In teaching songwriting and music business workshops over the past fifteen years, I’ve observed that there is a “greatest hits” of questions that I get over and over again from my attendees. I thought it might be helpful to share those questions and my answers here. Music Business 1. When should… Read more...
If history is any indication, one thing we can count on is that music is constantly evolving–and that includes which instruments and sounds are popular at any given time. In some instances, the invention of a new instrument changes the musical landscape. But more often, the instrumentation heard in popular songs… Read more...
The blessing and the curse of recording your finished song is that you can really dig in and scrutinize every detail. The “blessing” part is being able to hear all of the things that are coming together to make your song sound great but the “curse” is that by listening so… Read more...
A lot of composers ask what they need to do to catch the ears of the industry. So, we asked our film/TV expert to tell us what it is about music creators that she thinks creates a buzz. Here’s what she said: Doreen Ringer-Ross, Vice President Creative, Film, TV & Visual… Read more...
At the beginning of my career, I had a song go on hold for a female country music star whose singles regularly went to #1. The head of her record label said my song was a “must-cut” situation, and I was faced with a daunting decision: should I buy a Mercedes… Read more...
Years ago I wrote a piece entitled “Don’t Demo to Death,” in which I advocated saving your real creative juices for the master take. In that article I listed a number of reasons why I thought it best to avoid “proper” recording until the song was finished. For one thing, if… Read more...
This month, BMI’s Creative Team focuses on the importance of being a leader instead of a follower. Here are some tips on how to do it. Nina Carter, Creative, Nashville: With technology at our fingertips, it’s so easy to access music and fall into the current trends. If you spend… Read more...
One of my great joys over the past twenty years as a music producer in Nashville is the regular privilege of getting to work with some of the finest session musicians in the world. These men and women have played on some of the best known albums of all time and… Read more...
Some days things are just happening—you pick up the guitar, you jump in front of the vocal mic, and, there it is, one take, done. Other times, not so good—for whatever reason you struggle to complete a plausible solo break, but in the end it took you about a dozen tries… Read more...
Seven years after moving to Los Angeles to become an overnight sensation, I had my first song recorded and it was slated to be a single. During a phone call, the producer of that song casually mentioned that he would like to write with me the next time I visited Nashville.… Read more...
| Jun 30 2015 | BMI Licensing Sales Job Fair: Nashville, TN |
| Sep 12 2010 | West Coast Songwriters Conference: Los Altos, CA |
| Sep 11 2010 | West Coast Songwriters Conference: Los Altos, CA |
