Career Songwriter

If you’ve been writing songs for a considerable length of time, or even if only for a short time, you might notice that many of your songs have a similar style or sound. Perhaps it’s a tempo you write in often, maybe it’s the movements of your harmonies, or rhythmic pattern in your melodies, or a strumming pattern in your guitar. Sometimes we get locked into a particular feel and though it produces a decent song, a whole album or live show continuing that feel gets monotonous for the listener and boring for us as writers.

One way that we can break out of our typical style is by co-writing. Letting someone else set the tempo, determine the key, dictate some harmonic changes, or twist the melody between two chords for awhile takes away some of our safety nets. It may feel awkward at first, as if you’re unable to tell whether what you’re writing is ‘good’ or not.

When two writers of different styles come together, the result can be bumpy and random, or it can result in an integration of the strong elements of both writers. I’ve had plenty of both results, but each experience has enabled me to listen to my own style in a different way. Over time I could see how the styles of my co-writers influenced my own writing.

When we don’t have the immediate option to co-write, we need to get resourceful with our own tools. Discovering and developing the various angles of our own style takes effort, moving beyond the subconscious inspiration that sometimes allows lyrics and melodies to just ‘fall out’. We can do this through a variety of tools, some of which I’ll describe here. Add your own tools as you think of them.

1. Set aside your instrument. Letting go of that guitar or piano for awhile and simply singing a melody can free up any limitations you experience by your instrument. If you’re a singer, let go of your vocal chords too. Find a quiet space, and imagine your favorite singer writing a new tune. Pretend you have access to his/her vocal quality and range, and begin to explore intervals or ranges you wouldn’t typically explore using your own instrument.

2. Pick up a new instrument. We’ve all exchanged instruments in band class on substitute teacher day, but this time I’d like you to consider picking up an instrument you’re not as familiar with for the sake of writing something outside your comfort zone. If you’re a guitar player, move over to the piano and try thinking melodically rather than rhythmically. If you’re a piano player, try picking up a guitar and strumming some rhythms with your right hand for a more percussive effect, muting the strings with your left.

3. Start writing a song to the intro of another tune. Pick a song you know or don’t know, and listen to the intro. The intro might be a groove or melodic motif or harmonic progression that sets the tone for the song. If you typically write ballads, try choosing an up-tempo intro and pause the song before the verse begins. Write your own verse melody inspired from the intro. Later, you can change the chords if you wish.

4. Set the metronome for various tempos and tap out the rhythm of a new melodic idea. Starting with rhythm can be a great tool if you’re used to writing the same tempos all the time. Many piano players get mired in ballad-land, and starting with a faster tempo in mind ensures that we’ll approach the lengths of our notes differently within the melody.

5. Try writing a whole song over one groove. You might write a 4 chord progression and use it throughout the verse and chorus. In this case, make sure you use melodic techniques like raised pitch, longer and shorter notes, and changes in your phrase lengths to get contrast between the song sections.

6. Write the lyric first. If you tend to write melody and lyric at the same time, try your hand at some lyrics and then go to the piano or guitar. If you write lyrics first, go to your instrument and write some music first.

7. Analyze similarities between your songs, and do the opposite. Look for consistent elements like long notes, the same harmonic progressions, always starting your melodic phrases on the downbeats or after or before the downbeats, ranges in the vocal, structural elements like rhyme schemes or even the rhymes you gravitate towards the most. Then, change them up by using shorter notes or changing the position of your phrases to beat two or three instead of always on beat one, letting the pitch of your chorus rise above that of your verses, changing the rhyme schemes, etc.

As with anything we endeavor, it’s those times of drought that spur growth. Keep forging ahead and you’ll find yourself emerging on the other side with some new songs that display a whole new side of your talent.

Happy writing,
Andrea

I don’t know about you, but I spent years recoiling from this question for fear of what I’d say or wouldn’t say that would pigeonhole my music forever. You’ve probably listened to a lot of styles of music, and like me, you’ve found remnants of each floating around in your melodies, harmonies, and rhythms. You may have been told your voice or guitar stylings are reminiscent of another artist, dumping you into a specific genre you may or may not be completely characterized by. Or, you may be limited by your instrumental abilities so that your songs consistently fall short of the commercial sound where you intend them to fly. These are all issues we deal with as songwriters trying to compartmentalize what we do in order to put ourselves out there as shows, CDs and MP3’s.

Before I sat down and took a look at the thin red line that ran through my lyrics and musical inklings, I would describe my music as pop/rock. The conversation would usually end right there. Either the person I was talking to liked the genre, or didn’t. Once in awhile I’d get the chance to name a few commercial artists I sound like, but the mixture fell flat when one or more of those artists was unknown or disliked by whomever I was talking to. Needless to say, it wasn’t a very good way to illicit interest in my music. Why would someone want to buy my songs when they can go listen to the real Alison Krauss, Jonatha Brooke, or Sting who they know and love?

I had to learn how to talk about my music in a way that connected with people. It wasn’t that I fit into a genre that was particularly important. What was important was that people could begin to imagine how my music could be useful to them. What am I intending on causing with my music? What issues do I consistently write about? Do my songs make you laugh, tear up, get in touch with old memories, yearn to live more passionately, or bounce down the freeway on your way home from work? How can I summarize the purpose that is consistent throughout my songwriting style so that people are interested in learning more about me and my music?

An artist friend of mine describes her style as ‘Music that soothes the wounds of modern life.’ Knowing how she describes her music in just that simple phrase, a first time listener can approach her music with that foundation. We all have wounds, and we all have our idea of what it means to soothe those wounds. Before she even plays a note I can feel what she’s about. She won’t be a copy of some other artist out there, but a unique voice that is easy to characterize and remember. Furthermore, I can immediately think of other people and situations in which her music would be a good fit. All because of 8 pivotal words.

Imagine yourself in conversation with someone you’d like to expose your music to. What would you say?

If you’re finding this question difficult to answer, grab a notebook and pencil and start journaling about your songs. Read over a few lyrics or titles of yours. Start to talk about the songs in conversational language as if you were telling them as a story to your best friend. What are the far-reaching themes that continue to emerge?

Another exercise might be to grab one or two friends who know your music. Ask them to help you list adjectives or verbs that capture the essence of your music and lyrics. Notice any common threads and start thinking about how you might include them in your own ‘8-word pitch.’ Don’t be confused by songs that land outside this circle of common themes. It’s not so much ‘what’ you write about that may matter in these instances, but ‘how’ you have approached it. Go back to the list of words and think about what experience you’re causing with your music. Everyone wants to experience something, and the more clearly you understand how your music is perceived the more confident you will be that people need what you do.

Andrea