What songwriting topics would you like us to cover? Let us know below! ⬇ ⚡Check out our worldwide community of songwriters. (New Year. No Limits discount) 20% off this month at 👉 songtown.com/platinum-no-limit-january/
I really like your idea that when we feel like we're in a drought-it's growing season, ideas are being collected, seeds planted, thoughts are free to grow. That's great, I love that thought!
Competition happens at the bottom. Collaboration happens at the top. Being a fan of other local bands whether you like the music or not will help you in a lot of ways. So glad to have found this podcast. Been looking for more podcasts like this.
@@songtownusa1740 Always cool to see how the industry professionals approach things. Free education from people that are successful in the business. You both have helped write a lot of killer tunes and have an authentic personality. I'll be checking back often.
Sometimes the worst thing that can happen is you get in a room you are not ready for. It can hurt your brand and limit your chances going forward. The Songtown Retreats were invaluable for me as a "learning source". As my understanding grew, so did my skills and confidence. Learn, grow, repeat and success will take care of itself!! Jody
That first topic is spot on. I've been listening to you guys for a few months now and while your advice is often vague, it does have a lot of truth in it.
This was some really great insight. I'm very glad that I happened across this video. A lot of it, was actually just confirmation that I'm in the headspace of a professional, with probably 85% of what is mentioned here. But that extra 15% that perked my ears more, hit really deep on things to consider about myself. Especially the bits toward the end, about working with others, and WHO to choose to write with, etc. I'm very novice on experience levels for 99% of what my goals are for myself. So, I even still hold equivalent value to everything discussed in this video, and I am always seeking the most efficient way to approach everything. But I pay extra attention to the things that have yet to come. I value everyone's time, effort, and resources that are required to work with, in any way that it happens.
I really appreciate this "street wisdom." Book smart is book smart, but "street wise" gets it done. I have found you guys have the most practical advice on the internet, and you're cool, too! It's like getting extra bacon on your biscuit for free!!
Your tips were really encouraging. Thank you. Im working on writing and recording more than ever this year. Finished my album last year and a song released for January. Now, to keep the momentum going! 👍
QFT. I'm not a songwriter, but 'being worthy of the opportunity' is a great life lesson. I had 20 years of failure until MY opportunity arrived. I've spent the last 25 years trying to be worthy.
Hi lads, greetings from Hackney, East London. I'm a decent guitar player who writes hooky melodies and riffs and lyrics but I'm not that confident as a singer. Is it just a question of finding a sympathetic singer to link up with or should I pursue my own voice? Cheers, really enjoying the channel
I wonder how many people are out there who have wonderful songs that nobody will hear because they have no idea how to get it out there . Maybe if you live in Nashville and everyone you know are involved in the music industry but if you live in the suburbs of some other place and you dont know anyone in music but you just love writing songs which you've been doing for the past 20 years. I bet there are a lot of people out there in this situation..
Great question..With communities like songtown, we have members cowriting from all over the world on zoom and we bring the industry to them when their songs are ready. Some of our members hhave been on major label artist records and don't live anywhere near a major music city..So it's not as difficult getting heard as it used to be. Write on! Clay
Fellas you're knocking it out the park. Thank you for your channel. Here's a couple of topics to consider speaking about that I've always experienced. 1. I'm sooooo suck of 6415 and it's derivatives. I hear it coming then I'm just bored. 2. Whenever I go to write, I feel guilty that I should be doing something else "more responsible, productive". So I never give myself the permission to block out time to write. It's a real thing. 3. I've forgotten but I'll stick it in another comment when I remember 😂😂
Oddly enough, when I was recording Instrumental music and using in my RUclips videos I'd get a copyright claim now and then on my own music 😄. I always contested and won. If I'm aspiring to be a self publishing singer songwriter can being a Songtown member benefit me? Of course I'd like to publish a song that gets picked up by somebody big and puts me in a position to devote all my time to making music. What are your thoughts?
You can't copyright a title no matter where it comes from. If you're using lyrics from AI, that could be an issue if it's determined to be a derivative work. Marty
If you haven't yet it would be really nice if you share your thoughts on demos and how to present your songs. I know probably there will be different answers for different genres. For instance on my field which is the latin music for Regional mexican folk it is always piano and a good vocal track what works. But for Latin pop yes I have to produce a demo and as I am also a producer that sometimes I work for record labels that is no problem for me. I wonder what is the proper way to present a song for Country music. vocal plus guitar or full band production? I am in LA but saw some Nashville studios offering demo production with Nashville sound for folks that are not there. Anyhow it would be great to hear your input on this matter. Love your channel !!
My good friend is a fantastic song writer. He has a set he plays of 10 songs all of them are hits. He gets the biggest pop when he's plays. His album is going to be a greatest hits album and its just a regular album. 😂😂😂 im going to tell him about you guys.
Another subject matter for your consideration.... Does writing for others differ from writing for yourself? I mean, if you're releasing your own album, can you take different liberties (eg maybe singing more personal songs)? Or is it a case of, if you're writing for yourself and your own performances, you should always write as if the song could raise the interest of a publisher.
Regarding number two I respectfully disagree. It's only $45 to file a single application from a single individual for music composition including lyrics. Even with co-writers it's only about $70-90 bucks. Titles can't be copyrighted, thankfully, and neither can chord progressions. But if you have a hard-won melody and lyrics set to it painstakingly with prosody then I think it's foolhardy to not get a copyright before shopping it around. It protects you for a very small fee. If you worked on a melody and or lyrics and you put more than $45 worth of time into it, it's in your best interest to copyright it. I would also posit that the climate today is very different than the climate that you two fellows cut your teeth in. These days a a song can be picked up off the internet and "interpolated" (stolen) more readily than it can stolen from the confines of cloistered co-writer quarters or through targeted delivery of songs to A&R folks. All of this is only for songs which you have made nearly in entirety. At the same time, I think it's important to be generous during co-writing and not try to hog or hide or demand complete ownership over all of your potential contributions. Sharing good riffs and melodic ideas and lyrics is important, that way folks know how good you are and they will return the generosity in the grand scheme of things. Just my thoughts :-)
Thanks, not sure we are disagreeing... We'd never tell anyone to NOT get an official registration of copyright. As we said in the video, we can only share our personal paths. Not advise you... For me, having written over 6,000 songs, it would be cost prohibitive for my budget to register all those copyrights. So I do what many pro songwriters I work with do. We register our "releases" with the copyright office. You should absolutely do what fits your comfort level and consult an attorney with any questions.
@SongTownUSA Thank you for the clarification, I missed the context/ nuance on what you were describing. It did sound like discouraging from copyright, but now I understand better... For pro songwriters producing the volume that you are it would indeed be cost prohibitive. I did a quick back of the envelope calculation for 6000 songs and my jaw dropped. And, I guess that many of a pro songwriter's ideas might undergo revision or change and so it's best to do the release version as you described. In my case I'm not a pro and only have just more than a couple dozen fully flushed out "songs" comprising lyrics, melody rhythm and some harmony. I made the value judgment that it was worth it to get those secured by filing with the copyright office.
Ha! Yes, copyright has a lot of lawsuits in the present and in the future around AI. We recently did a panel discussion at our yearly live event with publishers, writers, and copyright attorney. It's like the wild west right now and will take a while to sort out. ~CM
Clay and/or Marty, question? Is there any merit to funny and or parody songs. I have some that are really catchy and funny, but I don’t want to make them if it would completely ruin the possibility of me being a serious songwriter. I was really just wanting to put them out just to get some attention on my work so I could then put some serious stuff out. Is it something I should just do and see what happens, or am I overthinking things? Thanks for your videos I’ve gained a lot of info from them!
Why not write parody and serious songs. I always say pursue what excites you. There is less of a market for parade for sure, but if you enjoy it I wouldn’t stop creating it altogether. Thanks for watching! CM
I hear ya. Townes was a great writer and plenty of indie artists have been influenced by him. Thankfully there's all kinds of music for all kinds of people. And no one has to listen to anything they don't want to. But, you and I know Townes was the bomb :) CM
You have to love being a songwriter because there isn't any money in it even if you have a good song, because the only way to be heard is to put your stuff online, and now, they have it so why would they need to buy it? Right?
I get that your comment is a bit tongue in cheek (yeah I meant that double entendre :-), but these aren't countdowns from something worse to something better. That's what it would have to be, to be a countdown. Instead, each one of the nuggets presented here is pure gold. So it's more like a count-onward to additional precious tidbits. ❤
![BLACK BAG - Official Trailer [HD] - Only in Theaters March 14](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Du0Xp8WX_7I/mqdefault.jpg)
What songwriting topics would you like us to cover? Let us know below! ⬇
⚡Check out our worldwide community of songwriters. (New Year. No Limits discount) 20% off this month at
👉 songtown.com/platinum-no-limit-january/
I really like your idea that when we feel like we're in a drought-it's growing season, ideas are being collected, seeds planted, thoughts are free to grow. That's great, I love that thought!
Glad it resonated! Write on! CM
Great Stuff as always!
Competition happens at the bottom. Collaboration happens at the top. Being a fan of other local bands whether you like the music or not will help you in a lot of ways. So glad to have found this podcast. Been looking for more podcasts like this.
Love that approach! Write on! CM
Thanks for the kind words. Glad you found us! Marty
@@songtownusa1740 Always cool to see how the industry professionals approach things. Free education from people that are successful in the business. You both have helped write a lot of killer tunes and have an authentic personality. I'll be checking back often.
Be happy for others success- this is why you guys are the best! Thanks for all of these reminders!
You're welcome! CM
There's room for everyone to do well! Marty
Sometimes the worst thing that can happen is you get in a room you are not ready for. It can hurt your brand and limit your chances going forward. The Songtown Retreats were invaluable for me as a "learning source". As my understanding grew, so did my skills and confidence. Learn, grow, repeat and success will take care of itself!! Jody
And we've seen tons of growth in your work! Marty
That first topic is spot on. I've been listening to you guys for a few months now and while your advice is often vague, it does have a lot of truth in it.
Feel free to ask if you ever want more specifics.
Y’all’s videos are so good! I’ve been sharing your videos with all my musician friends! Thanks.
Appreciate it! Write on! CM
Thank you so much! Marty
Great stuff as always, very grateful for the wisdom and confirming my own hunches. And great job on the outro bit!
Appreciate you!🙏
Thanks for sharing your stories. I am so grateful I came across this channel.
Glad you're here! Write on! CM
This was some really great insight. I'm very glad that I happened across this video.
A lot of it, was actually just confirmation that I'm in the headspace of a professional, with probably 85% of what is mentioned here. But that extra 15% that perked my ears more, hit really deep on things to consider about myself. Especially the bits toward the end, about working with others, and WHO to choose to write with, etc.
I'm very novice on experience levels for 99% of what my goals are for myself. So, I even still hold equivalent value to everything discussed in this video, and I am always seeking the most efficient way to approach everything. But I pay extra attention to the things that have yet to come. I value everyone's time, effort, and resources that are required to work with, in any way that it happens.
Glad it resonated with you - write on! CM
I heard this once and it has always stuck with me, “the key to success is the ability to celebrate other peoples success”
Being grateful about life!
You guys offer a lot of good advice. Thanks for making these videos :)
Our pleasure! Write on! CM
I really appreciate this "street wisdom." Book smart is book smart, but "street wise" gets it done. I have found you guys have the most practical advice on the internet, and you're cool, too! It's like getting extra bacon on your biscuit for free!!
Awww TY 🙏.
That would be a cool band name, "Extra Bacon"! Marty
Your tips were really encouraging. Thank you. Im working on writing and recording more than ever this year. Finished my album last year and a song released for January. Now, to keep the momentum going! 👍
That's awesome! Write on! CM
@SongTownUSA Will do!
QFT. I'm not a songwriter, but 'being worthy of the opportunity' is a great life lesson. I had 20 years of failure until MY opportunity arrived. I've spent the last 25 years trying to be worthy.
so much of that really holds true to when I was young...and dwell on stuff that killed creativity
Listening to ST while I’m painting; really enjoy these videos!!!
Thx and Paint on! CM
We're glad. Thanks for listening! Marty
Thank you for this!! Much needed advice 🙏🏼🙌🏼
You're very welcome! Thx for letting us know 🙏🏼 ~CM
Great insight as always guys!
Thank you! MD
Hey guys. Always good stuff.
Thank you! Marty
Good stuff guys thank you!
You're welcome! CM
Thanks, Joyce! MD
Hi lads, greetings from Hackney, East London. I'm a decent guitar player who writes hooky melodies and riffs and lyrics but I'm not that confident as a singer. Is it just a question of finding a sympathetic singer to link up with or should I pursue my own voice? Cheers, really enjoying the channel
Yes, most of our SongTown members co-write. You can match up your best skills with someone who compliments what you don't do as well. Co-writing!
Great video !! Thanks for ST !!
You're welcome! Write on! CM
You're welcome! MD
I wonder how many people are out there who have wonderful songs that nobody will hear because they have no idea how to get it out there . Maybe if you live in Nashville and everyone you know are involved in the music industry but if you live in the suburbs of some other place and you dont know anyone in music but you just love writing songs which you've been doing for the past 20 years. I bet there are a lot of people out there in this situation..
Great question..With communities like songtown, we have members cowriting from all over the world on zoom and we bring the industry to them when their songs are ready. Some of our members hhave been on major label artist records and don't live anywhere near a major music city..So it's not as difficult getting heard as it used to be. Write on! Clay
@@SongTownUSA Thanks Clay..
Fellas you're knocking it out the park. Thank you for your channel.
Here's a couple of topics to consider speaking about that I've always experienced.
1. I'm sooooo suck of 6415 and it's derivatives. I hear it coming then I'm just bored.
2. Whenever I go to write, I feel guilty that I should be doing something else "more responsible, productive". So I never give myself the permission to block out time to write. It's a real thing.
3. I've forgotten but I'll stick it in another comment when I remember 😂😂
Thanks for the ideas! Marty
Oddly enough, when I was recording Instrumental music and using in my RUclips videos I'd get a copyright claim now and then on my own music 😄. I always contested and won.
If I'm aspiring to be a self publishing singer songwriter can being a Songtown member benefit me? Of course I'd like to publish a song that gets picked up by somebody big and puts me in a position to devote all my time to making music. What are your thoughts?
5:34 even AI? Cause a lot of people state that AI is learning from 'stolen' material?
You can't copyright a title no matter where it comes from. If you're using lyrics from AI, that could be an issue if it's determined to be a derivative work. Marty
If you haven't yet it would be really nice if you share your thoughts on demos and how to present your songs. I know probably there will be different answers for different genres. For instance on my field which is the latin music for Regional mexican folk it is always piano and a good vocal track what works. But for Latin pop yes I have to produce a demo and as I am also a producer that sometimes I work for record labels that is no problem for me. I wonder what is the proper way to present a song for Country music. vocal plus guitar or full band production? I am in LA but saw some Nashville studios offering demo production with Nashville sound for folks that are not there. Anyhow it would be great to hear your input on this matter. Love your channel !!
Thanks for the suggestion! CM
My good friend is a fantastic song writer. He has a set he plays of 10 songs all of them are hits. He gets the biggest pop when he's plays. His album is going to be a greatest hits album and its just a regular album. 😂😂😂 im going to tell him about you guys.
Thank you 🥰
Another subject matter for your consideration....
Does writing for others differ from writing for yourself?
I mean, if you're releasing your own album, can you take different liberties (eg maybe singing more personal songs)?
Or is it a case of, if you're writing for yourself and your own performances, you should always write as if the song could raise the interest of a publisher.
Great subject!
Regarding number two I respectfully disagree. It's only $45 to file a single application from a single individual for music composition including lyrics. Even with co-writers it's only about $70-90 bucks.
Titles can't be copyrighted, thankfully, and neither can chord progressions. But if you have a hard-won melody and lyrics set to it painstakingly with prosody then I think it's foolhardy to not get a copyright before shopping it around. It protects you for a very small fee.
If you worked on a melody and or lyrics and you put more than $45 worth of time into it, it's in your best interest to copyright it. I would also posit that the climate today is very different than the climate that you two fellows cut your teeth in. These days a a song can be picked up off the internet and "interpolated" (stolen) more readily than it can stolen from the confines of cloistered co-writer quarters or through targeted delivery of songs to A&R folks.
All of this is only for songs which you have made nearly in entirety. At the same time, I think it's important to be generous during co-writing and not try to hog or hide or demand complete ownership over all of your potential contributions.
Sharing good riffs and melodic ideas and lyrics is important, that way folks know how good you are and they will return the generosity in the grand scheme of things. Just my thoughts :-)
Thanks, not sure we are disagreeing... We'd never tell anyone to NOT get an official registration of copyright. As we said in the video, we can only share our personal paths. Not advise you... For me, having written over 6,000 songs, it would be cost prohibitive for my budget to register all those copyrights. So I do what many pro songwriters I work with do. We register our "releases" with the copyright office. You should absolutely do what fits your comfort level and consult an attorney with any questions.
@SongTownUSA Thank you for the clarification, I missed the context/ nuance on what you were describing. It did sound like discouraging from copyright, but now I understand better... For pro songwriters producing the volume that you are it would indeed be cost prohibitive. I did a quick back of the envelope calculation for 6000 songs and my jaw dropped. And, I guess that many of a pro songwriter's ideas might undergo revision or change and so it's best to do the release version as you described. In my case I'm not a pro and only have just more than a couple dozen fully flushed out "songs" comprising lyrics, melody rhythm and some harmony. I made the value judgment that it was worth it to get those secured by filing with the copyright office.
I love studying theory. How important is that for writing a great song?
If you enjoy it, let it inspire you. 👍
Theory is not something I use most days, but it comes in handy at times. MD
I mean, the whole theft discussion feels like it needs an update. Now with AI...I'll copyright my songs before I even show them to my grandmother, lol
Ha! Yes, copyright has a lot of lawsuits in the present and in the future around AI. We recently did a panel discussion at our yearly live event with publishers, writers, and copyright attorney. It's like the wild west right now and will take a while to sort out. ~CM
Your grandmother must be a rough character! 🙂. Marty
Clay and/or Marty, question? Is there any merit to funny and or parody songs. I have some that are really catchy and funny, but I don’t want to make them if it would completely ruin the possibility of me being a serious songwriter. I was really just wanting to put them out just to get some attention on my work so I could then put some serious stuff out. Is it something I should just do and see what happens, or am I overthinking things? Thanks for your videos I’ve gained a lot of info from them!
Why not write parody and serious songs. I always say pursue what excites you. There is less of a market for parade for sure, but if you enjoy it I wouldn’t stop creating it altogether. Thanks for watching! CM
Thanks Clay!
Random question, but did you ever have a song come to you in a dream? Is this a common thing?
Sure! But I never remember them in the morning 🤪
I have on a few occasions, but they're usually not great in the morning! MD
Too bad songs like Townes wrote aren't the norm for gold standard songwriting !! Instead of whatever flavor of the month country is out now
I hear ya. Townes was a great writer and plenty of indie artists have been influenced by him. Thankfully there's all kinds of music for all kinds of people. And no one has to listen to anything they don't want to. But, you and I know Townes was the bomb :) CM
Such beautiful songs
I took a break from my gambling career to be a Nashville songwriter,,,im back in Vegas but the millions i have made are all betting on red,,,
There may be a song in that! Marty
@songtownusa1740 thanks Marty,,,
Can I make money just from writing lyrics? How would I do that?
Marty Dodson, co-founder of SongTown, is a world-class lyricist. Checkout SongTown.com
😎😎😎
💯
You have to love being a songwriter because there isn't any money in it even if you have a good song, because the only way to be heard is to put your stuff online, and now, they have it so why would they need to buy it? Right?
There are still a lot of people making money with songs. It is more challenging, but it still happens. MD
You need to rename this channel to “The Countdown Channel”.
I'd need at least 9 more reasons for that :)
I get that your comment is a bit tongue in cheek (yeah I meant that double entendre :-), but these aren't countdowns from something worse to something better. That's what it would have to be, to be a countdown. Instead, each one of the nuggets presented here is pure gold. So it's more like a count-onward to additional precious tidbits. ❤
@@SongTownUSA 😂😂
@@ThisGuyDude hmmm, “The Count-up Channel”? 🤔
@@officialWWMYes! That works for me 🤠
Good artists borrow, great artists steal…
"So good they can't say no?" So I'm assuming you've never had a song rejected?