From Elton John and Bernie Taupin, Robbie Williams and Guy Chamber to Max Martin and Britney Spears, Katy Perry and Taylor Swift among many others. While professional songwriters have been writing the hits for pop stars for decades, new talent, whilst proficient at writing songs, can find it especially difficult to break into the industry.
Would be hit songwriters must learn to hone their craft, whilst taking baby steps within the music industry.
It is extremely unlikely that a college graduate with a music degree is going to end up writing a hit for a big name pop star, therefore it is best to target smaller artists and attempt to make a good impression and build a rapport.
New work is usually given to preexisting connections and as with almost everything in the music industry, it is important to network and make friends.
Songwriters will be given small amounts of work that may not pay the bills, but will allow for the building of reputation and improvement of craft.
Tips to become a successful songwriter
- Learn basic music theory
- Learn basic copyright law
- Create a press kit
- Network
- Write tons of songs
Understand what makes a great song
As musicians, it is important to be able to not only recognise the different sections of a song but also what makes a song tick. Understanding how to construct an effective hook and chorus is vital when writing commercial pop music.
Whether it is a catchy song lyric or a particularly well written guitar lick, the hook will draw in listeners and make for a successful song.
Satisfaction by The Rolling Stones is a great example of a song with a great hook.
Create a home studio
Professional studios can be extremely expensive, and for songwriters who are starting out it would be foolish to waste away £200/£300 trying to make 3 average songs into No.1 hits.
Many songwriters spend years writing and only manage to come up with a hit once or twice. For this reason alone, recording at a home studio is more cost effective.
Thankfully, a home studio can be created relatively cheaply and whilst it is not essential for songwriters to become amazing producers or sound engineers, it is important to be able to present at least the bare bones of a song to would be publishers.
If necessary, ask fellow musicians to play on these songs to give it some life.
Approaching publishers
Once a demo has been recorded, it is important that songwriters begin to target publishing houses, band managers and record labels.
The key here is to write in mind of a specific company or artist, do not send out demos to everybody.
Show companies that you have taken time to consider the style and genre of their artists, after all a hip hop music label are unlikely to use rock or metal songs.
Sources
- http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio2/soldonsong/guide/publish_get.shtml
- hhttps://www.lastminutemusicians.com/search/composers_arrangers.html
- http://www.celebritynetworth.com/articles/entertainment-articles/max-martin-powerful-person-music-business-people-never-even-head-name/
- http://www.musicradar.com/tuition/tech/how-to-write-a-hit-hooks-536740
Are you a professional songwriter? Let us know in the comments below!
