Tag Archives: Jason Aldean

Craft, Think Like A Pro, Write Like A Pro

What Songwriters Can Learn From Jason Aldean & “Lights Come On”

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 Jason Aldean has a new single out, called, “Lights Come On.”  If you’ve heard it, you know it’s not exactly an artistic stretch for him.  It might be easy for you to write it off as “just another Aldean song,” but that would be a mistake.  You see, there’s always something to learn from a successful song.  After all, this song is on the radio.  Is yours?

I don’t know the backstory of why he cut this song  (written by Tyler Hubbard, Brian Kelley, Jimmy Robbins, Jordan Schmidt, Brad Warren, and Brett Warren).  I’m not in his inner circle, but here are some elements of the song which probably made it appealing to him…

1. The song sings to the listener.

Aldean gets to sing directly to his audience- and he identifies them as HIS audience.  That’s a good way to build your relationship with them and their loyalty to you.  Fans want to connect with the artist, and the artist wants to connect with this fans.  Talking to them through the lyrics is a good way to do this.

2. The listener is the hero.

Not only does Aldean talk directly to the listener, he’s complimenting them.  They’re the hero of the story.  The listener is the hardworking guy or the cool girl who deserves a good time.  he makes them feel good about themselves, which of course, makes them feel good about the singer.  (Don’t we all tend to like people who compliment us?)

3. The singer is Yoda.

Complimenting the listener automatically casts a positive light on the singer, but the song doesn’t stop there.  It’s not just “you deserve a good time.”  No, it also says, “and I’m the guy that’s hosting the party!”  The listener is Luke Skywalker, and Jason Aldean is Yoda.  The listener is the hero, and the singer is the hero’s helper.

4. The song fits the brand.

The song perfectly fits Aldean’s image as a rocking, partying good-time loving country boy.  Sonically, it fits right in with what he’s done time and again.  Lyrically, it definitely fits his artistic voice.  If the Florida Georgia Line guys (Tyler and Brian) hadn’t been writers on this, I’d have sworn it was written specifically for Jason.

5. It’s built for “live.”

Most artists make their money by selling tickets.  And this song is a three-minute commercial selling you on coming to a Jason Aldean concert.  It’s positive, fun, and loud.  It’s something to get the crowd pumped, let them know they’re in for a good night… and hopefully, get them to the merch table.

6. The power of imagery.

When Aldean is telling the male listeners that they are awesome, hardworking men, he doesn’t just say, “you’re an awesome, hardworking man.”  No, he paints the picture of strong coffee, a power stroke diesel engine, backhoe, etc.  And he doesn’t just say, “you’re coming to a show,” he shows them hanging speakers over the crowd.  That kind of imagery makes the lyric a LOT more interesting.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this.  What do you think we can learn from this song?  Maybe you disagree completely and think there’s nothing to learn.  Either way, please leave a comment!

If you want to become a songwriting pro (in how you think, write songs, and do business), then a great place to start is RIGHT HERE.  I want to help you on your songwriting journey.  I’ve been in the music business for years, and I’m here to help you get the cuts – and avoid the bruises.  CLICK HERE TO TAKE YOUR SONGWRITING TO THE NEXT LEVEL.

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.

Craft

How To Keep Your Phrasing Interesting

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Man vs Row

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.

Phrasing is the rhythm of the lyrics (and the spaces in-between) as they fit into the melody. You could say it’s the “bounce” of the words.

Phrasing could be melodic and slow, like the chorus on “Drink A Beer” recorded by Luke Bryan and written by Chris Stapleton and Jim Beavers. It could be more like a rap, like the verses of “Boys ‘Round Here” recorded by Blake Shelton and written by Craig Wiseman, Thomas Rhett, and Dallas Davidson. Or it could be somewhere in between.  (And I’m not talking about lyrical CONTENT here.  I’m not telling you what subject matter to write.  I’m just talking about the rhythm and spacing of the words, whatever those words happen to be.)

It’s hugely important to keep your phrasing interesting.

(Back when I was starting out, I had a pro songwriter- the son of my church’s music minister- listen to some of my songs.  He said, “I can tell you grew up Baptist. The songs all phrase like Baptist hymns.  You need to make your phrasing more interesting.”  My reaction was… “what’s phrasing?”)

Play with your phrasing. Mix it up. If you’re not great at writing uptempo songs, try writing faster, more interesting phrasing within your slower tempos. Brantley Gilbert and Colt Ford did this well when they wrote “Dirt Road Anthem,” which went on to become a #1 country single for Jason Aldean. The tempo wasn’t that fast- the song felt really laid back. It’s the rapid-fire phrasing on the verses which really gives the song its energy (instead of giving it a power chorus or a fast tempo).

You don’t want your lyric to have the same “bounce” all the way through.

Mix up the phrasing between your verse and your chorus. This will help you vary the melody between the verse and chorus, too. That’s really important. Also, make sure your verse doesn’t have the same bounce to every line.  Mix it up there, too.

Right now, rap-like lyrics are pretty popular in country music, but who knows how long that’ll be the case. My best advice is to just keep it interesting, whatever you do.

What do you think?  What are YOUR thoughts or questions on phrasing?  Do you have trouble mixing it up?  I’d love to hear your thoughts!

God Bless,

Brent

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Hey, ya’ll! Several of you have been asking about 1-to-1 coaching opportunities.  Well, over the next few weeks, I’ve made a few sessions available.  It’s our chance to sit down together (over the phone or over the web) and discuss your songwriting goals, dig into a few of your songs to see how we can make them stronger, answer questions, whatever.  If you’re interested, just click on the image below or go to the “STEP THREE” tab at manvsrow.com.  Thanks!

-Brent

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Craft

What Songwriters Can Learn From “Burnin’ It Down” By Jason Aldean

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Jason Aldean’s “Burnin’ It Down,” written by Rodney Clawson, Chris Tompkins, Tyler Hubbard and Brian Kelley is one of Aldean’s biggest singles to date. It’s (pun intended) burning up the radio, and fans are buying the heck out of it.

And most of you probably can’t stand it.

Am I right? Don’t you, as a songwriter, cringe a little at lines like, “I wanna rock it all night, baby girl, will you rock it out with me…” My wife feels dirty just listening to it (and not in a good way).

But if you want to get cuts…

DON’T HATE. INVESTIGATE.

Here are some lessons for us all:

Right beats great.

I’m sure none of the songwriters would hold this one up as their best work, as their greatest song. But it’s the RIGHT song for Jason and the right song for his audience.

It fills a gap in his brand.

Musically, it fits in beside “Dirt Road Anthem,” but the concept is very different. Lyrically, it’s closer to “Don’t You Wanna Stay,” but it’s way more sexual. It pushes the outer edge of Aldean’s catalog, taking it to a new place. He hasn’t quite done this song before, yet it’s undeniably a Jason Aldean song.

I probably couldn’t get this song cut.

This is where proximity wins. These guys could give it directly to Aldean. They didn’t have to go through several gatekeepers, many of whom might have either hated it or just not “gotten” it.  The fewer people who have to say “yes” to your song, the fewer people there are that might say “no.”

Those lyrics are… what they are… for a reason.

The songwriters on this song are real-deal writers. They aren’t just lucky hacks. No, they made those lyrical choices for a reason. They know Aldean’s brand, and they bet his audience would eat that mess up.

And they were right.

You might or might not think it’s a dumb song. But the writers? They’re definitely smart.  What do you think?

[polldaddy poll=8408345]

God Bless,

Brent

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xdImDqbgc2g]

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