BMI partnered with the Michigan Restaurant Association (07/30) to provide the musical entertainment at their annual summer board retreat held at the Inn at Bay Harbor in Bay Harbor, MI. Hit BMI songwriter Kent Blazy performed for the group of Michigan hotel, bar and restaurant owners, playing songs he has… Read more...
BMI partnered with the outgoing Board Chair of the Ohio Restaurant Association to create a special day for his colleagues at White Castle during their annual company meeting held recently (6/21/18) in Nashville. Lending their expertise were award-winning BMI songwriters Greg Bates and George Ducas, who enthusiastically led a songwriting… Read more...
BMI partnered with the Tavern League of Colorado recently (4/29) to provide the musical entertainment at the trade association’s annual Bar & Restaurant Expo. The event, which was held at the Cowboy Lounge in Denver, is designed to connect vendors and sponsors with the decision makers from locally owned bars,… Read more...
Every country music fan knows that there are more than a few tales about country stars that sound almost too unbelievable to be true. These stories work extremely well with the film genre of animated documentary, which is exactly what it sounds like: an animated version of the truth. What… Read more...
What constitutes a hook? Any element of a song that grabs a listener’s attention and “hooks” them in. With there being so much competition for our listeners’ attention, including multiple hooks throughout our songs has become more important than ever. According to an article in The Atlantic magazine, “A short-attention-span… Read more...
Before addressing what might constitute being “too clever” in lyrics, I’ll begin by defining what I mean by “clever” lyrics. For the purposes of this article I’m referring to songs with lyrics that are witty, tongue-in-cheek, humorous, or amusing. These are in contrast to those that fall into the category… Read more...
BMI is saddened at the passing of Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame member and multiple BMI award-winner Curly Putman, who died Sunday at the age of 85. Putman’s vast catalog of songs undeniably helped shape country music history and include, among others, “D-I-V-O-R-C-E” and “Green, Green Grass of Home.” He… Read more...
To grab our listeners’ attention we need to separate our songs from the competition, and one way to accomplish this is by including an unexpected twist—an element of surprise. This article examines various ways to incorporate twists into lyrics and melodies. Story Songs With Surprise Endings “Ol’ Red” (written by… Read more...
BMI singer-songwriter George Ducas took the spotlight at the recent New Mexico Restaurant Association’s Hospitality Industry Awards Dinner in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Ducas, the writer behind country hits “Beer Run” (Garth Brooks & George Jones), “A Real Fine Place to Start” (Sara Evans) and “Just Call Me Lonesome” (Radney Foster),… Read more...
BMI sadly says goodbye to its 2010 BMI Icon Billy Sherrill, who died yesterday at the age of 78. Sherrill is responsible for writing and/or producing the more contemporary cross-over sound of country music in the 1960s and ‘70s, including such hits as Tammy Wynette’s country #1 “Stand by Your… Read more...
