Here is a collection of various questions asked by songwriters. If you have a question you want answer send it using the form below.
First off my recommendation is to always do what you love and enjoy. With songwriting that may mean working in a genre that is obscure. The music business is always changing in regards to what is popular. Who knows the …
For several months I conducted a poll on the site to find out how songwriters start the songwriting process. This graph shows the results. What I learned from this is that most songwriters start with lyrics first. Followed by writing …
While composing a song, do songwriters write the lyrics first, or the music? Read more »
There are many ways to get inspiration for chord progressions. One way is to find one of your favorite songs and learn the chords of the songs. Once you get a few songs figured out you may begin to notice …
Where do songwriters get inspiration for chord progressions? Read more »
A song’s melody is perhaps the most important element of the song. The bedrock of music belongs to the melody. One of the most important aspects that make a great song lies in the melody. Melody is what makes a …
All songs consist of words and music. The words to a song are the lyrics. The music in a song is the melody. Someone who writes the words are called a lyricist. A person who writes the melody is called …
What is the difference between a songwriter and a lyricist? Read more »
A melody is a sequence of single notes that is musically satisfying. Any series of single tone creates a melody. The human voice, the flute, horn,—all instruments capable of emitting but one tone at a time. Each of these instruments …
The first thing you need is to have an idea or concept for a song. From that brainstorm as many ideas as you can that relate to the idea. Once you finish brainstorming you can then pick and choose the …
The thing that makes a melody memorable is the repetition of the motif or musical phase. The motif is a small musical phase that is used throughout a melody. By repeating the main motif it “embeds” the melody into the …
The principles of songwriting include the craft of taking both words and melody to create a song. For a song to be effective it should tell a compelling story. A story will have certain elements. These story elements include: the …
In creating a song you do want some contrast between verse and chorus. There are a few ways to do this. Raise the pitch of the melody as you introduce a new melody Vary the rhythm and meter of the …
The song chosen to be a “hit” will 99% comply with a radio friendly format. There are several elements of a radio friendly format. These are some of criteria you can use to discover the best hit song. Structural The song …
Songwriting involves several disciplines. These include the ability to write a good story. Take that story an turn it into lyrics. The lyric need to have meter and rhyme. Then the words are fused with a melody. Therefore it’s important …
What are some important aspects of the songwriting process? Read more »
The most important thing to do is make a daily appointment with yourself. Keep that appointment everyday. This will create consistency and momentum in your writing. But what to do? Here are a few things to add to the daily …
What are some good daily songwriting routines that work for you? Read more »
The biggest mistake a first-time songwriter makes is believing that the first draft of a song is good enough. The saying goes. Great songs or not written they are re-written. There’s a lot of factors that go into a great …
What are some common mistakes that first-time songwriters make? Read more »
You will need to get a mechanical license to get the permission to record a song. Here is a website that offers this service http://www.songclearance.com Alternately you can contact the publisher directly. Another palce to go is http://www.harryfox.com