The publishers and A&R reps on Music Row don’t want you to tell them what your song is about.  They want YOUR SONG to tell them what your song is about.  Your song needs to be self-contained and self-explanatory.  Don’t allow your “I wrote this song about / because…” intro to be a crutch to prop up your songwriting.  Make sure your song stands on its own.

God Bless,

Brent

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Brent Baxter Music:  http://www.brentbaxtermusic.com

The question you might want to ask yourself is, “Why SHOULD a pro write with me?”  Remember, you are asking for at least half a day with a writer who has limited time and who is trying to keep a gig in one of the most competitive industries on the planet.  Every day he says “yes” to one person is a day he says “no” to everyone else.  “No” to his close friend (and they’ve written cuts together).  “No” to that artist who is working on her debut album.  “No” to that person THE PRO been trying to “write up” with.  And the pro also has to wonder, “Is this just a one-time write, or will this person be a new semi-regular that I need to fit into my schedule?”  This is not to say that pros never write with non-pros – they sometimes do.  Part of your job is to position yourself to be one of those people.  And we’ll talk more about that in future posts.  Good luck!

God Bless,

Brent

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Brent’s Twitter: @Razorbaxter

Brent Baxter Music:  http://www.brentbaxtermusic.com

Beware of debt- it’s a dream-killer.  Financial debt limits your options- it raises the bar on what you have to earn to make ends meet.  How free are you to transition from your day job to the roller coaster creative life if you have to pay on your house, car, student loan, credit cards, etc. every month?  How supportive will your spouse be?  How much money can you put back for the transition if you’re in those kinds of chains?

Say “no” to the 98-inch holographic flatscreen tv, and say “yes” to your dreams.

God Bless,

Brent

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Brent’s Twitter: @Razorbaxter

Brent Baxter Music:  http://www.brentbaxtermusic.com

If you want to get cuts, think of your song as a boat.  Think of your network of relationships as the water in the river.  You can have a big, deep river (a lot of good relationships), but if your boat (your song) isn’t well-built, you’re just gonna sink.  If, on the other hand, you have a powerful speedboat, but the river is dry, you’re just sitting still.

Amazing things happen, though, when you put a speedboat on a big river.

God Bless,

Brent

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Brent’s Twitter: @Razorbaxter

Brent Baxter Music:  http://www.brentbaxtermusic.com

The music business is a tough, tough business, and the path to success travels through setbacks, failure, and doubt.  The journey requires you to have patience, and it requires you to do difficult, challenging things.  I don’t know of any hacks or tricks which avoid hard work.

However, it is important to remember that not all difficult things are necessary, and not all necessary things are difficult.  To maximize your efforts, you want to avoid the unnecessary and do the necessary, whether difficult or not.  Doing the easy, unnecessary thing is sometimes inefficient, sometimes just lazy.  Doing the unnecessary, difficult thing is sometimes inexperience, and sometimes just self-sabatoge.  Try to spend the vast majority of your time on only the necessary things.  Wisdom, experience, and the advice of the wise and experienced is vital to knowing which things those are.  Good luck and God bless!

-Brent

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Brent’s Twitter: @Razorbaxter

Brent Baxter Music:  http://www.brentbaxtermusic.com

I’ve run into some aspiring songwriters who believe they have “the song,” and if they can just get “the song” to Kenny Chesney or Carrie Underwood, that it’ll be a surefire hit.  The hard truth is that it’s foolish to put all your hopes on one song.  So much timing, luck, and networking goes into getting a cut, much less a hit, that you need a CATALOG of great, commercially-viable songs.  If you have a bunch of great songs working their way through the system, MAYBE one will get cut.  If you can write one great song, that’s great.  Now focus on writing more great songs.  Good luck and God bless!

-Brent

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Brent’s Twitter: @Razorbaxter

Brent Baxter Music:  http://www.brentbaxtermusic.com