Each year we take a look at our Songpreneurs members, and what they’re working toward as a group, and then offer resources and skill building workshops to complement that trajectory during the annual Conference as our launching point.
Photo courtesy ST Photography from 2013 Conference (Max Hutchinson & Amanda Williams)
Usually our focus is on leadership in some capacity, because leadership is a keynote of our group work together overall.
This year, we add another element: community.
Songpreneurs started in 2010 as the Hillbilly Culture Club growing out of a strong desire to provide resources for songwriters on the new waves of opportunity washing across the music industry landscape.
Old show flyer for our Hillbilly Culture Club night at the Bluebird Cafe - NOTE THIS IS VINTAGE NOT AN UPCOMING EVENT
Now those new models have caught on, and you can see in the superstars of the world how much brand and ancillary product sales come into play in an overall business portfolio.
Every day in Nashville one encounters disgruntled and dismayed legacy professionals, and wide eyed hopeful youths continuing the cycle of our lust for songwriting success, fame and glory.
However the cold hard facts of the industry today tell a different story than the mega dollar fan festivals and awards shows of downtown Nashville. There is show business, and there is the music business, and there is always a certain amount of overlap between the two, never before so apparent as at the present time.
No where to be found is a story song. No where can be heard the blues.
That leaves a huge opportunity for a talented, dedicated group of songwriters working toward sustainable careers in the new music business – a music business in which the middle class songwriter has all but been eliminated from the scene. [80% fewer songwriters today than 15 years ago – source here ]
At the same time, it’s easier than ever to distribute a product to audiences, and as we saw in our recent Leadership Summit online with only 5000 customers buying a $20 per year product, it is possible to make $100,000 per year with your music products.
The challenge is to produce a quality product and then get 5000 people to buy it.
Music alone isn’t selling like it once did. We can fight against the world and focus our time on creating legislative change, or we can ignore what isn’t working and begin to create new systems that do work for us as the creators.
Amanda was named an official "Pro on the Road" with NSAI in 2013
At this year’s Conference, we will focus on what does work and will double down on our commitment to songwriting mastery.
Here’s the schedule below so you can write comments on the following questions to be better prepared for our group discussions. Those of you who can’t make it to the Conference in person may send your comments to HQ ahead of time, and we will include them in the group comments.
SCHEDULE
Wed June 14, 2017
5PM opening night orientation
Opening session begins with orientation to establish our group direction and goals for the Conference.
Followed by song circle bring your instrument if you play one. Simple piano keyboard provided.
8PM Closing
Photo collage from the 2013 Nashville Songwriting and Music Business Conference
Thursday, June 15
9AM arrive and network – optional
10AM Begin with the End in Mind – Your Vision, Your Way
Kick off the Conference with advice from Songpreneurs guru Stephen Covey to Begin with the End in Mind. In this workshop, we will establish what the “end” goal is for ourselves individually, and starting from where we are, plot a course for the Conference and for the rest of the year.
12PM Lunch break (on your own – feel free to bring lunch and eat on campus)
2PM Getting Started – Fundamentals of Copyright Monetization
We’ll waste no time digging into the meat and potatoes of how to make our songwriting dreams a reality using good common business sense.
If you want the best deals possible for your music licensing and product sales, you’ll want to know some industry standards and benchmark rates to get started. And generally wrap your head around where the income streams are, and how to access them as songwriter business people (Songpreneurs).
4PM Deconstructing a Classic: Songwriting Mastery Track
Master songwriters leave hints about their techniques in their songs. Using the 7 Steps Song Analysis™ we will explore the elements that come together to make an enduring classic song.
Then, we will take a brief look at some current hits and compare/contrast the techniques used with an eye at applying what works to our own writing skill set.
6PM Evening Activities
This night is a chilled out evening hang. Bring your instrument and something to throw on the grill, and we’ll have a meal and fellowship with our songwriting friends.
9PM Close
Vintage sharable from the 4th annual Conference
Friday, June 16
9AM Arrive – Getting Started Test – optional
Part of your yearly Songpreneurs commitment is to take the Getting Started workshop. If you think you can test out of the workshop for credit, here’s your chance to prove that you know your stuff.
10AM Write Brain Song Crafting Workshop™
Enjoy one of our foundational workshops. The Write Brain™ method teaches you how to write a song in 2 hours or less using the strengths of your write brain™.
Followed by group peer to peer co-writing session on the grounds.
12PM Lunch (on your own – or write through lunch up to 2PM)
2PM Casting and Feedback Session with Max Hutchinson
Our favorite Music Row publisher and song plugger will be joining us again this year for our annual casting and feedback session.
Bring one song on CD or playback device and two copies of your lyric sheet to receive comments from Max and Amanda about how you can improve and/or employ your song. You can also perform your song live if you prefer.
4PM Recap and vision goals discussion – Leadership Summit recaps
Reconnect with your group in this late afternoon discussion session including over view recaps and extended discussion about the two Leadership Summits so far.
6PM Evening activities – bring something for the grill and your instrument.
Saturday, June 17
9AM Arrive and networking optional
10AM Negotiation Lab
It’s the Wild West days in the music industry ecosystem, and today it’s more important than ever to have a strong set of negotiation skills.
We’ll cover the basics of negotiation in our lab followed by discussion and live role-playing simulation.
12PM Lunch (on your own)
2PM Garage Band 101
Whether you’re a lyric only writer, melody composer, or a singer-songwriter, at some point you’ll have to make a decent work tape recording of your original song.
Learn the simple basics of how to get a pitchable home recording using GarageBand’s free software.
4PM Town Hall Community Meeting
We’ll invite some of our community friends to enjoy the evening with us and have a lively Town Hall Songwriter Community discussion prior to our closing evening party activities.
6PM Evening Activities – bring something to grill and your instrument
For our final closing party, we’ll have friends from the Songpreneurs community and greater Nashville industry to enjoy the evening with us on the 7695 grounds.
10PM Closing
Sunday, June 18 (OPTIONAL)
9AM to 12PM Informal hang out and discussion with your Songpreneurs Conference friends.
It's not too late to join us! Register here >>
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