Collaborating Mistakes I’ve Made, So You Don’t Have To. (You’re Welcome!)
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My first songwriting experiences were lonely ones. I remember staring out the car window on long car trips or sitting by myself on the bus, daydreaming in awkward and clunky rhyme. Once the guitar got involved, I’d spend countless hours alone in my bedroom working through whatever teenage drama was dominating my life that day,...
The Pro Files: Steven Vincent
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Welcome to The Pro-Files! A new series of interviews with industry professionals from mix engineers to A&R directors, from demo singers to publishers, to help familiarize aspiring songwriters and producers with all the moving parts of a successful songwriting career. And we begin, with the role of the music supervisor. Some of the biggest pop...
Song Math
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Let’s face it; pop music gets a bad rep. There are large segments of the population who look down on pop music, claiming that it’s formulaic, generic, uninspired and that it all sounds the same. I’m sure we’ve all seen those videos on youtube where the narrator runs through fifty different pop songs, and superimposes...
How To Write Songs That SELL, And How To SELL Your Songs
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Have you ever asked yourself – how come some songwriters can write songs that sell and generate money on the radio, in commercials, on tv shows, movies, and your favorite department stores – and some songwriters just can’t figure it out, and their songs never quite make it? We all heard that it takes 10,000...
How To Write A Song
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If ever there was a competition for the most ambitious blog title ever, “How to write a song” would probably win first prize. “Well, geez Chen” you’re probably asking, “Will I know how to write a song after reading this article?” No, don’t be silly. I did not in fact lay out the keys to...
Don’t Mind The Gap
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We like art at our house. Not in a portentous sort of “look at all our expensive paintings” kinda way (I mean we have young children… we can’t have nice things), But in an everybody is always doing something creative kinda way. At any given moment at our house, you will find someone writing a...
Why A Song Coach?
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When I’m asked to explain what I do as a song coach, I often use my tagline: “Helping aspiring writers and artists hone their skills and find their voice.” It’s right there on the front page of the website. Usually, the next question is, “So you teach people how to write songs?” Sometimes when the...
THE LANGUAGE OF MELODY, AND THE MELODY OF LANGUAGE
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Usually, this opening paragraph is where I try to sound funny and charming. I tell some sort of relatable disarming joke or anecdote, and hopefully you the reader then think to yourself, “Oh he’s funny, I think I’ll read what he has to say about songwriting instead of scrolling through Reddit while I’m on the...
How To Write A Song: A Reason To Rhyme
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For a few short moments after I came up with the title of this article, I was super proud of myself. How come no one has thought of this little pun before? My clever blogging skills must be on point! Well, a quick Google search ended that little ego-trip. The internet is in fact riddled...
How To Write A Song: Instinct And The Karate Kid.
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You know that part in the Karate Kid, where the wise old teacher promises to teach the hero (Daniel) the art of Karate, but instead makes him paint his fence, sand his floors, and wax his cars? And then when Daniel confronts him, the old man throws a punch and Daniel instinctively blocks it using the...