Do you have a back catalogue of awesome songs? And you want to start
earning money from them? Of course you do! That's why we asked Rocket
Songs to give us their advice when it comes to getting paid as a
songwriter and outline the ways you can maximize the value of songs you
have (or haven’t) written throughout your musical career.
Nearly everything in music these days spins out of the written song.
Many careers are started as singer/songwriters. No matter what, in
today’s fragmented landscape it’s good to know what you can do with the
great songs, or what you can do with a great song others have written.
How to make money from songwriting
The list below is a 3-step outline that should put you on the right track toward a professional songwriting career.
1. GO TO SCHOOL
Some have their eye on becoming a lawyer, a doctor, an
electrician, a truck driver. To enter these careers, one must first
obtain specific and proper training. Songwriting is no different.
People are not born as hit songwriters any more than they are born Vice
Presidents of Corporations or Rocket Scientists. Even so, I am
frequently approached by people who have just written their first song,
and they absolutely believe it has potential to be a hit … if only the
right people would hear it. (I built a volcano for the science
fair in grade school, but that did not mean I immediately deserved a
career as a volcanologist.)
Some emerging songwriters choose to take composition and arranging
classes at colleges and universities. Formal training is wonderful and I
encourage it, but the school I’m talking about here is “home school”.
The point is that you need real training to develop your craft. And if
you can get it from professionals, that’s how you’ll learn the
quickest. There are many ways to educate yourself on the craft of
songwriting and it will take a few years, not a few months or a few
songs.
There are a myriad of books, videos, websites,
seminars, workshops, classes and even personal mentorship available to
you. Learn from these sources. Practice. Break down hit
songs and seek to learn what makes them work. See what type of lyric
and melody writing devices these hit songs utilize and compare that to
what you may be studying in books, classes, etc.
Invest time and money into training, just like you would for any other career.
2. GRADUATE
To graduate from school, you must first pass the final exam.
In the same way, as you learn different writing techniques, have your
songs reviewed and “graded” by someone schooled in the craft and
business of songwriting. Through seminars, workshops, classes,
mentorships and even
online,
you can have your songs critiqued by professional writers and
publishers. Now if you’re a parent, you know how difficult it is to
grade your own child’s homework. If we’re not doing trigonometry every
day, then we should leave it up to the trig teacher to both educate and
grade the child’s work. So don’t give your songs to family members or
friends for real critique and review, if they are not accomplished
songwriters. (You’ll always get an “A” from friends and family.)
Take your “grades” to heart, and work to improve them until you can pass with flying colors.
3. GET AN ENTRY LEVEL JOB
You’ve studied long and hard to learn the subject matter.
You’ve practiced and improved your craft to a level that you graduated
the school of songwriting. Now it’s time to put your skills to work.
When I graduated college, I wanted to be a top executive of a music
company. But for obvious reasons, those jobs were not being offered to
me right out of the gate. I had to take an entry level position in an
area of the business that was not my first choice. I was happy to be
working, and over time I proved myself and worked my way up the
corporate ladder.
So by now, I’m sure you’re getting my comparisons.
Maybe
your goal is to write songs for the biggest artist on the planet or for
the next block-buster film. Maybe you want your songs to be sung by
choirs in thousands of churches. Setting long-term goals for yourself
is a must. But what are the steps to get there? Local and
regional artists are a great first step. B and C level national artists
are easier to get songs to than those artists already at the top. Find
these artists, meet them, develop relationships. Write for local
projects, local churches, local radio, local advertisers, local
television. Maybe you can find a nearby artist or producer that will
co-write with you regularly. Maybe you have connections with local
arrangers or church leaders who would be willing to work with you on
choir arrangements for the choirs in your area. These are just a few of
the ways to “enter” a career of songwriting.
It’s rare that
anyone can start at the top. So baby-step your way up. One cut leads
to another, and another. And although the money may not pay your bills
initially, you’re building a reputation and improving your craft along
the way. Eventually, you’ll hit a home-run and promotion to the major leagues can come very quickly.
Sync Licensing
The sync licensing business is very popular these days. “Syncing”
your songs places them into TV, film and advertising projects. You can
solicit these opportunities yourself or by joining a music library. You
are compensated when they are used. Learn more about joining music
libraries and getting your music into TV and film here.
Publishing deals
There are many roads to this destination. Submitting songs usually
through lawyers or managers to labels and publishing houses or by making
a name for yourself through self-publishing/self-promotion. Once you
are signed you may get a monthly advance against future royalties and
get help exposing your songs. You might need to give up a share of your
royalties, but it could be worth it.
Mechanical licensing
Artists across the globe are hungry for well-written songs. There are
a few marketplaces where you can put your songs up for others to
record. You generally see revenue when licensed, but be aware many don’t
allow you to retain ownership. You can do this at Rocket Songs,
a digital marketplace offering songwriters the chance to make money by
exposing their quality songs to a global market of musicians.
Record and distribute
Everyone knows about this one, but we’re just going to itemize the
different types of royalties that you are entitled to if you go this
route: mechanical, publishing, streaming, performance and maybe even
digital print royalties. Remember, you can start releasing music on Spotify, iTunes and more with Ditto Music.
What kind of songs are people looking for?
If you have a catalogue of songs you have written, think about the
following before putting them into marketplaces for public consumption.
Right now the industry trend in terms of most sought-after genres are:
Afro - hip pop
Alternative pop
Indie/alternative rock
Hip-Hop/Pop
Country
Also keep in mind that a lot of artists and singers looking for
original songs come from overseas, where music sensibilities are
slightly different. What this means is that if you have a lot of one of
the aforementioned genres put a wide swath of songs up.
Finally, a note on quality. There are lots of ways to define a song’s
quality: lyrics, how it was engineered, production values, it’s melody
and/or it’s lyrical quality. What we have found at Rocket Songs is that
because songs are listened before licensing, the quality of the
recording is particularly important when it comes to getting paid for
your songs.
Should you record a song you didn’t write?
It might not be for everyone, but recording a song you didn't right
is commonplace amongst many of the world's biggest artists. Here are
some of the reasons you should consider it as an option.
- To Explore New Genres: Different genres offer a new
direction and an opportunity to stretch yourself creatively. If you’ve
thought about dabbling in a new genre, your best bet may be to find an
“outside song” and experiment.
- Learning Sessions: Every good songwriter has
his/her own tricks and styles. By recording or simply studying someone
else’s high-quality song you can find new tricks and trades to improve
your own skill.
- Something Borrowed, Something New: For your live
performances, use new “outside songs” to change up your show. More
important than this, is that new songs create new experiences for your
fans. Fans LOVE new sets.
- Record and Release: The reality of the music’s new
streaming economy is based on hits. The more good, well-written songs
the better the opportunity. You can only write so many hits, and even
with someone else’s song you still can receive a great portion of the
revenue, including performance, streaming and distribution royalties.
This is a guest blog by Rocket Songs,
the original song marketplace. It's the only place online or in the
world where professionally written songs that have long remained the
unattainable property of songwriters or Music Publishing Companies are
made available to musicians everywhere, it’s also the place where you
can offer up your songs to the same global audience.
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