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Forget the Record Deal, What about the Publishing Deal. While labels are understandably trying to mitigate their risk, by targeting artists who are already as "developed" as possible, it seems that publishers have taken on greater roles as nurturers of talent. Taylor Swift go her start by honing her songwriting abilities under the guidance of Arthur Buenahora at Songy/ATV Music publishing. Keri Hilson speaks about having first developed as a songwriter with Universal Music Publishing, and how that experience helped her launch her solo career with Interscope Records. HERE is a full interview with Eric Beale, who began his tenure in the industry as a songwriter, writing songs for the Jacksons and Diana Ross. Hopefully this interview gives you some further insight into the world of publishing and some hints on how you can either get into the publishing business as a working artist or as a career, helping other artists hone their skills!

If you're singing your own demos...STOP! I'm sure you have all heard of Murphys Law, right? Well have you heard of Murphys Laws of songwriting? Probably not, so let me acquaint you. Ralph Murphy is currently ASCAP's Vice-President of International and Domestic Membership, as well as a legendary songwriter and publisher with more than twenty number One hits under his Levi's. I stumbled across his website the other day and came across this article outlining why it is best not to sing your own demos, and the reasons are not "obvious". Head over to Ralph Murphy's website to check out the advantages of not singing your own demos as well as many more valuable pieces of advice on crafting your hit song, like [this one] for example.

2 qualities of a great songwriter are 1. Patience 2. Being among the willing

Songwriting goes International? Youtube is taking major steps towards making their database of millions of videos accessible to the deaf, hearing-impaired and those individuals that don't speak english. There technology can insert captions in 51 languages, meaning that listeners world wide will soon be able to enjoy the cleverness of your songwriting.

Infringement Insurance Policies for Songwriters

Labels - 0, Songwriters - 1 In a historic deal between labels and songwriters the national music publishers association has come away with a major win in an agreement that will see labels forking out the monies from "pending and unmatched accounts" that are set up in cases where a publisher has not been located by a record label, or an ownership dispute over a song. This is good news for the industry because publishers and labels are finally beginning to see eye to eye.

Came across this article that will definitely increase successful placements. I particularly like the points of saving money with a home studio, building a library, and finding a song writing partner to help compensate for any weaknesses, that you may have.

hey guys appreciate yer feedback on this today, remix/fixed song it´s a mellow semi instrum. wave made 2009 enjoy the ride: ) cheers 4 listening/peace Tompaz

Great Songs aren't written, they're re-written.

The good the bad and the ugly of the academy awards. Last week i touched on how the music industry was not MY industry in a basic attempt to relay how i felt while watching the Grammys. It was an okay post, but i was really waiting on Eric Beall of the berkleemusicblog to really take the reins on this one and go in. Fortunately we walked away from the grammys with practically the same message. Music has become a spectacle, The recording industry doesn't know how to invest in its future and music is going global. Hit the jump to READ MORE

Are The Record Labels Biting the Hand that Feeds Them Radio broadcasters around the country are growing increasingly concerned about the long-standing relationship with the music industry. The record labels are demanding an additional "tax" (not including the hundreds of millions of dollars paid annually to groups like BMI, ASCAP and SESAC, which goes to compensate songwriters and music publishers) on local radio stations for every song played. The music industry must be in panic mode to intentionally put a strain on the over 80 year mutually beneficial relationship that previously had radio promote record labels and artists and generate millions of dollars in music, hospitality, small-business and merchandise sales. Free local radio reaches 236 million listeners/week but record labels seem to not really give a hoot about free promo, pay up or shut down.

Eric Beall hit it out of the park this time with his incredible article walking you through just exactly how you would make a connection on the other side of the big record label doors. His advise offers walk arounds to from being unsolicited to solicited, direction for who to actually approach with your recorded material, finding the people who's tastes are suited to your music and always looking for the alternative way into a project. The article does such a good job of explaining how to get your music heard that i'm sure you will start applying this knowledge right away!

As a songwriter it it important to learn where the next big shift is going to be in the industry, that way when it hits you'll be fully prepared to take full advantage of the future of radio.

Songwriters looking to get paid: Market research and Song Pitching go along way.

The Great Balancing Act Between Art and Business Both art and music require a great deal of energy and time, the balance is how and where you spend it. There are many different factors that go into creating a successful business around your music, including record keeping and bookkeeping. The insider has a great post about the difference between these two chores as well as some good advice on multi tasking business and music creation. Einstein said that one definition of insanity was repeating your actions and expecting different outcomes, if you wanna try a new approach to being a successful songwriter then all you gotta do is READ MORE.

Radio isn't just for listeners anymore the RAB (http://www.rab.com/) CEO Jeff Haley is calling for a further commitment for radio station to start encoding their broadcasts with Song tagging technology, proving that the radio is no longer just for ears but for the eyeballs as well. The iPod Nano and Zune music players are both FM enabled devices that would provide a perfect opportunity to display the encoded signals, including song names. The overall idea is to drive more song purchases and awareness at the radio level, an even stronger indication that radio is still an effective medium for songwriters.

Pt. 2 of the path of a hit song with references.

Explore music has recently published the results of a poll determining the scariest theme songs in film. As a songwriter i find this list as an invaluable tool that you can use to compare songs in your library that you have deemed scary. Take a listen to each song in the list, most can be found on Youtube, and listen carefully to what instruments are being used and how they are being used, then mimmic these styles and sounds in your productions. Music supervisors are constantly basing their selections off of similar sounding songs, so having songs that mimmic the top 5 should definitely help with increased placements. Remember good artists copy, great artists steal. Landing at number 1 by the way, Psycho Theme (Psycho) by Bernard Hermann.

Eric Beall recently made a trip to Amsterdam to partake in the Writers Camp sponsored by Holland's equivalent of our ASCAP/BMI/SESAC and Harry Fox Agency, BUMA STEMRA. While on his visit he actually made time to experience the Vincent van Gogh Art Museum, which he calls "a career retrospective". While browsing the Art and reading the personal letters between Van Gogh and his brother Theo, Eric was able to see numerous parallels between Van Gogh the painter and all of us who write songs and make records. Here are 3 of those parallels outlined here for you. 1. Where you are now is not where you are going. 2. Where you're going will be depend upon your willingness to challenge yourself with new opportunities, and by the people with whom you choose to surround yourself. 3. Ultimately, it's not about where you are, or where you're going. It's all about the journey. To get a more elaborate explanation of these 3 parallels head over to Erics blog to read the full article.