Imagine you’re bursting with a great idea. You want to jump right in because there are a few things you know how to do really well, but then you realize there are some crucial steps you’re totally lost on. Now imagine you take this idea and you share it with a friend because...
There’s a habit among musicians to compare and care what other people think about our decisions: fans, friends, family, anyone! We forget to put our blinders on and forget to just keep getting excited about what we’re doing. It can be a real bummer, time sucker and career killer! What...
It’s the holiday season which means either you’re the busiest you’ve been all year, or you’re forgetting to do some things you need to do.
For me, it’s the busiest I’ve been all year because amongst writing to last minute briefs, scheduled co-writes, and my...
Today, my “why” became more meaningful and specific. Every year it gets clearer because of creative thinking, action and reflection and I want your why to be as loud as a battlecry.
I’ll explain.
As I record music for a potential TV show placement in my home studio, I find...
When setting out to produce and record a track, either for an indie artist, music library cue, or sync brief, I always have a go-to move that gives my guitars an ability to be exactly how I want to hear them.
So you know from the beginning, I don’t go into crazy technical stuff,...
You’re sitting at home, with just your voice and your guitar writing a song. You have the lyrics and the chords down, and it feels like you have something good! You jump to record it in your phone or in your DAW (Digital Audio Workstation), but it just doesn’t sound AT ALL what...
I went on a Facebook Live the other day, and I was talking about dreams versus goals. It hit me how many people never move past the dream phase. Honestly, it made me a little sad, because I know it’s possible for you to move past it, and I’m tired of seeing people give up after...
Networking - it’s not out of your reach
Imagine you’re hungry- starving- so you look in the fridge, you look in the cupboard and there’s no food. I mean that’s inconvenient, but you wouldn’t say, “oh well, I'm just gonna starve to death”. No! {shakes...
Judy Stakee is a legendary music publisher, songwriting mentor, author, and speaker. Former Sr. VP of Creative at Warner Chappell Music, she’s responsible for signing and developing many of today’s most acclaimed artists and songwriters (Sheryl Crow, Katy Perry, Joy Williams, Jewel)....
For two years Bonnie J. Baker was figuring out songwriting again after making multi-platinum hits! She’s had amazing singles cut with so many artists, that I could use this entire platform just to talk about that. We talk about how she got started, and a period of time, later in life,...
I was in a coaching session the other day, and we were going through chords in a student’s song. I was strumming along with one of theirs that was released on Spotify and they stopped me and said, “Oh I really like what you’re doing there”. Honestly it was nothing too...
You might have heard me talk about active listening because I'm a huge advocate for it as a songwriting guitar coach. But why is this so important? What are the benefits? Do you really need to do this consistently?
If you’re thinking, “active listening doesn’t really...
82% of people who are looking for guitar advice tell me they have trouble concentrating while practicing. They just can’t focus!
Well, have you ever been to The Golden Corral? It’s a buffet where you can have whatever you want…. mash potatoes lasagna, shrimp, mexican......
When I write blogs/vlogs and do Facebook/instagram ADs 99% of responses are thoughtful and engaging.
What about the 1%?
Well sometimes the responses are either creepy, weird or like this…
Now why single out this passive aggressive “comment” for this blog?
Because...
