Who is singing to whom in your song? If it is unclear, it could be a pronoun issue. When pronouns are mixed incorrectly in a lyric, the listener will NOT know who is singing to whom. When this happens, they zone out and start thinking other thoughts. Here is an example of a lyric that […]

Today’s song tip is a question that you should ask yourself every time you write a song. What is the subject of my song? What is my song about? Songs can be about any subject: animals, sports, science, politics, social issues, people, products, events, and of course the subject of love. Regardless of the subject, […]

Here’s a simple system for organizing song files. It is easy to set up and use. You will be able to quickly find any part of your song. Let’s assume your song files are located ‘everywhere’. Song files tend to find many places to live, hiding out on internal and external hard drives, flash drives, […]

Today’s Song Tip Tuesday is: Record your songs as many times as possible. These recordings will become an aid to your songwriting process. Think of each recording as a photograph, as an image of the song at that moment. No, this does not mean a fully orchestrated studio demo for every new song idea, it […]

Today’s Song Tip Tuesday is about the unpleasant feeling of being blocked or stuck when writing a song. It is a subject that comes up often in my workshops and from my private songwriting students.   It goes like this: SONGWRITER (with a tone of dismay), ‘I am stuck on this song…completely blocked. But I love […]

Today’s Song Tip Tuesday is another common question I get from songwriters. Do I need a lead sheet for my song?  The answer is no. But if you don’t have one, you might be the only person who can sing your song. If you want to have other vocalists sing it, then I suggest creating […]

Today’s Song Tip Tuesday is a question I get from songwriters all the time. How do I know when my song is finished? The answer: When the song is finished! Okay, sounds vague and unclear, but a song is finished when you, the songwriter, says it is. Unless the song is being written on assignment […]

Today’s Song Tip Tuesday is a continuation on the subject of collaboration. I realized that I had some random yet connected thoughts about the subject I wanted to share.  When a song is newly completed, the individual contributions of each writer will be most apparent. It is always suggested that a split-sheet or a collaboration […]

Today’s Song Tip Tuesday is about collaboration.  The collaborations that work best are when the collaborators are honest with each other. Brutally honest! If the lyric isn’t working, being able to say that the lyric isn’t working, and if the music is derivative of another song or not painting the intent of the lyric, being […]

Today’s Song Tip Tuesday is easy to do. Simply read the lyrics of other lyricists. It is an invaluable tool for learning how to write your own lyrics. The sources are many and there are numerous anthologies in print and online. Search for: Lyrics, Songwriter Anthologies, The Great American Songbook, Cole Porter, The Beatles, Billy […]