Songwriting As A Livelihood

Songwriting As A Livelihood

Many people I’ve talked with have a somewhat romanticized notion of writing songs, hearing them on radio or in a movie, and watching the money roll in.  If you are one of those folks, or even if you have less lofty ideas for making money as a songwriter, please let me offer a few observations which might be useful for you.

First and foremost be aware that the business of songwriting has changed dramatically in the last decade, and it continues to change and evolve constantly.  And yes, I said business, because the money side of songwriting is business.  The advent of digital music and streaming services have radically changed the potential cash flow for a songwriter, slashing the revenue return even for hit writers.  I won’t detail it here, but please do your homework, and learn what the true potentials are.

As in any business, it takes a while to become established, learn the ropes, and begin to see some return.  My advice is be sure you have, or can create, a reliable source of revenue to support yourself before relying on income from songwriting.  I’ve seen many, many disillusioned songwriters come and go in Nashville because they were unable to support themselves by writing.

To be successful as a business you must spend money. The days of walking into a publishing house and having them welcome you with open arms and pay all your demo costs have long since passed, with very rare exceptions.  Ditto landing a paid staff job with a publisher.  So, this means you must be prepared to invest your own resources in producing demos, buying equipment, paying for materials, networking and many other things.  The cost of quality full production demos in Nashville runs about $700 to over $1000, and sometimes considerably more for extras.  Radio ready masters are even more.

Know that getting a song contract signed with a publisher doesn’t guarantee that your song will ever be recorded, or that you will receive income from it.  And if you do, remember publishers don’t work for nothing.  A typical publisher will have hundreds, or thousands of songs in their catalogs at any given time.  They make money on their share of royalties from songs they get recorded, so you are facing a lot of internal competition to even have your song presented to an artist representative.  Make sure you understand any contract you sign, and preferably get an experienced entertainment attorney to review it prior to signing it (another expense from your pocket).

One last thing:  Beware of sharks in the waters of the music business.  It is, and always has been, a pretty tough environment.  Move carefully, get good advice, check references, and use common sense to avoid common, and not so common pitfalls.

It’s not all gloom and doom out there.  It is possible to make it, and some do.  But the numbers are far smaller than in the past.  Also, there are many other kinds of revenue sources you can explore, such as film, tv, and advertising licensing.  Again, the competition for these opportunities is fierce.  If you are a singer/songwriter you have the possibility of making money performing and selling merchandise at your shows. 

I have just scratched the surface on this subject, but I sincerely hope this information can help you on your songwriting journey.

Best wishes for success!

THREE CHORD TRAPS

THREE CHORD TRAPS

Most songwriters I know, including myself, occasionally experience being in a writing pattern where everything sounds very similar, or is written in a style that seems stale.  It is a very annoying and frustrating place to be.  What to do about it?

One of the main culprits which causes this is often the instrument the writer uses to write with.  I call it the “Three Chord Trap”.  It is especially common with new writers and those who are new to playing an instrument.   Writers with years of experience sometimes fall into it, too.  An old maxim in country music is that all you need is “three chords and the truth” to write a good song.  While there is a lot to support this idea, sometimes those three chords lead us down a path that results in very stale feeling or sounding songs.

There are many successful writers who write only lyrics and rely on someone else to add melody and arrangement.  But there are far more who write with a guitar, keyboard or other instruments.  Most of these folks write melodies to go with their lyrics and are the most susceptible to the Three Chord Trap.

A very successful songwriter friend of mine started his career without any ability to play an instrument.  His technique is to write a lyric and then sing and record every possible melody for it he could think of.  He would then pick the best, and work with a musician/arranger to fine tune it.  He wrote a number of songs this way that became huge worldwide pop hits for a female artist.  I sometimes use this technique to help pull myself out of a rut (still waiting on that worldwide hit, though…).

A big culprit in writer’s rut is the instrument we write with.  It is very easy to fall into a comfortable pattern of chords on guitar or piano, and fit lyrics into that pattern.  This often causes each song to have a similar sound.  Another way to get out of this, in addition to occasionally not using an instrument, is to try writing with a different instrument if you can.  My main instrument is standard six string guitar, but I sometimes write with a bass guitar, a resonator slide guitar, a mandolin, banjo, or a ukulele.  I’ve even written with a steel guitar, and a cigar box guitar.  Invariably, the change of instrument will lead me to a different musical idea for a song.

One last tool to get past a rut is to write in a different genre than you are used to.  If you write country songs, try writing blues.  If you write pop songs, try writing country.  You get the idea.

All these ideas are ways to force yourself out of your comfort zone and allow you to jump start your creativity.  There are many others, indeed there are whole books which address techniques for improving creativity.  A last piece of advice, if you want to improve as a writer, is to write.  Write a lot.  Analyze and learn from your work, and don’t be afraid to step over those ruts.