emeraldsoul
Nice! Your song certainly fits a Duck Dynasty episode, and many other shows I would think. If you feel like offering up a little primer about the steps you took to crack into this business, I bet a lot of folks here would love to read it! me, too!
Good job on the paycheck, doesn't matter how fat it was or wasn't.
cheers,
-Tom
Tom, I'd be glad to do so from my POV, and I'm certainly no expert on this topic. .
Perseverance and hard work. There's no magic formula and no guarantee that the work you put in will pay off. The only guarantee is that if you don't work hard and stick with the game plan, it will not pay off.
First thing is to apply yourself to learning the trade and art of writing songs. For most people, it is a learned skill. Sharpen it up by study, attending events, join songwriting groups, and write every chance you get. Listen to and study the market you are wanting to get in whether it's film & TV, video games, or writing for artists.
I was a member of TAXI for a long time. I am currently a member of NSAI ( Nashville songwriters) Both groups emphasize education. Taxi can actually get your music to the producers and artists. They are mostly focused on film & TV and have been. Through them I learned a lot and connected with a few good music libraries but nothing ever happened for me through their contacts. ( at least not yet ) I'm no longer with TAXI. NSAI doesn't offer the listings but they will place your song in front of a publisher's luncheon ...if it's a killer song. only about 12 songs every 3 months get to that meeting. They're more about giving you feed back on the stuff you write.
I contacted libraries and publishers on my own mostly. The good ones are hard to tell from the sharks and scams, they all have flashy websites, but you have to learn to weed the ones out that can't help you. The good ones have screeners and will not take un-professional songs. Sharks take everything and tell you it's a hit. Good libraries don't. Your song has to be well written and sound like it was professionally recorded by top musicians. Good libraries don't ask for money. EVER!!!! remember that and if someone asks you for money for ANY reason.... SAY NO and go find a real library. Good libraries will request a sampling of your music for them to review and approve. I've had plenty come back and say I was approved and just as many say I needed to do more work before I was ready to place in their catalog. Pump Audio is a good place to test the waters. IIRC, it took 3 tries to get approval there. And if they reject you, you have to wait 90 days before sending something else. I don't know if they still have that process but if they do, send them some stuff. Pump is huge.... so once you're in, you're a small fish in a big ocean. I like to try to find the smaller libraries where the owner personally screens the songs and once in, you have his direct email and phone number. That is exactly the kind of library that nailed the placements for me. Now, when I send new music, the owner knows me, knows I made him money, and is more likely to get my music out there for the next listing that fits.
A listing service that I have used is Film Music Jobwire. They have listings, and you don't have to be a member. Another service just closed down. FMJ has introduced me to several publishers and one really good one. It was through that contact that I was able to write for Duck Dynasty. I wrote and sent 41 cues for that show. Nothing ever came of that. But I learned a lot about writing 41 cues with a deadline requirement. Nothing like trying to be creative with a looming deadline fast approaching. Sometimes you just have to force the creativity out. At a songwriter meeting earlier this year, I ran into another writer who writes for film & TV and in the course of discussion, found out that we were both signed in that same library. He spoke highly of them.
I have 2 libraries that are the focus of my writing and submissions now. I have a number of others that are secondary... close to a dozen. I have songs in them that just sit there. It's impossible to write for a dozen libraries as a part time writer. Hard enough to write enough for 2.
Exclusive vs non-exclusive. I'm actually signed into both kinds of libraries. Exclusive means they better be on the ball because you can't sign the songs anywhere else. Non-exclusive means you can sign it to as many libraries as you wish. I won't debate the merits of either or the down side to either. Just suffice to say that a non-exclusive library nailed the placements on this song.
Musicianship has to be professional. It doesn't need to be the hottest or the best, but at least tune the guitar and overdub bad notes. Sound quality is important too. The end user will be using YOUR recording. They don't have the time or the budget to have anything recorded by professionals. You must deliver a finished, professional sounding, broadcast ready, recording.
As a Sonar user and forum member reading this...... you have a valuable asset here in the community of musicians that are in this place. Face it, we have some really talented musicians and we have some recording pro's that can help you along the way. One of the best things here is the Songs Forum. Put your material up for review and discussion. Ask questions and take the advice of the knowledgeable folks here. I learned so much about recording and mixing by doing that very thing. Learn to record and mix so that it sounds like it came from a Nashville or LA studio and not the corner of your bedroom or basement.
When you get all those ducks in a row, and you're writing songs and cues, just send them to the library/publisher and let them set. Write, Send, Forget..... repeat.....and so on. They will normally sign something for 2 years, depending on the library agreement..... but don't worry about pulling something back out. Leave it there because there's always the possibility that someone will pick it up at some point if it's in the library.
There's no way you can guarantee that you will ever have anything picked up. After all, there are thousands upon thousands of writers turning out hundreds of songs each. It's simply a matter of numbers and time. The longer you have material out there, and the more material you have out there, the more likely you are to have something picked up and signed. Once you get material being used, the library will generally start paying more attention to you and even put you on a list of writers to contact in a pinch.
Look for opportunities to get into the best libraries you can. Keep writing and keep sending your stuff. You just have to keep going even when it looks like it's never going to happen. If you quit, you don't ever get to hear your music on the TV or radio.
I've been pushing in this direction for years. It didn't happen overnight. So be patient, do the things needed to get the ball rolling and never give up on the dream.
For me...what will change? Not much actually. I will keep writing, sending to the libraries, and writing more. I had kind of taken some time off.... lazy, needing to recharge the batteries, whatever the reason..... now, I will be more focused on writing and getting the music to the libraries I am signed with.
Edit: To start with, concentrate on the music genre you really like and write well. If you're a country guy, write country, write bluegrass, write some oldies rock..... don't venture into hip hop or EDM just because there's a listing request for it. I respond to maybe 10% of the listings that come in....maybe less. Focus on what you do best. The cool thing is that with film & TV.... you CAN write "dated" sounding music and get away with it. With Nashville and LA, "dated" is DOA. If a TV show has a "flashback" moment.... they need some music that sounds like it's from that era but they don't want to pay for a hit from that time. They will license your cue for a few bucks.
money is made by quantity..... the more cues you have working for you, the more you make. A few bucks each doesn't sound like much but get 100 cues a month at $5 ...do the math for your quarterly royalty check. It takes time to build it up. I met a fellow in LA who had 800 working cues. Do the math.
I was having fun writing and sending my stuff. Happy just to have libraries that were at top of the game accepting my stuff. Just having a good time writing and enjoying the process...... then, out of nowhere, totally unexpectedly, a royalty statement showed up.
Play the game to have fun and enjoy the journey. Let the score take care of itself.