Chapter 15

Getting Your Songs Heard: Making the Demo

In This Chapter

Determining when your song is ready

Getting the details in order

Choosing the method to create your song

Arranging the musical shape of your songs

Recording the actual demo

Assembling the package and sending it out

The day will come when you’ve finally finished your song and it’s time to put your heart and soul on the line to share your creation with the world. After all, your song won’t do anyone any good sitting in your notebook! The first step in getting your song out there is to make a demonstration of the song — better known as a demo. A demo basically demonstrates your song’s potential — in other words, it’s a prototype or template from which the right industry people who may be interested in your songs can elaborate. It’s like a sketch from which a fully realized masterpiece can then be painted.

In this chapter, we give you the inside scoop on how to prepare and produce a demo and get it in the hands of the right people.

Evaluating Your Options

There are many things to consider before you embark upon the considerable time and expense of cutting a demo of your song, but first things first. You need to run through a simple checklist of honest evaluation and critique to rate the readiness of taking your song to the next level. Here are a few questions to begin asking yourself in self-evaluating your song:

Is each line of lyric and melody the best you are capable of writing?

Is the song structure well thought out and effective?

Does the song have an interesting title and hook?

Does the bridge provide a new dimension?

Is the song capable of evoking true human emotion?

Will the listener find it interesting, easy to remember, and can they sing along with it?

Even though many songwriters now own the equipment to produce demos at home (see Chapter 11), when it comes to quality material and making a career out of songwriting, it may be wise to hire a pro rather than “cut off your nose to spite your face!” However, if you’re simply making a hobby of songwriting and this isn’t your livelihood, then by all means lock yourself away in the basement and get creative to your heart’s content — who knows . . . one of your creations just might jump out and surprise us all.

Creating a “work tape” demo first

When you feel that your song is ready, a pre-demo version is a must in order to get some objective feedback from others. You’ll need to create a rough recording of your song — a “work tape” version. With this in hand, you can go about getting song critiques in a variety of ways. You can get peer-to-peer critiques through songwriters’ organizations such as The Songwriters Guild of American (SGA), the Nashville Songwriters Associations International (NSAI), and TAXI (refer to Chapter 13 for a detailed description of services provided by these organizations). You can also solicit feedback from your friends, family, and associates. You don’t always have to agree with what you hear, but do try to be objective, and use what is being said for the benefit of getting your song in its best shape possible.

Defining the production components

While you are gathering as much feedback and constructive input as possible before you plunk down a considerable amount of time or dough producing a high-quality and professional demo, there are two very important things to consider from the onset: the type of production this song is going to require to do it justice, and how much moola you can afford to spend. True, cutting a demo of a ballad may not require much more than a polished piano or guitar and a top-notch vocal performance, but an up-tempo pop or urban tune may need the benefit of a whole lot more instrumentation and vibe. Get an overall picture in your mind as to what type of production you are seeking.

Deciding what purpose the demo serves

There are basically two types of demos; the song demo and the artist demo. You will need to determine in advance which of these two you are ultimately going after. Ask yourself whether you want to put yourself out there as a potential artist, or use this demo as a tool to get your song published and recorded by some other recording artist. If you are also looking to be considered as the artist, you’ll need to set your standards high and have your vocals pitch perfect as opposed to when you are pitching your songs to someone else — either way is good, just be clear about your intentions from the beginning so you get the right finished product.

Knowing the competition

Even if you are recording your very first demo on your laptop computer program, it’s wise to know the quality of work that’s being produced by others. Quite often the quality of today’s demos sound very much like the songs you hear on the radio. The professional standard of your competition is high and many of the demo singers legitimately should have their own record deals. It’s a clear advantage to get the best musicians and players you can afford so your song has a fighting chance to stand out in the crowd.

If the thought of recording a demo makes your hands sweaty — and you’re the type who would rather spend time creating lyrics and melodies — don’t think you have to do it all on your own. There are options other than self-producing your own demo. Hiring a demo service (companies that specialize in doing the demo for you for a set fee) may be the way to go. Just make sure you let them know in advance what you want, and be very specific by providing samples of the sound you are looking for. Also be sure to get referrals, and shop around (and listen to their finished work to evaluate their quality) before deciding which demo service to hire.

Paying Attention to Details

First and foremost, a demo should be an effective representation of your song. It can be simple or complex, depending on the song itself. The demo doesn’t have to be totally polished. However, as mentioned earlier in this chapter, the more professional it sounds, the better the chance of standing out in an already crowded and competitive market.

Picking your format

Other than the compact disc (CD), electronically submitted audio files (such as MP3s and other audio file formats) are pretty much the format of choice for demos nowadays. In the past, demos were always presented on cassette, but thankfully — because they sometimes run at wrong speeds, the quality is poor, occasional dropouts can be heard, and you can’t just skip automatically to the song you want to hear — cassette tapes are basically a thing of the past. By using audio files or CDs, you can get away with having more songs in one demo presentation — a good idea in case the person you’re sending it to doesn’t like one song; in that case they can quickly jump forward to the next one.

Choosing the number and length of songs

Ideally, your demo should contain no more than three or four songs total. The producer, artist, or A&R person probably cannot absorb much more than that at one time — and because he’s leaving for Aruba on Saturday, his time is kind of tight anyway.

Making sure the songs on your demo aren’t too long, or too short, is also very important. However, don’t compromise the song just for its length. Ultimately, the song dictates the length of the demo.

Ideally, a song that you’re pitching should be under four minutes in length, but there are no hard and fast rules here. If the song is good at seven minutes, then let it be that long — just make sure you’re not kidding yourself and that those seven minutes really work. (Please note that a seven-minute song is an extremely long one.) Also, keep intro lengths short and get to the first verse as quickly as possible. Many times the first verse is perhaps all the demo screener hears (due to the lack of time and patience) — yeah, that’s not fair, but such is life!

Playing your song for friends is a good road test to see if you can hold their interest. Good friends will usually call a spade a spade and a clunker a clunker — and hopefully they’ll still be your friends the next day! If they nod off while listening to your demo, consider editing the song (or finding some new friends!). Your song and demo should keep moving and building; try to engage the listener’s attention at all times.

Keeping it simple

Demos generally need to be very simple. Try to leave room for the potential singer to imagine what they can do to it to make it their own — just like they attempt to do via American Idol style.

A good demo song is an effective representation of

The lyric

The melody

The chords

The feel

The direction or genre

The heart and soul of the song

Overall, when creating your demo, always keep in mind that this is the way your song will be heard by the world. Make sure when all is said and done, whether the arrangement is simple or complex, or the production is rough or sophisticated, that it represents the song the way you think it should be heard. Take pride in the presentation at whatever level your budget dictates. If it gets across the essence of the song, it really doesn’t matter how much (or how little) money you spend on it — the song will shine through.

Picking the Players

After you’ve finished your song, unless you’re a one-man-band or a DIY (do-it-yourself) junkie, you’ll need to create a team of musicians, programmers, and engineers to help see your vision through. (Refer to Chapter 12 for in-depth information on songwriting collaborations.)

Deciding whether to use musicians or machines

Many times, nothing beats the sound and chemistry of real musicians playing together. But often, due to financial restrictions or lack of contacts, you may be wise to consider programming your demo on a computer. A programmer can sequence the sounds of drums, keyboards, and bass. However, you may want to add a real guitar player after all the other pieces are on, in order to get a humanized sound to the track.

Using musicians

If you decide to go with real live musicians instead of using a computer to create your demo, you’ll quickly see that there are no shortcuts to finding the perfect team of musicians to work with — it’s all trial and error, and finding the right combination can take time. You’ll need musicians who are intuitive to what’s in your head and are a supportive presence to your talents. Creating a demo is like putting a puzzle together — you can only see the whole picture when all the pieces are in place. Look for reliable people who you believe “hear” what you’re hearing in your head and can expand on that vision.

Finding musicians

Finding musicians isn’t as hard as you might think. Start by going to clubs where bands are playing. During a break, introduce yourself as a songwriter looking for musicians. Oftentimes, they’ll be eager to do studio work (especially if there’s pay involved) because it’s a welcome change of pace from their “live dates.” You can also check in the back pages of your local music publication for musicians for hire (request a sample of their work before booking them), place an ad yourself seeking top-notch studio musicians, or just type studio musicians in your online search engine and you’ll be off and running with more resources than you’ll ever need! In addition, by attending various writers’ nights and showcases you’ll inevitably find qualified people who are in attendance, or you may find qualified musicians quite simply by “word of mouth.” You can also find talent by keeping your ears open at your local guitar center, as musicians are trying out new gear.

Working with musicians

In music, as in life, sometimes human interaction is the magic behind the music. Whether you’re making a quickie demo or a big-budget master, the synergy created between musicians is often what brings a song to life.

Finding great players isn’t enough. Try to use the people who don’t feel they need to show off in order to earn their keep — find the ones that support the song and bring out the best in it and in you!

—Jim Peterik, writer of 18 Billboard Top 10 hits including the perennial favorite “Eye of the Tiger” featured in Rocky III

Using machines

It used to be that all instruments had to be played by actual human beings. But with the advent of drum machines, samplers (a digital recorder that captures, or “samples,” any sound source for playback onto your track), MIDIs (which stands for musical instrument digital interface whereby a musician can program his computer to communicate with a vast array of sound sources), and computers, everything has changed. Much of the music you hear on the radio today is created and perfected on computers. As a songwriter, this can be good news. By learning the craft of programming, you can literally be a one-person band — and courses (both online and offline) are offered at recording institutes and community colleges that can educate you in this amazing and ever-changing technology.

As a songwriter making a demo, learning programming, or finding a team player who’s proficient at it, is important — especially if you’re pitching your song to any of the areas that rely on programming so heavily, such as urban, hip-hop, rap, and dance-pop.

Programming your demo can have these advantages in certain situations:

Keeping your costs down by not having to hire as many musicians

Making your demo have a more current sound in certain genres

Adding flexibility to your demo by giving you the ability to build it up slowly and make modifications at the eleventh hour

Recently, I came across the original demo I had made for “Hold on Loosely,” which I co-wrote with Don Barnes and Jeff Carlisi for .38 Special. At the time, I thought it was pretty hot that I did it using a drum machine and playing all the parts myself. But in listening to it after some time had passed, I couldn’t believe how stiff and mechanical it sounded after being used to the finished hit version, which included all the members of the band — giving it that human feel that only comes through human interaction. I found that whether it’s the actual musicians playing together or the person who’s programming the computer, it still comes down to the heart and soul of an actual human being.

—Jim Peterik, writer of 18 Billboard Top 10 hits

Deciding who is going to sing

There are varying opinions and considerable debate on whether the songwriter should actually sing his own demo. On the one hand, the songwriter knows the song from the inside, and whatever he lacks in vocal ability is made up for in soul and feeling. However, the industry is accustomed to hearing polished vocals — so it may be best to give up a little feeling for the range, vocal texture, and overall technique of a great singer. The best of both worlds, of course (unless the songwriter happens to be a great singer), is finding a singer who really gets into the song and sells it for you with professionalism and the correct mood or feeling.

Making an Arrangement

The term arrangement refers to the musical shape that your song will take. Years ago, the arranger was arguably more influential than the producer in determining how a song would end up sounding. When Frank Sinatra changed from arranger Nelson Riddle to other arrangers, his whole style changed. In those days, the arranger wrote out the parts that virtually every instrument would play and the dynamics (louds and softs, playing and laying out) with which they would be played. Even the rhythm and feel were notated on paper.

At the demo stage, the arrangement is important because it serves as a template of how you envision the final version. The type of arrangement that you create will depend on the type of song you’ve written. The arrangement of a song indicates what marketplace you’ll be targeting and how effective your presentation will be. For example, ballads often can be presented in a simple piano and vocal version with minimal percussion, if any. This approach showcases the melody and lyrics, which are the most important elements of a ballad. On the other hand, up-tempo songs — whether they are rock, R&B, country, gospel, or whatever — rely as much on the rhythm as anything else. You’ll want to add powerful drums, pounding bass, cutting guitar, brass, and whatever else you feel is necessary to give the listener the full impact.

In any case, allow the person who’s listening to your demo feel the song, not just hear it. And, when creating the arrangement for your song demo, keep in mind that a strong musical hook is often as important as the song itself. It won’t make a bad song great, but it sure can elevate an average song and make it a slam-dunk. Often, it’s those little intro riffs and figures that stick in your head well after the song has faded.

Ask your band members or studio musicians to add their own creative touches to bring musical spice to your song.

A lot of times, the artist, manager, or producer who’s listening to these songs has had it up to his ears with fancy demos. Don’t give them anything not to like. Many hit songs were originally presented as a demo with only piano and voice. Some have been cut on the strength of one voice singing into an answering machine. But there are other examples where the excellence of the arrangement and performance actually sold the song — some writers create what sounds like finished products to showcase their song. Ultimately, you have to go with your gut instinct and do what’s right for you and your song.

A good producer or publisher will see right through any gold paint and sparklers that you may have added to the demo thinking it would help compensate for what you feel your song may be lacking otherwise. If the song isn’t solid at its core, you won’t be able to disguise it with a fancy production. Let production be transparent, and let the song itself shine through. As they say in Nashville, you can’t polish a cow chip!

Creating a chart

The songwriting team should come to a session with a chart of the song — a rough draft of the chord structure of the song. Chord charts can be presented in two different ways:

The chord root chart: This is the traditional method, in which each chord is assigned a letter in accordance with its root note (the root or bottom note of a chord — if you played a C major chord — C, E, and G — the C would be the root). Jotting down any melodic figures (suggested bass lines, band stop times, or essential rhythmic figures) is also a good idea. Session musicians really appreciate some direction in terms of arrangement

The number chart: Also known as the Nashville system, this is a method in which each chord is indicated by its number, and a “Maj” (for Major”) or a minus sign after the letter to indicate major or minor (see Chapter 10 for more information). Here is a key with some helpful shorthand chart-writing techniques:

• Major: Upper-case Roman numeral (Nashville system)

• Major: Upper-case letter (G or C, for example)

• Major: Letter or number with “Maj” after it (C Maj, for example)

• Minor: Lower-case Roman numeral (ii, for example)

• Minor: Lower-case letter with “min” or minus sign after it (g min, for example)

• Dominant 7: Upper-case letter with “7” (F7)

• Major 7: Upper-case letter with “Maj7” (C Maj7)

• Minor 7: Lower-case letter with “min7” (d min7)

• Diminished: Lower-case letter with “dim” (g dim)

• Augmented: Upper-case letter with “Aug” (C Aug)

Notations should be made on the chord chart as to the sections of the song, clearly marking intros, verses, pre-choruses, choruses, bridges, repeats, instrumental sections, and whatever else. Often, musicians make their own notations on their chord charts to remind them of certain arrangement ideas.

Beyond that, it’s up to the songwriter and his team of musicians to create a head arrangement. A head arrangement is where everyone makes mental notes (hence the word head) and suggests ideas as to style, feel, rhythm, genre, musical breaks, musical riffs, and hooks — all the nuances that take a basic chord chart and make it magic. Sometimes the spaces you leave in a song are as important as the notes you play. Arranging a song is all about the give and take between musicians — the sections of a song where one instrument will drop out, allowing another one to shine. These techniques will make your song demo more compelling to the listener.

If you come to your session without at least a chord chart, you’ll waste precious studio time waiting for the musicians to write out their own charts as they listen to the song.

As the writer of the song, you’ll probably have a pretty good idea of how you want your song to sound, but try to be open to the input of others you trust. Your arrangement choices will help to determine the following:

The musical direction your song will take

Which market is best suited to your song

How effective your presentation will be

What demographic target your song will find

Often there is a very fine line between the genres — and actually a lot of crossover among them. For instance, the borders are currently quite blurry between pop/rock and country. Sometimes it’s just a slight change in the instrumentation of a song that skews the same song to two different marketplaces. Often, the addition of a pedal steel or fiddle can tip a pop song into the country market. Conversely, the addition of a distorted power guitar can beef up a country pop song enough to be pitched to rock artists. Sometimes, the vocal style has to be altered accordingly, but the drums, bass, and keyboards can often stay the same. Similarly, a pop/rock song can change into a dance/pop song by altering the feel of the arrangement and usually by substituting programming for live musicians.

Using an arranger

Having a team player called an arranger — the person who puts all the musical pieces in the right place and adds sonic musical color where it’s needed — is well substantiated but not always required. If you’ve assembled a good team, the musicians and the engineer can all become the arranger. The songwriter can also act as the arranger, but in doing so, the songwriter must also put the arranger hat on and think like an arranger.

The days of hiring an arranger at the beginner’s level are long gone. When you get your song cut and have a budget for, say, $10,000, then you can bring in an arranger and ask him, “Okay, here’s the basic track, what do you hear?” He’ll then say something like, “Oh wow, I hear an organ here, sleigh bells right there, and a 40-piece string section on the chorus.”

As the songwriter, the arrangement of your song will set the tone for how you want the record companies, the artist, and the managers to perceive it. Start with a mission statement of the marketplace (or marketplaces) you think your song can fit and make decisions accordingly.

Recording the Demo

Whether you decide that you’re going to be using real musicians, programmed instruments, or a combination of both, you must also decide on how and where your song will be recorded.

Deciding where to record

Generally, your finances dictate where you’ll record your demo. If you can afford it, use a professional studio. They can offer you a trained staff, top-notch equipment, and great coffee so you can concentrate on what you do best: creating music. If money is tight, perhaps you know someone with a decent home studio who wouldn’t mind helping you out (plus making a few bucks on the side). Maybe you could even barter your musical talents in some way against free studio time. The most cost-effective way, of course, is to do it yourself on modest equipment you’ve installed in your basement or spare bedroom. If you have a fairly high aptitude for the technical, this may be your first choice. Just be sure not to let the technical details totally bog you down.

DIY — doing it yourself

These are great times to be living in if you’re a songwriter on a shoestring budget. You can buy relatively inexpensive but superb digital home studio equipment (see Chapter 11 for more on home studios) and, for less than a few thousand bucks, create a recording studio in your spare bedroom. Becoming efficient at this will allow you to rival the production quality of what could only be done in the major studios just a short decade ago.

Of course, there are sonic differences between an inexpensive digital recorder and the professional setup at the downtown studio. But at the demo stage of a song, those differences won’t determine whether your song will be well received or not. In fact, Alanis Morrisette’s 13x platinum album Jagged Little Pill was recorded entirely on the Alesis ADAT system — a technology even at the time considered to be primarily a demo recording format. If the song is there and the soul is intact, that’s all that really matters.

Lots of songwriters make their own demos and record all the instruments themselves — one overdub after another. They lay down the drum tracks or computer-based drum samples first, do a sequence, and then play all the instruments over that, adding vocals just before the mix-down phase.

To learn the technology of digital home recording, you can often find classes offered by local colleges. Check with The Recording Academy (NARAS) to see if they have any recording workshops on the horizon or if they can point you to one. Look in the back pages of home recording magazines like EQ to find schools that specialize in the recording arts. Music stores often have company-sponsored seminars on the recording gear they sell. Of course, as a last resort, you can always read the owner’s manual and learn the old-fashioned way — trial and error until you get it right!

Using a professional studio

Even with the numerous improvements that have been made in home recording, many songwriters still choose to bite the bullet and spend bigger bucks in hiring professional recording studios. A commercial studio:

Supplies top quality engineers and staff

Provides a musically conducive environment away from your everyday home or office atmosphere

Provides you with more equipment options at a level of higher sophistication on every aspect, from a wide assortment of microphones to sound processing like de-essing (getting rid of those spitty s’s) and pitch correction

Provides a place where your musicians can meet and not invade your private space

Allows you to concentrate on patching up your song instead of running patch cables

Furnishes you with generally some of the strongest darn coffee north of Brazil

Furthermore, professional studios make their reputation on service and reliability. If a machine goes down at home, the session is off until you can get it fixed. At a big studio, they’ll generally have backups for just about every piece of gear — so the creativity and the momentum of your session rarely have to be broken up because of broken equipment.

A home budget generally does not allow for the use of microphones that can cost upwards of $10,000 dollars. Also, you will not have access to a nice recording console. These can run over a hundred thousand dollars. The primary stages in your signal flow are essential to sweetening one’s sound, so you want the best possible quality. Professional studios really do make a huge difference.

If you aren’t inherently a technical person, it may be wise to use a professional studio. Many songwriters get so bogged down watching meters, reading manuals, and troubleshooting problems that the music gets lost in the shuffle.

Currently, you can rent a good demo studio equipped with an engineer for $50 or less per hour. Call around and find a good price, and avoid the expensive studios. Some studios specialize in cutting demos (as opposed to actual final album work) and make it easy by booking the room in three-hour session blocks, complete with recording engineer and often a selection of session musicians they’ll supply for a package price. Studios like this (County Q in Nashville has made its reputation on this principal) pride themselves on total efficiency. If you come well prepared with songs and charts, you could cut as many as six or seven songs in a three hour session.

Finding demo services

In the back of many songwriting newsletters and music magazines (or by way of online search engines), you can find listings of demo services. The deal is, you send them a rough tape of your song (or the sheet music) and for a set fee they’ll produce a finished demo for you. The quality of these services range from rip-off to amazing, so be sure to request samples of their work before you hand over your precious song. And always copyright your song before sending it anywhere (refer to Chapter 19 for more details).

Paying for the demo

How much you’re able to spend on your demo will be determined to some extent by who’s footing the bill. If you’re signed to a publisher, there may be provisions in your contract that specify the conditions of making demos and the maximum cost allowable per song. Usually the expense is paid upfront by the publishing company and recouped from royalties due to the songwriter (often a good attorney can negotiate for only 50 percent of that cost, to be paid back from your earnings). There may also be language in the contract that states all demos must first be approved by the publisher — which means you’ll have to do a great job of singing your song over the phone or do a decent boom box version for their approval. At any rate, it still behooves you to keep your cost down — you’ll be paying it back someday!

Packaging the Demo

For a songwriter, the packaging that goes into selling your song doesn’t need to be elaborate. In other words, your demo CD need not look like a CD in a record store with four-color printing or fancy artwork. The song — seldom the writer — is the star of the show. Few people really know what Diane Warren looks like, yet she is the writer behind scores of Top 10 hits. You’d walk right past Max Martin (who writes songs for Kelly Clarkson, Pink, Katy Perry, and others) and Mutt Lange (the writer behind hits for Shania Twain, The Corrs, Def Leppard, and the Jonas Brothers) without ever knowing it. Take note that it isn’t necessary to have a photo of yourself on your demo package, unless you’re presenting yourself as an artist as well.

When packaging your demo, it’s not about you — it’s about the song. Presentation is important with a song demo, but it doesn’t have to be fancy or elaborate to get attention.

Including contact information

Contact information is everything when pitching your songs. Next to the music itself, it is the single most important element.

There have actually been cases where a song has been passed over by a producer who could not find a contact phone number on the label. Maybe the writer’s information had been on the cover letter that accompanied the disc, but the letter had since been tossed out. Industry people get hundreds of songs a month — it doesn’t take much to disqualify one for reasons like this.

The best and most economical way to package your song demo (other than to send it electronically via the Internet) is to house your CD in one of those clear, slim-line jewel cases. Then put all the pertinent information on the CD disk itself. That information would include

The titles of the songs on the disc and their running lengths

The names of the songwriters

The name of the songwriter(s)’ publishing company (if any) and performing rights group (ASCAP, BMI, or SESAC)

A contact phone number

An e-mail address

The copyright date (the date you recorded your demo)

Be sure that your copyright date is within one year — no one wants to be pitched a song that’s been around the block or is collecting dust and is dated.

Keep the information as simple as possible on the CD. For instance, if there is more than one writer, don’t bother listing issues like who wrote the lyrics and who wrote the music. Similarly, there is no need to cram the label with every publishing company involved in a song. After your song is cut, there will be plenty of room on the final product to go into greater detail.

The audio CD is one of the best mediums for presenting your song in terms of quality and convenience for the listener. CD labels, jewel cases, and front insert cards (which are optional — see Figure 15-1 for an example) can be purchased at your local office supply or computer supply store. You can buy blank CDs in bulk on spindles quite economically, and you can easily learn how to burn them (copy them) by using an inexpensive CD-ROM burner, a piece of equipment that connects to, or is included in, your computer.

Sometimes, putting a simple graphic behind the information on your CD label can add a nice dimension to your presentation (check out the example in Figure 15-2), and provide a more compelling package.

There are many software programs that you can load into your computer to add graphics to your demo presentation. But if you don’t have access to a computer or label maker, you can still use a sheet of sticky labels (available at your local office supplies outlet) for all the pertinent details and label the CD yourself.

Always have your contact number in two places: on the CD jacket, which is the card tucked inside the case, and on the CD label itself.

Other elements to go out with your song package include the following:

A cover letter: A typewritten letter from the songwriter or publisher introducing you, the songs, and the songs’ intended target. This page should include all your contact details.

A lyric sheet: A typewritten listing of all the songs included on the demo, along with their lyrics. This sheet, too, should include all your contact details in case the other sheet gets lost.

Requesting permission to send a demo

If you send a demo without it being requested or solicited, you run a high probability of having it returned unopened. The record industry seems to be particularly vulnerable to lawsuits, so whenever someone listens to a song they have received unsolicited in the mail, they’re leaving themselves open to possible copyright infringement litigation. If you can’t hire a music attorney to solicit your song, send a letter (like the one shown in Figure 15-3) to the record company, artist, and others requesting permission to send a song to them for a specific purpose.

Also, when you call, ask if the recipient uses or requires a code word or an identifying mark on the outside of an approved submission package.

As soon as you get an okay and you’re ready to send your material, be sure to write on the envelope “REQUESTED MATERIAL,” and any code or identifying mark if required. Make sure you have your name or company prominently displayed along with your return address on the package.

A little protocol can go a long way. As a songwriter, you need every advantage you can get.

Making a lyric sheet

Including a typewritten lyric sheet with the song you submit is a good idea. Some A&R people, producers, and others will ignore the lyric sheet and rely on their ears alone, whereas others will follow along as they listen. Some will read the lyrics only after the song has initially grabbed them — so your words need to be intelligible on your demo. The lyric sheet then becomes icing on the cake. Take a look at Figure 15-4 for an example of a lyric sheet.

The words to a song are as important as the music. Make sure they stand out in the mix and that they are well enunciated!

If your demo presentation has a lot of unnecessary information, the listener will have a hard time finding the important stuff — like your phone number. Conversely, if a key element is left off the demo, it may end up in the circular file — otherwise know as the wastebasket.

Sending that Baby Out!

You’ve just written a song, finished the demo, and created a simple and attractive package for it. Now you’d like a certain artist to hear it — who is the best person to present your song to them? This is not the time to be a penny-pinching miser — go all out and try hitting as many people involved with your target artist as possible.

Getting your demo to the right people

It has been said that the definition of good luck is when “opportunity meets preparation.” Now that your song is prepared, you need to know the people who can give your song that special opportunity! They include the following:

The A&R person at the record label

The president or CEO of the label

The artist’s producer

The artist’s manager

The artist’s music attorney

The artist

The publisher

We cover each of these people in the following sections.

The A&R person

A&R is an abbreviation for Artists and Repertoire and indicates someone whose job it is to find talent and search out great songs for the record company’s or publisher’s artist roster. When you’re a songwriter or an artist, this is a good person to get to know because he usually sits at the right-hand side of the CEO (who is usually too busy wining and dining to actually sit down and screen songs). You can find record company A&R executives by checking out the references listed on the online Cheat Sheet that applies to this book.

Sometimes the A&R person works hand in hand with a manager to get an artist together with a song. For example, the band Survivor had one song left over after recording their first album. It was a song called “Rockin’ Into the Night,” and their producer felt it didn’t quite fit in with the rest of the album. The A&R person gave the song to .38 Special’s manager, who then played it for the band — they loved it and the song became .38’s first hit record.

The president or CEO of the label

In certain rare occasions, the head honcho at the label actually gets in the trenches and actively hunts for great songs for his artist. Sending two copies of your song to the label wouldn’t be a bad idea — one to the A&R department and one to the president.

The artist’s producer

Sending a song to an artist’s producer really improves the odds of getting your song cut. The producer has a lot to say about what an artist will hear for a project, and if he has the confidence of the artist, he can influence what will and won’t get recorded. Often, a producer will have a listener working for him — someone who screens for appropriate songs so the producer doesn’t have to wade through thousands of songs himself.

Producers are usually looking for one particular type of song for a specific artist. Don’t send a song to a producer unless you have one you think will fit. I once sent a producer friend of mine a song I knew deep down did not suit the artist. I mainly wanted to impress him with the song. Guess what? He wasn’t impressed. If you go to the tool cabinet looking for a screwdriver, you may find a beautiful wrench but it won’t do you much good. Don’t wear out your credibility by sending inappropriate songs.

—Jim Peterik, writer of 18 Billboard Top 10 hits

The artist’s manager

The actual hands-on involvement of the artist’s manager varies widely. Even if a manager doesn’t listen personally to the songs submitted for his artist, he may pass them along to the producer or record company — especially if the songwriter has a proven track record.

The artist’s music attorney

Because of the trust built up between an artist and his attorney, this is a really good office to get your song to. It isn’t as conventional as some other places, and therefore falls into the “Gee, isn’t he clever and enterprising” category. However, the top music attorneys in the business are very well connected, and it behooves you to get your songs in their far-reaching hands. The best-known champion in this category was the young songwriter who got important industry people interested in her songs simply by recording pieces of her best ones on their answering machines in the wee morning hours. Although we cannot go on record as recommending this practice, we do admire her fearless ingenuity.

The artist

If you could pitch your song to only one person, the artist would be the number one choice. No matter how strongly those around the artist believe in a song, it is still the performer who has to connect with it. The artist must believe the song is right for him in terms of direction, emotion, message, and feel. Collaborating with the artist can be so effective precisely for this reason: A co-writer can really get into an artist’s head to see what makes him tick.

The publisher

Getting a song to the artist’s publishing company may seem contrary to logic because they have their own songs to push. However, if they like your song enough, they just may pass it along to the artist or perhaps even suggest a collaboration between the two of you.

All of the above

Hitting as many bases as possible with a given artist is never a bad idea. If enough people in the artist’s inner circle start talking about a song or a songwriter, they can create quite a buzz — and generally, the more bases you can cover, the better your chances of having a home run and getting your song cut.

Producers get songs pitched to them all the time. It’s important that the song you send them is in keeping with the style of the artist that producer is working with. Even if the song is great in and of itself, it won’t be considered unless it’s artist-specific. Be disciplined and focus on the artist you’re trying to reach — or you may not get a second chance.

Don’t make apologies for the song or demo. A producer may lose interest in a song before he even hears it if all you can do is make excuses for the presentation. Never send a song out until you’re confident you’ve captured the essence of the song — then of course, no apologies are needed.

Following up

After you’ve sent your solicited song or songs to a producer, artist, A&R person, manager, and others, you need to follow up with a phone call or e-mail to confirm it was received. After that’s done, the next step is finding out whether it was listened to and how they liked it. You can do all of this with one phone call if you’re lucky; but you may need to make several calls to get all the information you need. Persistence is a key element here, but you need to be sure not to come off as too much of a pest. Make sure your phone manners are pleasant and that you don’t sound as desperate as you most likely are. Make sure you’re not screaming at the kids, blasting the radio, or eating potato chips (bananas are okay) while you’re talking to the head of A&R at J Records! It’s also a good idea to have a pen and paper ready — with a list of things you want to cover in the phone call. If you’ve tried and failed repeatedly to get a response to a song, it may be that the interest is just not there.