The Life of a Song (Part 3 of 6)

On the business side, there are six steps in the life of a song. I've decided to break it down into six posts.

Here's a basic unfolding of events (with estimated length of time in parentheses):

1. Song is written and turned into publisher
2. Song is demoed (three months after it is written)
3. Publisher pitches song to artists/labels/managers around town (six months)
4. Artist decides to record song (three months)
5. Album gets mixed and label promotes upcoming release (six months)
6. Album is release, and publisher and songwriter look forward to royalties (six-nine months)

Here are some basic general levels of approval that a song has to go through before it could be heard on the radio consistently:

Photo by Fod Tzellos. Used with permission.

           1. The songwriter(s)
2. The publisher(s)
3. The artist’s manager(s)
4. The record label
5. The artist(s)
6. The promotion team
7. The radio DJ(s)
8. The listener(s)

I believe the most important step is the first one. If we don't write something that we believe in, then why should we expect someone else believe it?

Keep writing,

Ben

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