Songwriter Advisor Blog

One of the most overlooked and, easily, the most effective method to get a publishing deal, is through the services of a talented, well-respected representative; usually a personal manager or entertainment attorney. 

In most every business, networking is not only the best way to have a chance to impress people with your talent; it’s usually the only way.  Think about it; it really is who you know, 99% of the time.  If you can’t get your foot in the door of the music business industry, don’t expect a record executive to come knocking on your door.

But first, if you’re serious about “making it” you have to put yourself in a position where the “it’s who you know” becomes a part of your daily goals; network, network, network!  You must take initiative if you want to be successful in the music industry whether you’re chasing a music publishing deal, record deal, or any other type of position in this competitive industry. 

Here’s a foolproof plan to get a publishing deal for talented songwriters:

1. If you are talented, you will be successful.  I spent a good part of a year hearing the same old thing from family and friends; the industry is too competitive, you’ll never make it.  To this day, I resent what a few friends and family members said, and yeah, I still love them, but I secretly hold it against them.  I made it because I made my own breaks while networking, but most importantly, because I could back up my words with my talent. 
2. Don’t ever let anyone convince you you’ll never make it; there’s no way to control their beliefs – I can only think of a few worse things in this world than family and friends who don’t lend moral support to musicians.  So keep pushing and start your journey with a positive mindset!
3. Look for the major players who are accessible in your local music scene, and find a way to introduce yourself.  These can be anyone from club owners to A&R Reps to entertainment attorneys.
4. Be consistent in getting your music heard so you stay fresh in the peoples’ minds and to keep your momentum going.  If you make a great first impression after inviting one of your contacts to watch you perform or (if you don’t perform) to have your songs performed, you can create a domino effect.  One industry person will tell another and so on and so on…
5. Don’t forget about the media; one great interview showing up in a weekly local entertainment newspaper can help you gain much exposure.  Tell them humbly how you wrote the latest song for that great local band getting attention!
6. Actively search for a personal manager or entertainment attorney.  Network, and be relentless in searching for the best one.  Be prepared to clearly explain your goals and have something to show a prospective manager in the form of a press kit, demos, or simply invite them to watch you perform live; talk yourself up in a big way and get him or her excited!  If you’re turned down initially, be persistent but not irritating, and if you have sufficient talent, you will eventually connect with someone.   
7. If you’ve networked enough you can find yourself writing songs for a local artist or band getting ready to break out in a big way.

Also, don’t overlook smaller music publishing companies; keep an open mind, and remember, many smaller publishing companies have grown into major successes.  

The easiest way to get a music publishing deal is to be relentless in networking and finding someone with power to represent your best interests, and this is why; your talents are more appealing to companies when you have someone representing you who’s trusted and believes in your talent enough to put their name and reputation on the line!   

There are many web articles and chapters in songwriting business books that have one thing in common when it comes to instruction on how and where to pitch your songs to get a music publishing deal; they say once you have your song demos ready, start making contacts and send copies of your demos out to music publishers by making sure your genre of music fits their criteria and by adhering perfectly to their submission guidelines.  They go on to say if the music publisher likes your song and is interested, they’ll contact you.  This type of advice isn’t bad, but it’s somewhat unrealistic if you’re trying to put yourself in the best position to land a music publishing deal of any kind!

The advice you’ve just read about blindly pitching your material to music publishers listed in various publications as “accepting unsolicited material” or even after getting permission through phone calls from various music publishers before sending $200.00 worth of demos to 100 different companies is what you should do ONLY AS A LAST RESORT!!!!!!

The secret to getting a real music publishing deal lies in how hard you want to work at exposing your music to the right people by relentlessly and shamelessly networking-IN PERSON!  Yep, that’s the music industry secret few people are mentioning. 

So, the same unjust and unfair scenario repeats itself over and over to very talented songwriters all over the world.  They hit a brick wall wondering why no one wants to sign them to music publishing deals.  They’re not misinformed, they’re simply not receiving all the information they need. 

Your goal when chasing any type of music publishing deal is to have the publisher or company representative  listen to your demo IN PERSON!

NOW YOU HAVE THE INFORMATION, AND HERE IT IS!!!

If you’re seriously going after a music publishing deal whether it be a single song agreement to a full-fledged exclusive (staff) songwriting deal, follow these steps:

1.  Research music publishing companies in your area no matter how small of a company you think they are.  Young companies can turn out to be a gold mine if they match your great songs with great artists who start out locally, then regionally, then nationally and/or worldwide.  Many success stories in the music business happened this way because these are simply the goals of most independent music publishers and record companies!

2.  Once you have a list of independent and major label music publishers, start calling people listed as contacts (such as A&R reps, etc.) in various music industry up-to-date resources such as The Musician’s Atlas or The Music Registry, and make real appointments so they can hear your music.  These people may be hard to contact but your efforts will pay off if you have the goods!  Remember, the music industry revolves around talent.  Believe this; the music industry is aways looking for talent and it’s your job to find out who in the company is presently trying to find that talent!!!!

3.  Once you’ve made some appointments, it’s time to hit the road with your demo packages  containing your masterpieces!  If your music industry contacts break or cancel an appointment by letting you know ahead of time (consider yourself lucky if this occurs), politely reschedule over the phone. 

If you’re standing at the reception area of a music publishing company and the receptionist tells you, “He/she is not available, just leave the demo here,” a big red flag should go up in your brain!  Don’t settle for hearing, “I’ll make sure they receive the demo, we’ll get back to you.”  Do your best to graciously decline and insist you’d rather give it to them in person, and, once again, do everything to politely reschedule.  You’ll be taken far more seriously .

4.  Once a music publisher or staff member has actually sat down to hear your demo in your presence, congratulations.  If you get a favorable response, you’ve made a contact!  One good contact can make or break you in the music business when you’re starting out.

5.  Now it’s time to use a “call to action.”  Don’t be afraid to ask the music publishing representative if they’re interested in your music.  You’ll usually get an immediate response.  If they say yes, you can start building your relationship further and more seriously by perhaps inviting them to see you perform,  or by asking them if you may submit more songs for consideration in the next three to four weeks.  This is how you build relationships in the music industry-by being straightforward and sincere.  When you feel like you’ve made some type of connection with the music publishing rep or the actual company, ask if they’re willing to offer you a music publishing deal.

If the music publishing company representative is not willing to offer any type of music publishing deal at the moment, and you have a gut feeling that they like something about you and/or your music, ask them if they can recommend another music publisher who might be interested in your music.   

If you’re right and they like your music, they’ll become worried and jealous that you’ll eventually go and find a music publishing deal somewhere else!  You’ll have incredible leverage.

6.  Repeat steps 1-5 and keep building relationships.  Be realistic.  If you build 1 solid contact every 2 months, you should have 6 of them in a year!  That may sound like it’s not enough, but chances are, each of those contacts has numerous contacts, and that’s where your networking comes in through attending industry events, workshops, parties,etc.  You’ll be well on your way to to a chance at having success! 

When you begin your song-pitching campaign, keep the following points in mind:

(a).  Remember, if you make it your job to find music publishing companies and you don’t make the mistake of trying to let them find you, your chances of success will go up dramatically.

(b).  Dress appropriately, and better yet, create a contemporary, unique image for yourself in the way you dress and carry yourself.

(c).  Don’t let rejection affect you negatively.  Virtually every major star has been rejected once or many times before they actually “made it.”  Accept constructive criticism and keep moving forward.

(d).  If you don’t live in a city with prospective music publishing companies, you’ll either have to make a trip to one of the major music hubs (In the US-Los Angeles, NY, Miami, Nashville, etc.) or use services such as Taxi to get results. 

(e).  Unless you’re a proven, successful songwriter, music publishing companies don’t generally sign songwriters to music publishing deals unless they’ve established some type of rapport or professional relationship with them.

Good luck!