Two Prettiest People in the Room

Ken and Barbie; the knight and princess; the quarterback and cheerleader; the prom king and queen - the list goes on. We have the idea that the two best-looking people in the room should be sitting at the same table. Likewise, it only seems obvious that the two best songwriters in town should always be working together. The truth, however, is that the two most beautiful people in the room often don't get along well. You could put the two most successful writers in the same room to write a song, and the outcome could be a mediocre offering. The exciting flip side of that reality is that two good songwriters could easily produce a great song. As Solomon points out, the sum of the two is greater than twice what each of them could accomplish on their own. It's like two imperfect people falling in perfect love.

I believe it was veteran writer Jeffrey Steele who used a baseball metaphor to describe co-writing relationships. He said the healthiest relationships involve both a pitcher and a catcher. Two pitchers will just spout ideas, never completely honing in on a focused idea, while two catchers will sit there quietly watching the clock. It's imperative to know where you fall in the equation, and to also recognize this as a legitimate explanation as to why some co-writes just don't click.

The NBA Finals this year was another example to me of pure talent not being a substitute for working well with one another.

Keep writing,

Ben

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8-4-2-1

 

When I joined a P.R.O., my rep there took interest in the music I was writing. He encouraged me to continue bringing him new songs, and was gracious enough to give me constructive feedback. At an unclear stretch of my creative journey, it was important to have someone rooting for me and my art.

After about a year of meeting every month or two, he said, "I think it's time for you to meet with some publishers." I was thrilled. And nervous. Here's the breakdown of what happened after I walked out of his office that afternoon:

1. He gave me a list of 8 different publishers (including phone numbers) who he thought would have interest in the songs I was writing. He also gave me permission to use his name, which definitely helped legitimize my reason for calling.

2. I got meetings with 4 of the publishers. They either listened with interest, asked me to just leave the CD and told me they'd call me (which they didn't), consistently skipped to the next song every 30 seconds (I think I played a song that only had gibberish words instead of lyrics, so I can't blame her), or just wanted to chat.

3. I got multiple meetings with 2 of the publishers, getting feedback and constructive criticism on my songs. I would consistently drop by the two publishers' offices every couple of weeks, and would write songs specifically with the intention of taking them to the meetings.

4. Ultimately, I only continued meeting consistently with one publisher. Thankfully, that was the one publisher that I ended up signing with, over a year after this process began.

The actual process of meeting consistently with a publisher is called "courting," and it's fairly similar to dating someone until the proposal. It looked and felt a lot like an internship of sorts, where I had many of the same opportunities that the publisher's signed writers had.

Though I felt like I was ready the day I walked out of the P.R.O.'s office with a list of eight publishers, I knew the day I signed my publishing deal that it was worth going through the year-long process. I was a better writer because of it. For more on what a publisher does, read my previous post here.

Keep writing,

Ben

How a Lyric is Like a First Date

Here's how a commonly used song structure parallels a first date:

First line = introduction, first impression

First verse = Small talk

First chorus = "I think I like her."

Second verse = Background talk

Second chorus = "I think I really like her."

Bridge = Parting of ways

Final chorus = "I can't stop thinking about her."

Keep writing (and dating),

Ben

Identify

Songs either connect with the listener or they don't. When two people hear the same song, what makes one skip to the next track, and another drop what they're doing? And what could the songwriter do to affect this situation? Identify.

When I think of the songs that I truly enjoy listening to, I realize that the reason I love them so much is because they identify with me. They speak into my life, my situation, my relationships. They are the lens through which life makes more sense. We all want to go through every day with a soundtrack playing in the background. And we as songwriters have the honor of writing these songs for those around us.

So how do I identify while writing a song? Keep the listener in mind. It's as if the initial time a listener hears the song, they are going on a "first date" with the melody and lyric. If the song only talks about itself without asking the listener any questions, do you think they'd look forward to a second date?

Keep writing,

Ben