The Nail in the Wall

I’m a very goal oriented person. I need to see the end goal so that I can figure out how to get there. I like to break down my big goals into bite sized pieces and check things off my list. There are so many elements of getting a song recorded that are out of…

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Let SongTown Protect You Against Songwriting Scams

Scam alert

One of the reasons Clay and I started SongTown was to help people learn how the songwriting business works and immunize themselves from being ripped off by songwriting scams. So, I want to give you some advice that can help save you hundreds and maybe even hundreds of thousands of dollars. If you heed this…

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Attitude and Outlook Are Everything When Considering Good Versus Bad Contemporary Music

“Today’s music sucks. The stuff artists are putting out is bad music—and it all sounds the same!!” We hear it all the time from songwriters, I used to say it myself. But the truth is, changing your attitude and outlook on contemporary music can actually help you write better songs. Not long ago at Bongo Java…

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Songwriter Kim Williams Was So Much More Than A Frequent Garth Brooks Co-writer…

When I first started as a staff writer for Kim Williams, Garth Brooks had already taken off. And, he had recorded several of Kim’s songs. They were flying high and selling MILLIONS of records, as in 10-20 million per album. Crazy numbers. But I was soon to find out that Kim was so much more…

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Find Your Songwriting Community NOW!

No matter what your definition of Songwriting Success is, one of the most overlooked aspect of a writer’s journey is songwriting community. I run into many writers who are writing pretty good songs, but they are doing it in a vacuum. In reality, it’s nearly impossible to succeed as a songwriter or anything without a…

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Songwriter Inspiration For Those Days Of Doubt

  Songwriters… When you have those days of doubt and wonder why you are chasing your dream, I offer you this bit of songwriter inspiration…. I wasn’t exactly young that day I realized I wanted to be a full-time songwriter. I knew no professional songwriters. Also, I was in my mid thirties and had little…

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The Truth About “Turning Pro” as a Songwriter

When my son was going through his freshman orientation at Belmont University’s School of Music Business, many there were hopeful of turning pro one day as a songwriter. Another parent raised their hand and asked “So, if my daughter gets her degree in songwriting from Belmont, she’s pretty much guaranteed a “slot” in the Music…

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4 Big Ways Songwriters Network

Networking seems to be a common struggle for songwriters. Many creative types are just not very social and we tend to be introverted. That can make it hard to really build the team you need to help you get your songs heard and placed. So, here are 4 ways this introvert has overcome some of his natural tendencies…

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Recording At Home: My Demo Process On A #1 Song I Co-wrote With Darius Rucker

Darius-Rucker-Clay Mills

People often ask me if they have to do full-production demos to present songs to publishers or major artist? I do a fair amount of full demos, but I also have had about half of my major cuts from pitching home demos done on a very basic set-up on my mac laptop. The Home Studio…

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How To Get A Songwriting Staff Writing Deal

how to get a songwriting staff writing deal

As a pro songwriter for the last 25 years, I’ve learned there are 5 key ways I know to increase your chances of getting a songwriting staff writing deal with a publisher: Get to know music publishers organically. If there’s a publisher you are interested in and you are able, go to writer’s nights where…

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