Here's great songwriting advice from a hit songwriter.
Tyrus Morgan is a Nashville-via-Kansas singer/songwriter and worship leader. He has landed cuts in both Country and Christian music. In Country, he’s written a Walker Hayes cut and is currently writing with Walker for his upcoming project. He also has cuts or singles coming up with Kevin Mac and Jaden Michaels.
On the Christian side of the street, our guest has penned hit singles for Unspoken (Good Fight) and Newsong (The Same God) as well as cuts or singles by Jonny Diaz, Battledrums Worship, Finding Favour, Ginny Owens, We Are Messengers, and Cochren & Co. He is a staff songwriter for EMac & Goatee.
Tyrus was a recent guest on Frettie.com's "The Hang," and he shared some great, real-world advice for songwriters.
Here is a bit of Tyrus' advice (paraphrased):
Treat writing like a job, like getting up and going to work everyday. I kind of cringe when writers talk about “inspiration.” To me, inspiration is like the frosting on your birthday cake about once a year. If you want to write songs, you don’t get to just write every now and then and make a living at it.
Relationships lead to more relationships. Through my relationship with Walker Hayes, I’ve had doors open for me with Sony Music and Smack Music and Rare Spark, which has led to other Sony/Monument artist cowrites.
Once you have one person who really believes in you, they can open more doors for you.
Most of the artists I write with are good friends. I get more cuts with that smaller group of artists. I go out on the bus with them, our families get together.
My job as a songwriter is to come along and serve the song and the artist.
When it comes to writing with an artist, my job is to serve the artist, help them say what they want to say and strengthen the brand they’re trying to build.
I think most people move to Nashville thinking “what can I get?” But good things happen when they start to have a service mentality, asking, “what can I give?”
My publisher and I don’t spend a ton of time on outside pitches, unless we have a strong “in” or a perfect pitch for the artist. It’s just so hard to get an outside cut these days. So we’re way more focused on creating great rooms.
As I create relationships with artists, I try to pull in a buddy who has a skill that really compliments what that artist does well.
A team has great value. And it doesn’t have to be an official “team.” It can be your publisher, or cowriters. Be willing to understand that being creative is collaborative.
If you want to hear EVERYTHING that Tyrus had to say, you can listen to the episode right here...
And if you want to check out our other Hang videos (featuring hit producers, hit songwriters, etc.), you can log into the Frettie Member Area right on this site! (If you aren’t a Frettie subscriber, it’s a great time to join.)
Oh, and do you have a question you'd like ask a hit songwriter or a hit music publisher? If so, you definitely want to join our next "Know The Pro" event! At least quarterly, I bring in a pro in the music business to take YOUR questions... face to face! It's an online event, so you can join us from anywhere in the world and actually talk to a hitmaker.
Here's the best part: these events are FREE for Frettie subscribers! So if you're already a Frettie subscriber, you'll receive an invitation to these events. If you are NOT a Frettie subscriber... what are you waiting for? Heck, it's only $5 a month!
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God bless,
Brent
PS- Thanks for stopping by Frettie! I appreciate it. As a matter of fact, I want to give you a special little something just for your visit. It's my FREE ebook "Think Like A Pro Songwriter," and it reveals valuable I-learned-it-the-hard-way-so-you-don't-have-to tips to help you succeed at the art, craft and business of songwriting. You can download it at www.GiftFromBrent.com.