Wanna break through? Write a breakthrough song, Part I

Wayne Cohen, veteran multi-platinum selling ASCAP hit songwriter, producer and educator, owner of publishing/production company Stand Up Songs, also teaches individual and group songwriting tutoring sessions at his NYC Stand Up Studio and via Skype.

I recently judged a battle of the bands here in NYC during which I was really impressed with the energy, dedication, focus, musicianship and marketing abilities of the performers.  However I was struck that out of the five bands I judged, only one of the vocalists wrote a hook that I could remember after I heard it once. In fact, the band that I gave the highest marks to were an instrumental group that I thought had the best melodies!

In that moment it occurred to me that now, more than ever, when so much music is available to anyone with a mouse and an internet connection, a breakthrough song is what you need to make an impression. People will tell you to get the right haircut, imaging, packaging, marketing and production to break through, and they are not wrong, but if you don’t have at least one breakthrough song, none of the rest will matter. If you want to get noticed, creating or finding that breakout song is your job #1. 

You are saying to yourself, how is this possible?  Are you in denial, thinking ‘Isn’t my guitar sound enough to get me a record deal?’ Don’t worry, there’s a songwriter inside of you, you just have to find it.

So how do you do it? Well, Ringo Starr was somewhat right when he sang ‘you know it don’t come easy’, but I know there is a way for you to express what’s unique about your take on the world, and channel that into a hook laden melody with a cool breakout lyric concept and a hot beat..., in other words, a breakout song.

Call me a crazy curmudgeon, but really it’s a pretty simple equation...You have to reach into yourself, think about what you’re feeling, and then start feeling it, to begin your path towards that breakout song.  When I write I like to decide which of my feelings can represent an urgent universal truth I feel needs to be shared with the world. To get me in the mood, sometimes, I like to start from the point of ‘righting a wrong’ or ‘wronging a right’, because it’s unlikely anyone outside your circle is going to care much about something that’s not urgent and universal. Remember your lust for world domination?

For example, I was writing a song recently called ‘Live On’ which started out as a thank you from a veteran artist to his long time fans.  It was a catchy title with a good melody and a good beat, but lucky for me there was not enough urgency to it.  So I put it away, and I say lucky, because the next day I had a co-write scheduled with a young unsigned female bluesy rock artist who needed a single.  I realized that if I took the same concept, twisted it into a plea for her lover’s long lasting passion, and added the ‘L’ word to the title, suddenly the same song idea became an urgent universal cry for clarity from one lover to another.  Recently that song ‘Love Live On’ by Laura and the Tears has been released as a single, playlisted on BBC Radio 2 and is available for sale on the iTunes Store. The lover in question has been duly served, and it remains unclear as to what will happen… :-)

In any case, my point is that it can take a bit of sweat equity to create that breakthrough song, but you never have to give up, you just need to dig a little deeper, because yesterday’s trash could be tomorrow’s treasure…

P.S. After that battle of the bands I was asked by the memorable hook vocalist why I didn’t vote for her. I told her that although her song was the best, her band was not, and since it was a battle of the bands I could not justify voting for a band that wasn’t up to snuff. By now you could be thinking ‘what a hard core son of a gun this guy is’ and you’d be right. But I hope she heard me when I said that her song was the best, because in the long run that will serve her. Now she just needs the right band, and several more of those kinds of songs.

Tune in next week for more in Part 2: Wanna break through? Write a breakthrough song: Tools of the Trade

You can contact Wayne here.

Comments

[Andy]

Great, Wayne. Thanks

Andy

[Wicked Celtics]

Great article, Wayne. I'm impressed with the heavy hitter Tunecore is getting for this blog. Kudos!!! We appreciate hearing advice from those who've been on the front lines of this insane business and lived to tell the tales.

With rare affection,

Wicked Celtics

In Buttrock We Trust
http://www.wickedceltics.com

[alek]

I always begin songwriting with a hook.It could be in chorus, bridge, verse...
no important where but it should be.
Hear my stuff at:
http://www.showcaseyourmusic.com/aleksandrsaltovskiy

[YoulandaB]

No, I agree you do need, as one of my artists said, a good beat and a good hook. And it may not be a song that you are thrilled about. Case in point, Good Time, he did not want to do the song neither did I but the "magic' that happened in the studio gave us one hell of a song with a great hook. And were pushing it like crazy, lets see what happens.

[Pierre Opperman]

I think it is abit of everything,including the intro,melody-line etc....
Every muso (me included) dreams of just writing "That one song" which puts you on the music-map....never having to look back again.

Pierre
htp://www.pierreopperman.com

[Greg Alton]

I really enjoyed this article. I don't connect with that particular writing style, but the breakthrough song concept is valid and I can never hear enough writer's perspectives on writing. I've always believed that real success in music is wrapped around some good songs.

[Paul from the Bay Area]

I like what you and Laura and the Tears did. The vocal/melody hook of the chorus is good (not great! but they don't need to be great! to be successful). I think it stayed in form/groove a bit too much. I think a different riff or solo punch after the chorus and before returning to the verse would have kicked this song over the top. I can hear a bunch of different instruments with different lines/punches. Would have made people yearn for it.

[Charles Marlowe]

The Best example of this that I know of is Nirvana's Smells like Teen Spirit. Wether you like the band or not, that song is largely responsible, along with their record company's markings plans, for bringing Nirvana's music to a large audience. In some cases, I believe just one song can almost cement your carrier as a band.
I could be wrong.

[KC]

Try 'My Kick' by my band DISGUSTER or Secret Shame @
www.myspace.com/disguster, kind of ACDC meets the Dickies
We play the Juke Joint in Anaheim May 8 with the Angry Samoans
And the Viper Room May 25 in Hollywood or hit me at twitter.com/1KC
I'm the loser who fronts the dangerous band, DISGUSTER.

[Scott Bennett]

I am 18 years old and my song "You'll Make It Through" was just chosen to be on Quickstar Productions Indie Underground compilation CD. Check out my myspace and the song "You'll Make It Through" @ http://www.myspace.com/songsofscone

[Max (Nuthatch-47)]

Totally agree on the importance of the catchy hook. But it has to come naturally, not planned, I believe. Our band has a song about Economy, that got some attention, hopefully it will be our REAl breakthrough, but if not - we'll keep working :-) here is the song:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9pq06MaWaY