Posts Tagged ‘Articles’

By Marty Dodson – SongTown Co-Founder Let’s be real—songwriting is a rollercoaster. One day you’re sure you’ve written your best song yet, and the next day you’re convinced you’ve lost the magic. I’ve been there more times than I can count. The truth is, growth as a songwriter is rarely obvious in the moment. It…

By SongTown Co-founder Clay Mills I had a great meeting this past Sunday with our Diamond Club at SongTown. I shared something with them that I think all writers need to hear at different points on their journey. I’ve been in the trenches of songwriting for a few decades now. I’ve seen the highs of…

A lot of folks email Marty and me asking if we can tell them whether a song idea is worth pursuing. Though I’d love to give an answer, I generally believe it’s better to teach a man to fish, than hand him a fish. This is what my mentors did for me and I’m lucky they didn’t…

By Marty Dodson – SongTown Co-Founder After I’d been writing for several years, there came a point when songwriting started to feel like… a job. And not the fun kind. I’d look at my calendar and actually dread some of the co-writes I had scheduled. Not because the people weren’t great, but because I just…

By Marty Dodson, SongTown Co-Founder Years ago, when I first started songwriting, I constantly found myself comparing my abilities to the writers around me. I mean, some of these writers could do it ALL—write killer melodies, craft emotional lyrics, and even produce fully finished tracks from their laptops. Meanwhile, I was just a lyricist. I…

By Marty Dodson, SongTown Co-Founder There have been seasons in my songwriting journey when I honestly couldn’t tell if I was improving or just spinning my wheels. It wasn’t that I wasn’t writing — I was. It wasn’t that I didn’t care — I cared deeply. But the growth wasn’t obvious. I didn’t always hear…

So, what does it take to be a world-class writer? Early in my career, a Hall of Fame songwriter offered me an invaluable piece of insight. He said many people make it 95 percent of the way to greatness, but very few finish the last 5% of the journey. That statement has fascinated me, and…

As a professional songwriter, I am asked often how I walk into a co-write with superstars like Darius Rucker, Little Big Town, or Lady A and create songs “on-demand?” Well, I didn’t start out doing this, but I’ve learned a few tricks over the years that’ve allow me to train my creativity and tap into…

by Marty Dodson, SongTown Co-Founder Sometimes, I find myself staring at a blank page, not because I don’t have ideas, but because of the voice in my head that whispers, “You’re not good enough.” Maybe you’ve heard that voice too. Am I any good as a songwriter?Do I even belong in this writing room?Will people think my…

By Marty Dodson, SongTown Co-founder Years ago, I found myself in a place I think many songwriters reach at some point — standing at the crossroads of doubt and desire. I had poured countless hours into writing, co-writing, editing, and pitching songs… and still, I wasn’t seeing the results I hoped for. No cuts. No…