Category: Uncategorized
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Step #6 of Writing Great Melodies – Introduce Some Variation
Step #6 of Writing Great Melodies – Introduce Some Variation Once we have the framework of our melody set up, a question that often next comes to mind is “Where do I go from here?”. In this blog post, we’ll talk about how introducing variation can help differentiate sections. We’ll also discuss methods you could…
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Flip Method #6 – Pairing
Flip Method #6 – Pairing Clichés are great. They’re relatable, well-known and convey what we need to in a short and sweet way. However, because of all these same traits, they can also come off as dull and overused. In this blog post, we take a look at pairing – a method to flip around…
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Habits of Highly Successful Songwriters
What if I told you that some of the greatest songwriters out there love to venture outside of their comfort zone? 🤔 They’re not just waiting for inspiration to strike, but they dip their toe into unknown territory to lend fate a helping hand. You might be surprised to learn that Dave Grohl – front…
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Flip Method #5 – Swapping
Flip Method #5 – Swapping So many songwriters default to clichés when they write their lyrics. This is completely understandable – after all, clichés are well-known and relatable. However, they are also uninteresting and stale. In this blog post, we’ll discuss a simple technique we call “Swapping”, that can be used to create new phrases…
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Flip Method #4 – Inverting
Flip Method #4 – Inverting Clichés are an integral part of songwriting, but they can sometimes become stale and lose their impact. In this blog post, we’ll discuss inverting – which is one of the ways we can switch up well-known clichés, and create memorable lyrics. This blog post aims to summarise the fourth part…
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Flip Method #3 – Extending
Flip Method #3 – Extending Clichés are well-known and relatable. In fact, that’s a large part of the reason that we as songwriters even use them. However, because they’re so well-known, they’re also often stale and overused. In this blog post, we’ll talk about how to add depth to your clichés by extending them. This…
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7 Traits of Highly Effective Songwriters
7 Traits of Highly Effective Songwriters It’s one thing to be able to write a great song. However, it’s an entirely separate thing to be able to write great songs consistently and be a great songwriter. In this blog post, we’ll countdown what we think are the 7 traits of highly effective songwriters. This blog…
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4 Creative Songwriting Prompts and Projects
Five times a year, we run Songwriting Groups. The groups run for 8 weeks, and everyone receives a fresh songwriting prompt every 2 weeks: 8 weeks, 4 brand new songs. The songwriting prompts are designed to give a holistic range of projects to spark creativity in a variety of forms – coming from different creative…
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Flip Method #2 – Magnifying
Flip Method #2 – Magnifying Consider the commonly known cliché “Diamonds are a girl’s best friend”. It’s very relatable because it’s known so well, but at the same time, that makes it predictable. And when something is predictable, it becomes boring. In this blog post, we’re going to discuss another method we can use to…
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How to Write a Song—Starting With Chords
How to Write a Song—Starting With Chords Songwriting is a creative process that can sometimes feel challenging, especially when it comes to finding the right balance between music and lyrics. By understanding the importance of chords and how they lay the groundwork for your song, you’ll gain valuable insights and techniques that will help make…
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Songwriting for Beginners: A Simple 5-Step Blueprint
How to Write a Song for Beginners The video tutorial above is a step-by-step guide on how to take your song from just an idea to a finished song. Below, we’ve summarised the main points, but make sure to watch the video to see Keppie and Benny put the steps into real-time practice, demonstrating a…
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How to use simple chords to write great songs
If you want to learn how to write a song, understanding how chords work is essential and in this video we look at how you can create interesting and impactful chord progressions using the basic concept of HOME and AWAY functions. This fundamental piece of music theory is a valuable tool for songwriters of all…
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Top 5 Songwriting Exercises for Coming Up With Great Song Ideas: #5—Chorus Writing Prompts
What a Chorus is not I have some important news about a Chorus—news that took me way too long to properly understand: If I had realized this a little sooner in my songwriting career, it would have saved me 10 years of learning the hard way. One other thing that the Chorus is NOT: Thinking…
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Breaking down FLOWERS by Miley Cyrus
There’s no better way to learn how to write a song than by deconstructing songs that capture the attention of millions of listeners worldwide; and Flowers by Miley Cyrus has certainly done that, becoming an international hit and breaking Spotify records with over 100 million streams in the first week. So in this video we…
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20 Songwriting Prompts
Wanna know how to write a song? Start with one of these 20 songwriting prompts that will kickstart your creativity and fuel your songwriting on any given day. And a huge THANK YOU to the 20,000 subscribers of our YouTube channel who have supported us, inspired us, and contributed so generously to our growing community…
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Free Songwriter Split Sheet
Co-writing is such a creative, fun, and often essential part of songwriting; we go into great depth on it in our Udemy course, The Art of Co-Writing and Collaboration. One part of a great collaboration is an open and honest agreement on how to share the ownership of the song’s copyright (hint hint: split it…
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14-Day Songwriting Challenge: DAY 4
#4. Listen deeply. This task is excerpted from the wonderful book, ‘The Art of Noticing,’ by Rob Walker: “The composer Pauline Oliveros was known, among other things, for a practice she called deep listening. This evolved in part from her experience performing with a couple of other musicians in an abandoned cistern in the state…
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14-Day Songwriting Challenge: DAY 3
#3. A list. This poem is unbelievable. Listen to it, the whole way through (listen to the recording here as well as reading it. The experience is beautiful.) Now: write a list of things you like. Get a free copy of the 14-Day Songwriting Challenge eBook
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14-Day Songwriting Challenge: DAY 1
#1. Getting past the rust. Write literally the most cliched lyric you can think of. Really squeeze that juice. Just write the most trashy, obvious, cliched thing you can muster. String together cliches. Write the cheesiest love song you can. Google “cliches you should avoid”, and then unavoid them. Aim for a Verse and Chorus.…