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PUT YOURSELF IN POSITION TO SUCCEED IN SONGWRITING

11/30/2021

Many writers struggle with the idea of getting themselves in position to succeed. In fact, I see two extremes play out. Sometimes writers adopt the idea that “all I have to do is write a great song” and they believe they literally don’t need to do anything else at all. Others go to the extreme of trying desperately to “meet the right people” while ignoring the fact that they don’t have any great songs to present to those right people when they finally get to meet them.

So, I find myself continually preaching the message of putting yourself in position to succeed. Meaning you have to put yourself mentally in the right place to start seeing the signs of success and getting to understand what you need to do to take your songwriting career to a whole new level. This is what I’ve learned from these mentoring sessions. Here are my suggested steps for putting yourself in position to succeed – in order of importance.

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5 KEYS TO BUILDING A BETTER SONG CATALOGUE

11/23/2021

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Several people have asked the question, “What’s the best way to build a song catalogue?” Here are some key factors I’ve learned over the years after writing for several major publishing companies and building a new catalogue at each of them.

Write, write, write! There is no substitute for this. A catalogue is a collection of songs. You need to write everyday if possible. But at least as often as you can! This not only helps you become a better writer, but also gives you more variety material which increases the odds that you’ll have the right song for a particular project. The more your write, the bigger your catalogue would be and the more you have available to provide when needed. Plus, keep writing is always a great practice for your skills to get better and better. No matter how good you are, you always can get better.

Recently I was watching one of very interviews of Max Martin and they asked him why for the past few years he wasn’t as active as he used to be in late ‘90s and early ‘00s. “Because I needed time to practice and get better.” He replied. Remember, this is MAX MARTIN saying these words. At peak of his career, when he was knowns as the biggest songwriter alive, he felt he need to take some time off and practice to get better. Let alone you and me!

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IF YOU WANT A MUSIC CAREER, BE OPEN MINDED

11/16/2021

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On a daily basis in this business I come across musicians, songwriters and artists who are trying to make a name for themselves in the industry, but it is interesting to see how a big percent of them forget the most basic attitude: to be a bit open.

People who fall into this category are mainly the ones who are either asking for opportunities, or they already have a little exposure to the industry, but they are not involved with any of the major players. Either way, they are considered as not very professionals, although some of them have a real talent in them which unfortunately they don't know how to use it to climb the ladder.

Here I am going to mention a few of the examples I have encountered with, in person and tell you why I consider them as narrow minded.

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REASONS NOT TO QUIT WRITING SONGS

11/9/2021

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Many of us struggle with voices in our head saying things like “You’ll never make it.” or “You’re not good enough.” And, most of us, at one time or another, have thought about throwing in the towel. I can consider myself successful at this point of my career but believe it or not, I still hear those voices occasionally and once in a while I ask myself “What the hell are you doing by writing all these songs?”. But as an answer to myself, those voices, and your stinky thoughts, here are few reasons that encourage us not to throw in the towel.

If you were born with the urge to write, you will probably never feel complete if you give it up. Most writers are not able to just walk away without feeling regret and emptiness. Writing is part of us. Creating is in our nature. Without them, we are just some bodies, moving around, pointless and aimless. If a none writer read this might not understand what I mean by saying “writing isn’t just part of us, but we ARE the writing”. We can go by not talking let’s say for a month or two, but not writing for a week can drive us insane.

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STOP ASKING THE WORLD TO LISTEN TO YOUR MUSIC AND WRITE SONGS SO GOOD THEY WANT TO HEAR THEM

11/2/2021

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A few years ago, I urged a popular music forum to start a songwriting thread. The songwriters involved in it thought it was a great idea and I stop in from time to time to discuss writing and read comments. It started out really cool. Discussions about lyrics, melody, popular songs vs. classics, etc. Later on, I stopped in to read up on the discussions. I admit I hadn’t logged on in a few months. And guess what the most popular column on the songwriting thread was? “Post your demos here” 121,000 views & comments in the last 6 months. The closest column about actual “songwriting” in the Songwriting Thread was 718 views!

Now understand this was not a site where fans buy music or publishers go to find songs. It was just a forum for songwriters to discuss songwriting and to share their opinions and ideas on this one particular topic and nothing more than that.

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PUT YOURSELF IN POSITION TO SUCCEED IN SONGWRITING

5 KEYS TO BUILDING A BETTER SONG CATALOGUE

IF YOU WANT A MUSIC CAREER, BE OPEN MINDED

REASONS NOT TO QUIT WRITING SONGS

STOP ASKING THE WORLD TO LISTEN TO YOUR MUSIC AND WRITE SONGS SO GOOD THEY WANT TO HEAR THEM

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