Songwriters And Artists: Are Your Songs Real or Really Clever?
Perhaps the most common songwriting mistake that I've seen kill a song... If I had to choose one songwriting mistake I've seen over and over in mentoring sessions through the years, it would be "writing clever instead of writing real." Throughout the entire writing process I am asking myself, does this feel real? Could this have really happened? Does this sound like something...
It’s Never Too Late When It Comes To Your Songwriting Dreams
I believe that it’s never too late to be what you might have been and to chase your songwriting dreams. I was in my mid thirties when I started trying to write professionally. A friend of mine just landed a starring role (Her first) in a movie with some HUGE actors at age 49. I know someone entering medical...
Recording At Home: Demo Process For The #1 Hit “Don’t Think I Don’t Think About It”
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 Recording Gear I Used... Let's break...
It’s Not the World’s Responsibility To “Get You” or “Get Your Music”
I was in Starbucks last week enjoying my morning dose of inspiration—COFFEE!—and an aspiring songwriter approached me. “Are you Clay from SongTown?” “Yes,” I said. He asked if he could chat about writing for a couple of minutes. Then he began by saying, “I’m writing some great music, but no one “gets it.” He continued, “I’ve played...
Songwriters: Formatting Lyric Sheets Like A Pro
One of the most overlooked details in the songwriting business is properly formatting your lyric sheet. Since starting SongTown, Marty Dodson and I have had the chance to see many songs lyrics presented in our publisher groups, song contests, and song feedback forums on songtown.com. We've seen some wild lyric sheets—or in many cases, even NO lyric sheets—accompanying songs...
How 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 two shares of royalties for...