FREE STUFF: TIPSHEETS & VIDEOS
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The Perils of Perfectionism
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Song Dynamics: Roller Coaster or Freight Train?
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So, You Want To Collaborate?
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Write Songs the Music Industry Wants To Hear
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5 Insanely Great Songwriting Tools
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Break Out of Your Box: Expand Your Creativity
BREAKTHROUGH SONG WORKSHOP
START A NEW SONG TODAY WITH THIS
FREE HANDS-ON VIDEO MINI-SERIES
This series of 3-minute videos will walk you
through a powerful brainstorming process!
Part 1: The Blank Page and Silence
This first 3-minute video in the Breakthrough Song Workshop is designed to get you in touch with what's really going on in your life that's "giving you a song" today... right now. I dare you to blurt out the ideas that feel a bit scary. After all, why did we get into songwriting in the first place, if not to swing for the fences?!
"This video reflects all of the things that I found so compelling about your teaching from the first day I met you and you changed my life. I think it can change the lives of many others."
– Cheryl DaVeiga, Published Songwriter
Part 2: The Courage to Take a Stand
Now that you've brainstormed on some subjects and themes that are truly important to you, what's your unique perspective on each of those ideas? Where do you drive your stake into the ground and say "This is my truth!"? Go big and go bold.
Part 3: Powerful Titles That Leap Off the Page
Okay, at this point you've created a list of themes, and have taken some courageous stands. Now get psyched to use your language skills to make your song's title one-in-a-million. Take some real risks, and crank out some real doozies. Just promise me you won't write one more song called "Hold On." Thanks!
Part 4: The Incredible Power of Prosody
My mentor, the late great Doc Pomus, hammered into me the importance of Prosody: the marriage of lyrics and melodies. Ideally the shape, meaning and tone of each informs and reinforces the other. This video describes a few "happy couples," and invites you to conjure up some of your own.
Part 5: Roller Coaster Song Dynamics
There are songs that move like freight trains — the kind that lull you to sleep, especially if you're waiting at a red light — and then there are roller coaster songs. Personally I know which type I prefer! Here are some tips and exercises about how to pump up your song's thrill-factor.
Part 6: Creating More Hooks-Per-Square-Inch
Of course your song probably features a main hook. Now what can you do to increase its impact by multiplying the number of sub-hooks, thereby making it absolutely unforgettable? By looking to some of the world's most memorable songs for inspiration, start to generate some creative ways to really drive your message home.
Part 7: Bridges to... Somewhere!
By the time you arrive at your second Chorus, has your song worn out its welcome, or is there more to say in a cool, contrasting Bridge section? How can you make a meaningful departure both musically and lyrically, so that when your final Chorus comes back around it feels refreshed? Here are some ways to go about it.
Part 8: All Together Now — Unity of Purpose
The best songs exude an undeniable sense of unity: each of the elements (lyric, melody, chords, and eventually arrangement and production) all work together as a whole, without fighting each other. Watch this video to brush up on ways to make sure no sore thumbs are sticking out, distracting listeners from your song's singular vision.
Part 9: Dare To SUCK! Quantity Towards Quality
At this point you should have several fresh ideas for new songs. This video is a pep-talk combined with a challenge: can you commit to generating a whole bunch of garbage, safe in the knowledge that some diamonds will emerge? Yes, yes, a thousand times YES! (Right?!)
