In the previous instalment of this article we looked at song splits and figuring out your speciality as a songwriter. As we discussed, figuring out your song splits is the first thing you should do before you write a single note, because the last thing you want at the end of a collaboration is your co-writer telling you they think they should get 75% ownership of the song. We also looked at figuring out your strengths and weaknesses as a songwriter, and how to take advantage of them in a co-writing situation. If you missed that article, you can go back and read it here. Below, I have three more guidelines to help you have more fruitful co-writing sessions.
1. Understand the etiquette
Songwriting with another person is a different game because now you are not only engaging your musical skills, but you’re also engaging your interpersonal skills. This type of collaboration requires a higher level of emotional intelligence, because unlike business meetings or work projects, you are working in an artistic medium that naturally requires more emotional vulnerability. Every situation has its own etiquette whether it’s written or implied, and co-writing is no exception. Below are some common mistakes you’ll want to avoid if you want to maintain a positive relationship with your collaborators.
Don’t re-write the song after the session
Perhaps you walked away from a co-writing session feeling dissatisfied with the results, and you want to “fix” the song. As much as you may want to, I recommend against it, regardless of whether you have your co-writer’s permission or not. If you didn’t get their permission, you may have a lawsuit on your hands. But even if you did get their permission, they may not want to work with you again in the future if you’re going to undo all their work. Whether you mean it or not, when you re-write a song that you wrote with someone else you are essentially telling them “I don’t like the contributions you made to this song, so I’m going to fix it”. Not a good way to build trust in your relationship.
Don’t insult their ideas
Songwriting can be an emotionally vulnerable process, so when someone shares an idea, you should know how to handle it if you don’t like it. The last thing you want during the session are bruised egos and ruffled feathers, because when this happens, people close themselves off, get defensive, and are no longer in the open state of mind needed for a productive collaboration. A great way of handling ideas you don’t agree with is using the “yes, and” approach, as opposed to the “no, because” approach. Many times, someone may actually have a good idea, but their approach or execution isn’t quite right. Instead of shutting it down on the spot, go along with the idea and say “yes, and what if we tried this?”. This is much more conducive to a successful co-write because you are rewarding your partner for contributing new ideas to the song, which is the whole reason you collaborate with other people, after all.
Be present
Cut the distractions and give your co-writer your full attention. That means putting your phone on silent, turning vibrate off, and even putting it in the other room if you really can’t resist it. Think of the times when you were talking to someone about something you cared about, and the whole time you were talking they were looking at their phone. It doesn’t feel great. You also shouldn’t be engaging in any other distractions while someone is trying to communicate with you, such as noodling on your instrument or staring out the window. Daydreaming and fooling around on your instrument certainly has its place in the realm of creativity, and I whole-heartedly encourage it, but save it for when someone isn’t talking to you.
Always credit your co-writer
Whether you’re in the presence of your co-writer or not, you should give them credit for the song you wrote together. If you worked hard on a song with someone and they boasted about “their” creation without ever crediting you, it would probably rub you the wrong way. You especially want to make sure you include them when you’re registering your song for the various PROs. It would be very awkward if they found out that you got a cheque for the song you worked on together, and they didn’t.
2. Get the other person’s information
At the end of the session you should get the other person’s information, including their contact info, their publisher info, their PRO info, a written agreement of your song splits, and anything else that would be relevant to your collaboration. What if later you want to get your song licensed for an advertisement, but you didn’t get your co-writer’s PRO or publishing information? It’s possible that you can call the person (assuming you got their contact info) and be able to get it quickly, but these types of opportunities have tight deadlines and the turnaround is simply too short to chase your co-writer down for their information. It only takes two minutes to get their information, so get it done and go home with peace of mind that you’ve dotted all your i’s and crossed all your t’s.
3. Try out different co-writers
Unlike dating, it’s okay to see other people when you co-write. Some songwriters feel like once they collaborate with someone, they shouldn’t be collaborating with anyone else, but that really isn’t the case. If you have great chemistry with someone and you’ve written lots of great songs together, then of course you should continue writing with them, but it isn’t betrayal if you want to try working with other people as well. Just how writing only by yourself can lead to a creative roadblock, the same can happen if you’re always writing with the same person. Part of being an artist and creative means stepping outside your comfort zone, and that includes the people you write with.