably get several emphatic comments stating something like this: “I have lots of great songs, but I don’t have the connections you guys have!” While this is…
Read MoreI Own This Town: The Overconfident Songwriter
I read a post on social media recently about a guy who said that he walked into a certain PRO (BMI, ASCAP, or SESAC) “like he owned the place” because he knew that his songs were better than anything they had. When he demanded a meeting on the spot, they escorted him out of the…
Read MoreMastering Co-writing: Strategies to Overcome Obstacles and Avoid Breakups
Cowriting songs can be challenging, but it doesn’t have to end in a breakup. Clay Mills & Marty Dodson share strategies to overcome obstacles and avoid breakups when writing music together. Learn from real co-writing scenarios and master the art of collaboration! Adding More Heart To Your Songs : Online CrashCourse Change the way the…
Read MoreHow To Write Commercial Songs – Without Selling Your Soul
Often songwriters in our SongTown classes ask, “How do I write commercial songs without selling out?” They are writers who would like to have commercial success and hear one of their songs on the radio or an album. But they want to know how to accomplish this and still be true to themselves. They…
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