When my dad Kim Williams first started coming to Nashville to write songs, nobody knew he would later be inducted into the Nashville Songwriter Hall of Fame, earn writer of the year awards galore, and write the CMA / ACM Song of the Year “Three Wooden Crosses” that would be engraved into Randy Travis’s plaque at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.
All they knew was that here was this middle-aged songwriter that had been burned to a crisp in an industrial fire in the 1970s.
But instead of relying on his unique looks to win appointments for him, his early music business champion Peggy Bradley took a different approach.
She knew that in order for Dad to break into the writing circles in Nashville, he needed to be remarkable. That is, people needed to talk about him and make folks aware of him.
So instead of trying to impress people with long winded stories about how great of a writer Dad was, Peggy simply boiled it all down to a simple few words, “He writes a lot of George Strait sounding stuff.”
At that time, Strait was the King of Country Music, and the person she was pitching Dad to as a potential cowriter was Bob Doyle, manager of the future super star Garth Brooks.
With one simple sentence and her great reputation, Peggy was able to secure Dad his first writing appointment with Garth, and the rest is history.
Of course Dad had to follow up with the writing appointments and write great songs.
But the initial “sell” of getting the opportunity to work with this rising superstar was done with no bells and whistles, no professionally designed logo, no social media posts, and no website.
Those were different times, and a different music industry landscape, granted.
But the beauty of exploring history for what works is something we can still learn from as an example.
When we build our careers according to principles, we are able to take the next right step, and by following through with actions placed on the self-identified important areas of our lives, we can make real, sustainable progress.
Are you ready to make real progress with your songwriting and creative artistry?
Do you have an original business idea, entrepreneurial dream, or ma and pa shop to keep running?
I humbly offer this workbook Brand Yourself as a helpful guide.
Applying its principles has given rise to dozens of successful businesses, including music artists, herbal salve companies, decorators, goldsmiths, authors, and maybe even you.
For Songpreneurs members, you can access an additional skill building worksheet here.
Order your Brand Yourself workbook here.
Got questions? Email us here and let us know about yourself.
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