Recently I attended the ASCAP NY Sessions and spent a day immersed in learning about what my fellow songwriters are doing to make a living in this new music industry climate.  A few funny things kept being repeated throughout the day that stuck in my head.  The first one was something that was mentioned by Rob Thomas of Matchbox 20 in his interview to kick the day off.

Rob was talking about writing and how whether you are a major label artist or Joe-Schmoe in your bedroom, you must be committed to writing a great song.  That often times sounds like a very easy thing to say and believe you are doing, but in reality it takes an ability to self-scrutinize and accept that you can do better.

On the note of doing better, another panelist, Casey McPherson of Alpah Rev was speaking about his journey in music.  Casey has just been signed to Hollywood Records (A Disney subsidiary label) and is a bit of a lyrical machine.  In this panel discussion, the producer of Alpah Rev’s upcoming album relayed conversations with Casey about the writing process.

One line that struck me was when the producer (Jason) recalled calling Casey and asking, “..so what did you do today?”, to which Casey replied, “wrote 10 songs,” Jason: “any of ’em good?,” Casey: “nope.”

That was a pretty startling exchange to witness.  Often times if we were to have written 1, 2, 10 songs in a day, we would be brimming with joy, but if we were holding ourselves to a particular standard perhaps that would change.

So what is the standard?

The good and bad news is that there isn’t one.

There are song forms to follow and placement of memorable hooks and crafting builds and releases, but aside from that it comes down to you as the writer emotionally crafting a lyric that rings true and is universal and widely relatable.

To me the only way to achieve this is to begin studying what you’re drawn to that already is and has been successful for a long time.  Break it down, understand it all and then throw it away and write, write and write some more.

By continuing to study, throw it away and write you are imprinting this pattern for success on your mind and will begin writing to include all the elements that make a top song.