Multi-platinum hit songwriter Shelly Peiken, has written songs for, and with, Ed Sheeran, Keith Urban, Celine Dion, Cher, Reba McEntire, Christina Aguilera, Meredith Brooks, Britney Spears, Natasha Bedingfield, NSYNC, Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez, Idina Menzel and Demi Lovato. Shelly Peiken is also a successful author who has written a book detailing her experiences in songwriting – “Confessions of a Serial Songwriter”. Shelly shared two songs with us – “Bitch” and “Who You Are”. Here are some of the things we discussed:
Pop music singer-songwriter Amir Brandon joined us to talk about two of his upcoming songs, working with producer Thomas McKay, and the stories behind his songs.
We also talked about:
Collaborating with other songwriters
Battle Royale: grammar vs. lyric vs. meaning vs. melody
How to write a really long chorus
Chord choices and mixing up major, minor, and 7th chords
To celebrate Pride in Toronto this week, we brought in five LGBTQ-themed songs to play and talk about. The songs spanned from 1983 to 2017, and included a diverse range of songwriters and topics. Musical book writer Stephen Witkin joined us for the show. Special thank you’s to Hema for handling our social media, and @SharonRose2012 for tweeting in!
We talked about:
Bruce and Stephen’s own coming-out stories
Heavy-handed vs. light and fun approach with the “message” in LGBTQ-themed songs
Acceptance of LGBTQ songwriters and songs in popular culture
Universal vs. LGBTQ-specific messages in the songs
Pop singer-songwriter Lora Ryan joined us with her guitarist Andrew Scott to share two songs and talk about her songwriting process.
Singer/songwriter Lora Ryan is poised to make some noise in the independent music scene. Born and raised in Montreal, Quebec, she recently relocated to the Hollywood of Canada: Toronto, Ontario. Lora draws on personal experience to pen her lyrics, which can only be described as original and emotionally driven, sometimes angry, often angst-ridden, but always heartfelt and honest. “My world revolves around music,” she emphasizes.
We talked about:
writing poems with melodies = songs
using open mics, instagram and facebook for networking
articulating the end consonants of your words
finding the right tempo when performing live
moving your story forward through the verses
why you should have a great opening line
the relationship with your producer as a co-songwriter
Young pop sensations the Command Sisters (Charlotte and Sarah) joined us to talk about writing as a sibling duo and working with producers. Patrick Ballantyne filled in for Bruce.
With 10 albums over a 20-year career, Canadian singer/songwriter/guitarist Jacob Moon dropped into the studio to share a wealth of helpful tips and clear insights. “Live a Little” is a truly exceptional tune, a perfect marriage of lyrics, melody, theme and variation. “Is That All You Got” is a gutsy rocker that looks at calamity with defiance and a “bring it on” attitude. The hour just flew by as we discussed –
Singer songwriter Jules delivers three powerful tunes live in the studio. She’s just 14 and yet is well on her way along the road as a professional. Jules has been writing songs since she was 10. Some stuff we talked about:
Old friend of the show Dokter Nomi came by and we talked about his unique way of writing songs, working with producers and amassing over 42,000 twitter followers!
Some stuff we talked about:
Writing music with a global flare
Working with producers including our own Neel Modi
Its a special Collaborating Show as Northwood Records artist Patrick Ballantyne stops by and we get into all the details about collaborating: how to share the royalties (evenly) and general best practices for successful experiences.
Patrick has co-written with lots of folks and has tracks by artist’s like Big Sugar, Merideth Shaw and a ton more. Lots of great insights from someone who has cracked the collaborating quagmire.
Tim Stead with his band The Scenic Sound talks about how melody drives his songs, and how repetition of the lyrics helps to get their message across to their young audience. Download 5 of their songs for free.
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