In the past ten years or so of pop music, it’s become much more of a thing to write hit songs that are mostly based on one single chord progression. It sounds like it would just result in music that is repetitive and boring. Or perhaps the better way to say that is: the job […]
Stream of consciousness writing means to put down your thoughts as they occur to you – literally a continuous stream of thoughts, ideas, opinions in as close to real time as you can get. One of the most interesting (some might say negative) characteristics of stream of consciousness is the fact that there is no time […]
I did a post recently dealing with categorizing chords to make them easier to use. We know that in any key, the I, IV and V-chords comprise what we call primary chords, and they are the most common ones you’ll find in most pop songs. Beyond those three, the ii, iii, vi and vii-chords are categorized as secondary chords, […]
It’s not unusual for songwriters to get a song started quickly, and then have everything slow down. You might start with a flurry of ideas that all come together with ease, and it can be exciting. But then you’ll notice the excitement fading a bit as you struggle to put things together – to make a final […]
There is a tricky balancing act that is undertaken by any and every successful singer-songwriter: how to be innovative enough that audiences get to hear something fresh and new, but similar enough to your previous music that you don’t scare your fans away. It all comes from trust. Your fans learn to trust you and […]
For most songs that are written and produced for today’s pop music market, the hook is a very important feature. It’s the part that everyone remembers long after they’ve forgotten everything else about a song. And crucial to the business side, it’s what brings audiences back to a song and makes sales more likely. We […]
