As a songwriter, being unique is a vital part of your success. If you’re not giving the world something that’s singular and distinctive — in some way different from all the other songs out there — then you’re simply copying someone else’s success. Songwriters are very familiar with the chorus hook, but there are other kinds […]
All songs are a mixture of things that we find familiar and predictable, with a touch of innovation and newness tossed in. The familiar things, as far as a listener is concerned, start with the very sound of the music: the sound is often what gives the genre away. “Use Your Words! Developing a Lyrics-First Songwriting […]
As you know, I spend a lot of time telling songwriters that their chords don’t need to be complex or even innovative in order for a song to succeed. They just need to support the melody, and as long as that melody is catchy, and assuming the lyrics you come up with are engaging, you’ve […]
Getting melodies and chords working well together is vital knowledge for any songwriter. “How to Harmonize a Melody” shows you, step by step, how that works, and gives you sound samples to follow. There’s nothing keeping you from using someone else’s chords in your own song, since chord progressions aren’t protected by copyright. Having said […]
I’ve noticed something: If you’ve purchased my 10-eBook Bundle recently, it’s possible that you’ve actually received two free eBooks. I’ve been offering “Use Your Words! Developing a Lyrics-First Songwriting Process” as a free add-on to the bundle of songwriting eBooks for quite a while now, but for some of you recent purchasers, you may have […]
Here’s an interesting little experiment you can try if you have several of your own songs in some sort of recorded format. Play each song, and for each one ask yourself “When is the first time in this song I hear something unique?” Here’s more of what I mean by that: Let’s say your song […]
