Tag Archives: Brandon Kinney

The music business is a recommendation business.

August 20, 2018 Brent Baxter 3 Comments

The music biz has often been called a relationship business – and it IS. But how you GET those relationships is often a matter of recommendations.

And I want to help you get more of those recommendations.

First off, let me tell you about a few referrals and how they have really affected my songwriting career. Why? It’s not about me or my story. I’m not bragging. I’m sharing because I want to prove to you that recommendations MATTER.

Read on below.

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To BE a pro, you need to THINK like a pro, and this FREE ebook will help transform your thinking, your songwriting, and your success. Get it today!

Click Here For The Book

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Chad Green, my ASCAP representative at the time, picked up the phone and called Major Bob Music. He recommended that they listen to my songs. I ended up signing my first publishing deal with them. Thanks, Chad.

I used to do some gopher / bookkeeping work for a producer in town named Miles. He recommended I write with a young, unknown Canadian singer/songwriter named Aaron Goodvin. We eventually did, and years later, Aaron helped me land cuts on Canadian artist Drew Gregory and Sony Canada artist, Tristan Horncastle. Aaron himself is currently an artist on Warner Music Canada. Thanks, Miles and Aaron.

Separate recommendations by my cowriters, Lisa Shaffer and Brandon Kinney, led to my third publishing deal – a deal with Writer’s Infinity. Thanks, Lisa & Brandon.

A cowriter, Skip Black, brought me in on a cowrite with singer/songwriter, Benton Blount. (Any time a cowriter brings you in with an artist, it’s a recommendation.) Benton Blount went on to land a spot in the Top 10 of America’s Got Talent Season 10. I’ve had several cowrites and cuts on Benton’s albums so far.

I met radio host and record promoter, Jay Karl, several years ago. He liked my song “Armadillo,” and recommended it to one of his artists, Junior Gordon. Junior evenutally released it as a single in Texas, and “Armadillo” reached the top 10 on the Texas Regional Radio Chart. Thanks, Jay.

Chad Green, at this point a music publisher, recommended I write with an unsigned singer/songwriter from Georgia named Jason Wilkes. Jason has since gone on to sign a publishing deal, have a successful run on NBC’s The Voice, and one of my cowrites with WILKES was just released on his new EP. Thanks (again), Chad.

Again, this is not about bragging or showing off some of my success. This is about proving how recommendations can open doors for you- in some cases, doors you didn’t even know existed.

It’s not enough to JUST have a relationship. Your contact has to do more than just know you or be aware of your existence. They have to have a reason to make a recommendation – either TO you for FOR you. And those reasons usually fall into one of two broad categories.

They want to help themselves.

If a cowriter brings you in to write with an artist because they know you’ll kill it… and you DO kill it… who comes out looking cool? Your cowriter who hooked it up! He or she gets to be the one who “made it all happen.” Plus, he benefits from being part of a better song. He also strengthens his ties with the artist.

If a publisher hooks you up to write with a pro, it’s because she hopes you either already have “the goods” or she can help you develop “the goods.” Why? So she can publish your hits and make money, that’s why!

Your relationships are definitely NOT gonna hook you up if they think it’ll make them look bad to their friends or bosses. Why should they? Even if you’re friends and he wants to help you, what’s the point? If you don’t have the skills or personality to take advantage of the opportunity, you might feel good in the moment, but all you’ll really accomplish is wasting someone’s time and hurting your reputation.

To help someone else.

Sometimes your contact will hook people up or pass along a song with little or no self-interest. Maybe they think you’ll be a great cowriting team or just good friends. Or he knows Artist X needs a hit, and he believes your song is it. So he passes it along.

Your contact may not have any direct financial stake in that recommendation. But he or she will still benefit from the good will and hero status a successful recommendation can bring. And there’s nothing wrong with that.

I’ll be honest, I would LOVE to reach hero-status as part of YOUR songwriting journey. I want to be part of YOUR success story. And you know what? I also want to be part of the success stories of my publisher friends. I want to help you get your best songs heard, and I want to help my publisher friends find great songs.

Which leads leads me to a cool opportunity…

Songwriting Pro’s next Play For A Publisher event is coming right up, and our guest is John Ozier of Ole’ Music! John has worked closely with several #1 hit songwriters, and he’s been getting songs recorded by major artists. If YOU have the songs, HE knows what to do with them!

CLICK HERE TO GET ALL THE DETAILS AND SEND IN YOUR SONG!

God Bless and Enjoy the Journey,

Brent

Brent Baxter is a hit songwriter with cuts by Alan Jackson, Randy Travis, Lady Antebellum, Joe Nichols, Gord Bamford, Ruthie Collins, Ray Stevens, and more. He’s written a top 5 hit in the US, a #1 in Canada & a top 10 in Texas… so far.

Do Business Like A Pro, P4P

The music biz is a recommendation business.

August 28, 2017 Brent Baxter 2 Comments

The music biz has often been called a relationship business – and it IS. But how you GET those relationships is often a matter of recommendations.

And I want to help you get more of those recommendations.

____________________

To BE a pro, you need to THINK like a pro, and this FREE ebook will help transform your thinking, your songwriting, and your success. Get it today!

Click Here For The Book

_________________________________

Chad Green, my ASCAP representative at the time, picked up the phone and called Major Bob Music. He recommended that they listen to my songs. I ended up signing my first publishing deal with them.

I used to do some gopher / bookkeeping work for a producer in town named Miles. He recommended I write a young, unknown Canadian singer/songwriter named Aaron Goodvin. We eventually did, and years later, Aaron helped me land cuts on Canadian artist Drew Gregory and Sony Canada artist, Tristan Horncastle. Aaron himself is currently an artist on Warner Music Canada.

Separate recommendations by my cowriters, Lisa Shaffer and Brandon Kinney, led to my third publishing deal – a deal with Writer’s Infinity.

I met radio host and record promoter, Jay Karl, several years ago. He liked my song “Armadillo,” and recommended it to one of his artists, Junior Gordon. Junior recently released it as a single in Texas, and “Armadillo” has reached the top 10 on the Texas Regional Radio Chart.

One of the major values of relationships is the recommendations they generate. And the relationship doesn’t have to be with the artist or producer. Jay Karl was just a total stranger who wanted to do a short interview for a radio show. I didn’t think it would lead to anything other than me feeling important and cool for a few minutes. Sure didn’t think it would lead to a successful Texas single.

Miles was just a guy who needed some part-time help putting his receipts in Quicken, and Aaron Goodvin was just a kid from Canada. Aaron was a good guy, and I could tell he had real hustle, but I didn’t think he’d end up as an artist on Warner Canada (all my Canadian friends need to go buy his album, by the way).

They want to help themselves.

If a publisher hooks you up to write with a pro, it’s because they hope you either already have “the goods” or they can help you develop “the goods.” Why? So they can publish your hits, that’s why!

To help someone else.

I’ll be honest, I would LOVE to hit hero-status as part of YOUR songwriting journey. I want to be part of YOUR success story. And you know what? I also want to be part of the success stories of my publisher friends. I want to help you get your best songs heard, and I want to help my publisher friends find great songs.

Which leads leads me to a cool opportunity…

I’m hosting Songwriting Pro’s Play For A Publisher event in September. Our guest will be Dan Hodges, who publishes hits such as “Good Directions” for Billy Currington and “Dibs” for Kelsea Ballerini. But the deadline to apply for this event is AUGUST 31!

CLICK HERE to learn more and submit your song before it’s too late.

Dan Hodges will be joining us for our next Play For A Publisher event in September! He’s a successful publisher and owner of Dan Hodges Music in Nashville, Tennessee. Tickets are on sale now, and space is limited. And the deadline to enter is AUGUST 31! CLICK HERE to check out all the details and submit YOUR song for Dan!

God Bless and Enjoy the Journey,

Brent Brent Baxter is a hit songwriter with cuts by Alan Jackson, Randy Travis, Lady Antebellum, Joe Nichols, Gord Bamford, Ruthie Collins, Ray Stevens, and more. He’s written a top 5 hit in the US and a #1 in Canada… so far.

Think Like A Pro

Hey, I Remember That!

December 5, 2016 Brent Baxter Leave a comment

It’s not about you. It’s about the listener. What’s in it for the listener?

As we began discussing a few weeks ago (READ IT HERE), successful songwriters know it’s not about us- it’s about the listener. When it comes to your song, what’s in it for the listener? What’s going to make them stick around till the end and hit “repeat?”

If your song doesn’t have something in it for the listener, there’s no money in it for you.

Yep. I’ve said that over the past few weeks, and I’m gonna keep saying it till I finally run out of this series!

So I’ve been pointing out some things you can build into your songs that can connect with your listeners. So far, we’ve discussed “It’s What I Want To Hear” and “It’s What I Want To Say.” and “That’s Who I Am.” and “Give The Listener Great Advice!” This week, let’s talk about…

“Hey, I remember that!”

A powerful way to connect with a listener is to push the nostalgia button. Take the listener back to a point in their past that they recall fondly. Use your song like a time machine.

When you do this effectively, your listener isn’t so much connecting to your song as connecting to their own past THROUGH your song. This can be very powerful. Let’s look at a few examples.

“Boys Of Fall”

by Kenny Chesney (written by Casey Beathard, Dave Turnbull). This song takes me back to playing high school football. It takes me back to running through a banner, the taste of grass in my mouthpiece, all of it. It makes me miss those days. Love that song. It makes me think of my teammates like Steve Caughron, Willy Kuykendall, and Brian Krug. Good times.

“19 Something”

by Mark Wills (written by David Lee, Chris DuBois). This song describes a lot of my formative years. Big hair, parachute pants and Stretch Armstrong all conjure up childhood memories. It’s fun to remember when getting a microwave was a big deal. The Challenger disaster is definitely NOT a feel-good reference, but it takes me back to intermediate school, watching it on a big TV rolled into the classroom on a big cart.

“Every Head Bowed”

I dug into my own history and nostalgia for a song I had recorded by Randy Travis, “Every Head Bowed” on Randy’s “Around The Bend” album.

Twinkies, corduroy coats, clip-on ties and “I Surrender All” each make me recall growing up going to Calvary Baptist Church back in Batesville, Arkansas. And I know my cowriter, Brandon Kinney, had a lot of the same experiences at his home church back in Texas. Mining our nostalgia made the song more real, which helped it connect to Randy- and hopefully to a lot of other people, too.

“Old Alabama” “Doin’ It To Country Songs”

by Brad Paisley (written by Brad Paisley, Dave Turnbull, Chris DuBois, Randy Owen) and “Doing It To Country Songs” by Blake Shelton (written by Marty Dodson, Jacob Lyda, Paul Overstreet) each use nostalgic artists to bring an extra “smile” to the songs. Paisley, of course, builds his song around classic Alabama hits. Blake doesn’t reference The Oak Ridge Boys in his song, but they add their distinctive sound to the record.

Most longtime country fans probably don’t hear Alabama or Oak Ridge Boys music that often these days, so these newer songs remind us of hits like “Mountain Music,” “Elvira” and others.

So one way to make your song more “cut/able” is to have your lyric connect the listener to his or her own past.

So here’s your homework. Turn on the radio or your favorite playlist- or dig through your stack of favorite albums. Find a song or two that answers the question, “What’s in it for the listener?” with “Hey, I remember that!” Please leave a comment and let me know what you discovered!

If you want your songs to be more “cut/able” – able to be cut – then you should definitely check out my new, expanded and upgraded version of “Cut/able: Lessons In Market Smart Songwriting.” It’s five powerful lessons will help you write songs that artists want to sing, radio wants to play, and listeners want to hear! CLICK HERE TO WRITE CUT/ABLE SONGS.

God Bless and Enjoy the Journey,

Brent

Craft, Cut Study

A Spork, A Twinkie and Warner Bros. Records

January 13, 2016 Brent Baxter 8 Comments

Ever imagine having a music industry pro pull a lyric out of one of your songs (from memory) and quote it back to you? And to tell you they love it? Let me tell you, it feels GREAT. And it opens doors.

In my last post, I revealed how great imagery can give your songs that slight edge that can bring big opportunities [CLICK TO READ]. Today is the example of one of those opportunities…

Brandon Kinney and I wrote a song called “Every Head Bowed,” written from the point of view of a little boy in church. It was a funny song, and we packed it with imagery from both our imagination and memories of growing up in church.

The song went on to get recorded by legendary country artist, Randy Travis, on his “Around The Bend” album on Warner Bros. Records. It was a huge thrill to have a song recorded by an artist of Randy’s stature. Unbelievable. And what really tickled me was the fact that the song contained the word “spork.”

Spork? Yes, spork. Those plastic spoon-fork things at KFC.

The end of the song takes place after church as the family is having lunch at KFC, and the dad tells the singer to “put that spork back down” while the family prays. It’s such an odd, specific word, but it’s exactly what you use there- and it fits the fun vibe of the song.

Here’s where it gets even more fun. I kinda knew some of the A&R folks at Warner Bros., but now I had a cut on one of their artists. That definitely took me up a notch in their eyes. Even more, they LOVED the spork line.

As I’d bump into a couple of the A&R folks, and we’d talk about the song, they’d always mention that line and how it was their favorite line in the song or how it was so funny.

A&R people hear thousands of songs- more than they can remember. But if you can give them an image they love, they’ll remember your song and YOU.

This simple thing gave me a calling card. I was the guy that wrote “the spork song.” It gave the A&R people a little something positive to remember me by. It’s a goofy line, but it no doubt helped me get more pitch meetings there. And the song even helped me and Brandon land a cowrite with Randy Travis himself!

A great image can really set the identity of a song in the mind of a listener- just like it’s another hook or an alternate title. Don’t believe me? How many people called “Something Like That” by Tim McGraw “BBQ stain?” How many people know you’re talking about the Dierks Bentley song “What Was I Thinkin’” when you call it “little white tank top?” The right image, as simple as it might be, can make your whole song memorable. And memorable is valuable!

Another quick story involving “Every Head Bowed.” I was out a couple months ago, and I ran into one of Randy Travis’ band members. I said, “Hey, you’ve probably played one of my songs.” “Which one?” he asked. When I told him it was “Every Head Bowed,” he nudged his wife and said, “Hey, this guy wrote ‘Every Head Bowed”- we love that song!”

She looked confused, like she didn’t remember it. Then he said, “Oh, you know- the Twinkie song!” Then she gave a big smile as he told me they always call it “The Twinkie Song.”

Yep, there’s a line about a Twinkie in that song, too. Again, giving your listener one strong image (or more) can set your song in their memory more than even the title does.

I want to help you put winning imagery into your lyrics. Here’s a quick video that might serve you…

What about you? Do you have any songs that you or your friends call by a different title- one based on an image? Or a particular image that comes to mind when you think of a certain song? Leave a comment!

Since strong imagery is such an important part of professional-level songwriting, I’ve put together a course on imagery. It’s called, “Use Imagery To Supercharge Your Songwriting (Like The Pros Do)” and it’s available now. By the end of the course, you’ll have the basic skills to:

Effectively use both literal and figurative imagery.
Make your story come to life using imagery.
Prove your character’s personality using imagery.
Make your listener connect to your character’s emotions using imagery.
Hook your listener in the song’s first few lines using imagery.
And to begin more songs (more easily) using imagery exercises as the start of your songwriting process.

Click here if you’re ready to “Use Imagery To Supercharge Your Songwriting (Like The Pros Do)” or click on the image below.

God Bless and Enjoy the Journey,

Brent

The music biz has often been called a relationship business – and it IS. But how you GET those relationships is often a matter of recommendations.

And I want to help you get more of those recommendations.

They want to help themselves.

To help someone else.

The music biz has often been called a relationship business – and it IS. But how you GET those relationships is often a matter of recommendations.

And I want to help you get more of those recommendations.

They want to help themselves.

To help someone else.

It’s not about you. It’s about the listener. What’s in it for the listener?

If your song doesn’t have something in it for the listener, there’s no money in it for you.

“Hey, I remember that!”

“Boys Of Fall”

“19 Something”

“Every Head Bowed”

“Old Alabama” “Doin’ It To Country Songs”

A&R people hear thousands of songs- more than they can remember. But if you can give them an image they love, they’ll remember your song and YOU.

Helping songwriters turn pro.