Utah's "soundcheck series"

This week I had the wonderful opportunity to talk with a group of Songwriters and industry professionals at the soundcheck series in Salt Lake City, Utah.

We had a great time discussing the importance of co-writing and mentoring, and I'm excited to see and hear the growth that is to come. I'm encouraged to see the potential of a group of passionate, creative musicians who decide to band together.

I also had the chance to write with Ryan Innes. Tell me this boy can't sing (this was one take, by the way):



Keep writing,

Ben

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Would you or someone you know like to go on a songwriting retreat with industry professionals? Visit SongbirdCamp.com for more details!

Key West Songwriters' Festival

Last week I had the opportunity to head down to Key West with a large group of writers and publishers from Nashville. The festival was full of shows happening all over town, from noon until three or four in the morning.

What's the point of such a migration, you may ask? For me, the main value of attending is for the opportunities to network. In town, I may run into other writers in a coffee shop or on music row, but generally we are both on our way to meet someone or to write. In Key West, no one really has to be anywhere, unless you are performing. Every meal and show is another chance to build a relationship or discover a new favorite songwriter. Here were a couple of my new favorite writers I saw perform this week:

Tony Lane ("I Need You" by Tim McGraw and Faith Hill)

Lori McKenna ("The Luxury of Knowing" by Keith Urban)

Here's a video from last year's festival:



Keep writing,

Ben

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Have you visited SongbirdCamp.com yet?

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