Improving Your Songwriting Skills

Let's face it - songwriting is not just an artform. It's also a craft. If it wasn't - a monkey could do it. Many artists visiting Fame Games are already excellent songwriters, but others only show potential which is yet to be fulfilled.

Amateurs often have a common argument against "learning" songwriting. It goes something like "you can't learn this thing, you're either born with it or you're not." Needless to say, and without much additional qualification, this is one of those "leave me alone I'm afraid to learn and fail" kind of arguments. You may be born with a special talent for something, but it will come to nothing without further development.

In my previous posts, and probably in some of the upcoming ones, I'll touch on some useful techniques for getting "more" out of your songs. There is an element of subjectivity in this, of course. But it's a bit like listening to someone speak. Some people bore you to tears even if the subject of their talk is very interesting. Others keep your attention even when they talk nonsense. We all have a radar in us which somehow knows what is "good" and what it not. We may differ on that point from person to person, but the overwhelming majority will tend to agree with each other at least on the general principle. It's just a fact of how our psychology works.

Some key points to keep in mind, when writing songs. And it's just a small sampling.

• Keep it real. Avoid meaningless and boring topics unless you really feel they need to be told.

• Keep it interesting. It may be just a key hook line or the entire lyric, it can be minimalistic or slightly wordy, but it needs to mean something to your listeners. Tell this story to a friend and see if he gets it. This doesn't have to be anything high-flying or philosophical. You may just want to write a song about partying and having fun with the opposite sex. But you can say it in a way which makes your listeners fall asleep - or you can put a smile on their faces.

• Ensure that the lyrics have a strong and balanced meter, and rhymes (if used) are strong and not banal. Don't "settle" for makeshift solutions. Make sure you know what your lyric "wants" to say and then find a way to express it. This will more often than not mean a LOT of revision.

• If your lyric has a good rhythm, so will your song. A well-written lyric virtually "sings itself." Many songs have "forced rhythms" - for example cases where a syllable is stretched unnaturally in order to make the rhythm work. This is not the same as extended syllables which are there for special effect or because they just need extra emphasis or styling. This is about those lines where the writer simply couldn't think of a way to make the phrase balance and he's cheating by stretching or contracting words until they fit. This technique CAN work, but all too often it comes across as simply amateurish.

• Learn about chordal progressions. Some progressions "flow" and are natural and some are... erm... challenging. Some progressions are so well established that they're known as "power chords" and you'd be surprised at just how many songs rely on them. The familiar C-Am-F-G progression works with children's melodies but it's also the basis of many classic hits. If arranged well (the right inversions, clever dynamics and rhythms) you might not even recognize it. Don't be afraid of using "standard" chord progressions, but do challenge yourself to ensure that they come across as fresh.

• Ensure that your melodies aren't "glued to the chords." Melodies which follow chords have been done to death in the past and any new song which uses that technique immediately sounds boring and dated, with few exceptions. Deliberately "flip out" some notes in your standard melody and see how the song gets transformed. Try your melody against different chords. Does it sound more interesting? But keep in mind that melody lines are like lyrics: you're always re-using familiar elements, but you need to put your own stamp on them. Between intervals, meter, rhythm and dynamics - and a bit of divine inspiration - you have all the tools you need to write something that nobody's heard yet.

• Push yourself. Subject your songs to analyses and cold-listens by unsuspecting strangers. Clock their facial expressions more than their words (which are often cautious compliments, even when they're not deserved). Find ways to write your songs so that the physical reactions you get become undeniably positive.

• Come up with tricks to improve your songwriting. One such "trick" isn't really a trick at all, but it can completely transform the way you write your music. Get another singer to sing your song. Not because they're "better" but because they're DIFFERENT. If you know a singer who's great get him or her to "interpret" your song. Try it with your melody line first, then ask them to just feel it and do their own thing with it. Then, get a "poor" singer to sing it. Watch him or her kill your song and unconsciously deliver a parody of it. The lessons you'll take away from this can be invaluable.

• Study other great songwriters. Note that songs by greats such as Lennon-McCartney, Elton John or Diane Warren survive decades and lend themselves to virtually any musical style. How did they do it?

• Always ensure that your demos are done properly. They can be simple or complex, "produced" or not - but the basic values need to be there. Strong confident instrumentation and vocal, "flowing" arrangement, hooks, little surprises - and a decent mix.

When reviewing demos, "the song" is always the biggest consideration. Given two songs, one of which is beautifully written but poorly produced, and the other hastily written but beautifully produced, all too often the latter will win out. This is because "production" is just another word for "presentation". We all know that it's not clothes that make the man and we shouldn't judge a book by its cover. But the fact still remains that first impressions are always going to be critically important. So have the depth and the content and all that - but also ensure that you grab their attention from the start with your craft - even if it's basic. "Basic" is ok, as long as it's "proper!"

Don't forget to check out my sub-blog "Write a Song About This"

Never Mind The Styles (Or: What Is Art?)

What's with all those genres? Country, hip-hop, rock, folk, etc... New artists often define their songs in those terms. "This is a country-style tune" they might say. And then you listen to it and discover that it sounds nothing like what YOU think of as "country." The world is full of hybrid songs which don't really belong in any clear box or category.

So what is it about those styles? What's in a name?

It seems to me that inasmuch as any of those labels convey any meaning, it must have something to do with "belonging" and by extension, with an "idea of belonging." Think of it like this. In the days when Western movies were king, young people everywhere idolized their gun-toting heroes, they wanted to be a little bit like them, and do what they did. The music those horoes listened to (or at least the soundtrack made you think so), was mostly Country & Western. It comes as no surprise, then, that this genre was doing really well in the mainstream back in those days.

But as cultural icons change, so does the music which accompanies them. Folk was the music of rebellious intellectuals who wanted to question everything. The likes of Bob Dylan or Leonard Cohen opened up popular music to meaningful lyrics. Rock in almost all of its early guises was the music of liberation and a break with convention. And so was punk and - perhaps even more so - hip-hop. All of these styles came from real environments and as the public-at-large learned to identify with them, the style would enter the mainstream consciousness new idols would appear and imitators would spring up like mushrooms after rain.

Many of the subsequent superstars were not, by any stretch of the imagination, the real thing. Was Johnny Cash a cowboy? Was Cliff Richard a rebel? Was Vanilla Ice a boy from the hood?

So, while the music by many contemporary artists may not be totally true to its roots, and is, for the most part, only a vague imitation of the originals, one must not jump to the hasty conclusion that it is therefore invalid or too derivative to be worth anything. In fact, it might even be quite the contrary. Do you have to be an astronaut to be able to imagine how he or she feels? Does it mean you aren't allowed to study astrophysics? Or at least to make "space" tunes? Do you have to live in the ghetto to empathize with those people's plight and later write a passionate song about it?

Clearly, no. In fact, we must remember that all art is just a synthesis of influences, and those influences can not only be widely divergent, but they can also be personal as well as imaginary. A song - or any piece of art - needs to be judged not so much on the "authenticity" of its originator but on the cohesion, poingnancy and beauty of its creation. Does it create something within the listener? Good art, good music, is completely capable of doing just that! In fact, it may even be the very definition of art, that unless it contains the power of creation within itself it isn't really art.

And what is it that good art might "create?"

Starting with provoked thoughts, vague or particular emotions, feelings of sadness, happiness, anger or joy, a wish to enhance the communication with others, or the wish to retreat and think some things over - that's what art is all about. And never mind the styles...!

Don't forget to read my newest sub-blog - "Write a Song About This!"

Makin' It - Part 99999.....

So how DO you make it as an artist in this world?

I'm not sure I can tell you anything beyond what you probably already know. You have to have superb songs, produced just right and you have to present yourself as an attractive (not necessarily "pretty") package. That's step one.

Then, you need to perform live and showcase your music in any way you can think of, premier among these outlets being your local radio - and other radio if you can get to it (tough one, I know!).

Next, you need to be in a community, be it your local musicians, music and media people or an online group. You need to be active, friendly and supportive of everyone you meet.

Furthermore, you need to invest some funds into your own promotion, be it newsletters, press releases, posters or merchandise - and ensure you start actively building your fan club. When you have an active database of a few thousand fans and you can pack a local venue, you need to start inviting the "right" music business people to come and check you out. And by that time you already need to be friends with music lawyers, A&R men and other artists. And, finally, you need a little bit of luck at each step of the way.

But most importantly, you need endless perseverance. That's not as hard as you might think, if you actually LOVE what you're doing. You'll need to secure some financial backup, of course (and that might be a night job somewhere), but if you persevere and never get daunted by setbacks, delays and critiques (all of which makes you better and stronger!), you will increase your chances tremendously.

But among all those do's and dont's the one thing that will ALWAYS stand out is THE SONG.

If you can write a GREAT song, you'll shortcut the above process by a factor of 1000. And THAT is why it's so important to write songs that are REAL and unique to YOU. But also structured cleverly enough for them to find a wide audience who understand what you're talking about and want to hear that message again.

Take the time it takes!

Ultimately, what wins out is well-organized TALENT THAT PERSEVERES... who has GREAT, TIMELESS songs!

Make sure you check out my sub-blog "Write a Song About This" - http://writeasongaboutthis.blogspot.com/

The Fallacy That Is A Hit Song

One of the things we do here on Fame Games is try to find a "hit song" among all the independent material submitted to us, and then push that along to our contacts in the industry, in the hope that some of our artists will be rewarded with lucrative deals! Wouldn't that be a perfect proof of concept for Fame Games! (We're now beginning now to slowly fulfill that dream...)

And yet, none of us support those cheesy manufactured "hits" written with only one goal in mind: to make money on a musical format for as long as possible.

We come from varied musical backgrounds. Even though some of us have been quite involved with some very successful artists, producers and managements where having "hits" was certainly never spat on, we are quite unanimous in our agreement that the creation of music must be organically driven and "real" and that contriving your arrangements against your instincts only so that they might have a chance of becoming "commercial hits" is a path of self-destruction - and it harms the public ears!

But we're also open to the reality of life. For an artist to be able to sustain themselves from their art, they need at least a degree of recognition. And this, quite often, means that their music must have "credibility." It must be well executed, it must deliver its message in the best possible way for the target audience it is aimed at, and... it must be a "hit" if it is to get the artist noticed. And for us, to have credibility as an A&R platform we must prove that we can indeed find the "best of the best." And only then will our artists truly stand to benefit from those efforts.

The way we think of a "hit" is a song which "hits you over the head" and makes you remember the particular artist. If you produce, listen to and "consume" music for a living, and in the quantities that we do, you soon develop a sense of what "connects" and what doesn't. Erm... except that we don't always agree. (Which is why we've spent years fine-tuning a system which is supposed to help us in making those decisions...)

When we recognized how futile it is to look for a "hit" song, we dropped that word from our vocabulary for quite a while, until... we got picked up by a major radio network whose affiliates didn't want to play unknown music! For them it's not enough that a song is "good." It's got to be a hit already. No, not "a potential" hit. A bona fide hit.

You can't believe the struggle it was for us to convince our reluctant affiliates that radio CAN help DISCOVER future hits (like it used to). We're still fighting this battle. As we reconize that giving our artists maximum exposure can only be helpful to the vast majority of them, we also recognize that we must meet our affiliates (and especially the undecided affiliates) half-way.

So we started using the slogan "Looking for the next big radio hit!"

What do you think? Does this work? What would you do differently, if anything?

Don't forget to check out my other blog "Write A Song About This!"