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by Fdemetrio - 04/25/24 01:36 AM
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by Fdemetrio - 04/20/24 12:34 PM
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Normally, I don't post very much in any forums but the Lyric forums. But after twelve years of writing lyrics on and off, I've had a pretty good week and I thought I'd share some more news that may or may not turn out to be something really good.
Friday, I received an email from a label in Nashville offering me a songwriting contract. Recently, one of my connections who had a connection who had a connection, sent some people some of my lyrics. Well apparently, they really like them. Enough that they sent them to other people and on up the chain until I guess somebody in high places got their hands on them.
To be honest, when I first read the email, I was very skeptical. I've read a lot of horror stories and so forth about the music industry. I've also had a lot of people I've met in my years online who have been offered this or that and it never panned out. So I'm not going to jump the gun and say this is a done deal.
What I will say however, is that I did receive an offer and I have forwarded it on to an attorney who handles these kind of things. I haven't heard anything back from him yet and don't expect to until the work week sometime.
And even if it is a legit offer, I'm sure many of you know that I could write a million songs and have them all shelved for years if not forever. It doesn't mean a thing. Just because they have someone lined up who is eager to do a demo of my songs doesn't mean anything in the music business. It's just an offer and I'll leave it at that.
But it is nice to know that somewhere out there, I'm starting to make a wave or two even if it doesn't amount to anything. I don't have any high aspirations. I have no delusions of becoming rich and famous. I was born at night, not last night. For me, if I could just hear one of my songs on the radio someday, I think that would be the coolest thing. Even if it was only played once. Anything beyond that would just be a bonus.
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Super good luck to you.
Being skeptical, though, is a good way to protect yourself. If they ask for money to do a demo, let us know who it is so we can look for information on them.
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It has to be a great feeling, Wes:
Congratulations for accomplishing something few of us will ever do. You already know to keep the feeling of "Euphoria" in-check and have hired a Music Attorney to review the contract... so you are miles ahead of the game. Best wishes for success. ----Dave
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Hey Wes I don't want to be the skunk in the room but this doesn't sound like anything substantial and they will probably come back with a pitch that they have a melody and a star waiting for it but need some money for a good demo. HOPE I'M WRONG......What does the contract offer? It doesn't pass the smell test to me but good for you to keep trying. Best way on this is to find very catchy melodies for your words that are easily sung by a singer and THEN find young and up and coming singers and bands looking for Great Original Songs. BTW What is the name of the company that is offering you this so called contract and so called opportunity.....Barry
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Cool Wes, good luck to you. Be radar alert. Gut feelings rule in this kind of decision making. I'll be interested in what the lawyer has to say. Best, John 
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I agree with everything you guys have written. I've had several people over the years offer to do my songs for said amount of money on my part. So that isn't anything new. That is why I didn't jump the gun and say, "Hey, I got signed by a record label!!!!" I'm just having it looked into right now before I divulge anything or go bat crazy over it. But what I did receive didn't have the usual mention of investment on my part. But I will say that it has words like "exclusive" and so forth that did send up red flags. I'm not too excited when people use the word "exclusive" in a contract. That smells fishy to me and like something that could come back and bite me.
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Last January I sent Flyers to 23 different Entities offering a free mechanical license to anyone that would record and release any of my songs. No response's. The offer was up in September. There isn't a whole lot of action out there at present. I did send 2 songs to a Publisher in Nashville who allowed you to send 2 songs. That was on the 4Th of January. Nothing from them so far. I doubt if I will hear anything. Most Publishers are not accepting any material even the small ones. Good luck.
Ray E. Strode
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Yeah, see that has kind of been my experience over the years. I'll post something or send something in and then either I don't hear anything or if I do, they want money to do the demo. When I got this, it just said that we have an artist who is interested in a few of your songs. We would like to pair you with them and blah, blah, blah. And then there was a contract attached to the email. I read through it TWICE and saw words like exclusive rights to material and some other things that kinda creased my forehead. So I called a friend of mine and he recommended an attorney I could use. I consulted him for free and he said he would look at the papers at no charge since I was a friend of his friend. So I'm just waiting to hear from him. It was Friday so nothing could be expected to be accomplished that day. Hopefully, I'll hear something this week. I'm not holding my breath though. I didn't get the impression from him that he was overly confident about the contract either although he didn't seem one way or the other about it. He just told me he'd be glad to look at it for me and we could go from there.
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It's the wild west out there and contracts aren't worth the papers they're written on.
We just scream as loud as we can but all we hear is the sound of our own voice.
The Rules and the Game has changed forever and left us behind years ago I'm afraid.
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Be careful, Wesley. There's a con game on every corner in this town.
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I'm trying to be careful. Like I noted earlier, I've read a lot of horror stories when it comes to things like this. That's why I'm not holding my breath over it. I don't have my hopes up. The only reason I even mentioned it was because it doesn't have the typical language attached to it like the others I've received. Things like "paying for the demo" and stuff like that. But with words like "exclusive". It sure does make the alarms go off. And if nothing else, this may be another way they have come up with to con people. If that's the case, I doubt anybody including me would be surprised but at least I can make others aware of it so that they don't make a mistake and get played. And if nothing else, I think it is good if people don't jump to conclusions just because they receive an offer. It is a good idea to have somebody look at it or to toss it around in a songwriting forum to get some feedback about it. If we don't look out for ourselves and each other, nobody will. You can bet the industry won't.
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Three main things to be concerned about: 1. Contract should have a reversal clause (1-2 years) 2. Never pay out any of your own money. They pay you, not the other way around. 3. 50/50 cut with a publisher is reasonable Best, John
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Good advice. Thanks John!
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Congratulations on getting someone interested in your songs. I hope it works out. You have already heard all the cautionary stuff above with good reason. I listened to some of your work on Soundclick and for what it's worth, I think the lyrics and melodies are good.....the demos not so much! The lyrics do sound like they could be a fit in the modern country world. I can see that a publisher/label would be interested.
If it were me, I would be researching and Googling the heck out of the label and the associated people down to what they have for breakfast. You will soon find out if the people who they represent have had any real success or if they are suckers paying for demos with no returns. Check Facebook, Twitter, etc. etc. and dig, dig, dig. And remember that positive reviews may be written by people who have just been signed and are glowing from the adulation, even if it goes nowhere. WRT exclusivity, so what? If that song gets tied up with that label and goes nowhere, write another one.
Regardless of this opportunity, if you want to be taken seriously, I don't think your demos for the most part do your songs any favors. They are not well produced or sung in some cases. There are so many good home studios and good singers around, you really should find someone to do a better job. A label or publisher who is listening to song demos all day in search of the next big hit is not going to spend any time listening to substandard demos.
Good luck.
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Colin,
I think you hit it right on the nail.
I've found that is almost impossible to even get someone online to collaborate with me. So when I received this email, I didn't have any delusions about it. I mean, a guy like me who just writes lyrics has nil to no chance in the music industry. That's just the reality of it.
Prior to 2009, I actually had a plan for myself. I wanted to pay for a good studio to record me a 3 song demo. Not for any big reason. But mostly just because I thought the songs would be good and I'd have them to hand down to my kids and their kids. You know, something to kind of show who I was while I was here. A part of me so to speak. I even put aside money here and there for several years towards that goal. I was hoping to use the Beaird Music Group in Nashville to do it. If he would. But I was hurt in 2009 in an accident and it left me disabled. I've been on a set income since and let's face it, I don't have the extra money to throw away on a pipe dream. I even quit writing for 6 years. To be honest, I don't even know why I started back. I guess just for something to do and as a way to express myself.
When you are in your mid-40's, single, the kids are out of the house and you suddenly don't have a career anymore, it's hard to find a purpose anymore. So there's a part of me that feels if I write a book or keep writing lyrics that maybe it is towards a purpose I don't understand yet. So I would be a liar if I said my curiosity wasn't what led me to open the email in the first place without just simply trashing it. I guess dreaming about the possibility is better than not having any dreams at all. Even when everything tells me it isn't realistic or it is just another in a long line of scams.
Thank you for your advice and kind words of encouragement. Best wishes!
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hey Wesley,keep those dreams alive man,crazier s@it happens everyday to people.If that door doesn't open,knock on another one!Mike
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Thanks Mike,
I appreciate the encouragement and the kind words. Best wishes to you buddy!
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Don't let them con you into paying them any money - that is rule one
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Normally, I don't post very much in any forums but the Lyric forums. But after twelve years of writing lyrics on and off, I've had a pretty good week and I thought I'd share some more news that may or may not turn out to be something really good.
Friday, I received an email from a label in Nashville offering me a songwriting contract. Recently, one of my connections who had a connection who had a connection, sent some people some of my lyrics. Well apparently, they really like them. Enough that they sent them to other people and on up the chain until I guess somebody in high places got their hands on them.
To be honest, when I first read the email, I was very skeptical. I've read a lot of horror stories and so forth about the music industry. I've also had a lot of people I've met in my years online who have been offered this or that and it never panned out. So I'm not going to jump the gun and say this is a done deal.
What I will say however, is that I did receive an offer and I have forwarded it on to an attorney who handles these kind of things. I haven't heard anything back from him yet and don't expect to until the work week sometime.
And even if it is a legit offer, I'm sure many of you know that I could write a million songs and have them all shelved for years if not forever. It doesn't mean a thing. Just because they have someone lined up who is eager to do a demo of my songs doesn't mean anything in the music business. It's just an offer and I'll leave it at that.
But it is nice to know that somewhere out there, I'm starting to make a wave or two even if it doesn't amount to anything. I don't have any high aspirations. I have no delusions of becoming rich and famous. I was born at night, not last night. For me, if I could just hear one of my songs on the radio someday, I think that would be the coolest thing. Even if it was only played once. Anything beyond that would just be a bonus. I've signed a songwriting contract, and to my horror I found out the song conveyed the copyright to the publisher forever, and that the "demo" fulfilled the reversion clause ( song reverts to songwriter if the publisher fails to publish the song within two years, and the contract defined the "demo" as "published" ). So, yeah, have an entertainment attorney ( not just any attorney ) review the contract. Had I done so, I wouldn't have lost the song, which the publisher never found an artist to record the song, in fact, they didn't even try.
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Three main things to be concerned about: 1. Contract should have a reversal clause (1-2 years) 2. Never pay out any of your own money. They pay you, not the other way around. 3. 50/50 cut with a publisher is reasonable Best, John Scrutinize the reversion clause. For example, does getting anyone ( even if not a major artist ) to record the song fulfill the clause, or a "major artist" ( if so, get it defined ), etc. I've seen reversion clauses define the publisher's paying for a demo, and the demo fulfilled t he clause ( a dirty trick, if you ask me ).
Last edited by pathardy; 02/23/16 10:28 PM.
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There are bottom feeder publishers out there, Believe me, I lost a few good songs to them. Once bitten twice shy, I'm very shy of publishers now.
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Best of luck with this good news Wesley I hope it works out for you.
Travis
We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars. Oscar Wilde
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A songwriting contract with a LABEL sounds cool. Good luck with it.
I signed my very first publishing contract the other day. But just for the two songs that are actually going to be published. Normally, I would refrain from splitting my meager royalties with a publisher. But the guy promised me that he will spread the two songs a thousandfold farther than my ordinary writing for live bands would ever get. And I know that he is highly motivated - and good. I worked for him before, and he has contacts in the European club scene that was foreign territory to me until now. So let him have his extra share of what hopefully will be a lot ;-)
Keep us updated, will you?
Bernd
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Hi folks,
Thank you all for the well wishes and encouragement. I actually came in here yesterday and wrote a big long reply. But I guess I hit something on my keyboard and erased the whole thing after spending 20 minutes typing it. Ooops!
I should've done a reply to this a few weeks back and I apologize for not doing so. The truth of it is, it was just a scam. I had contacted several people who knew about these kind of things and a copyright attorney who handles this sort of stuff. They confirmed my fears that it was a hoax. When I first read through the offer, there were several red flags that came to my attention. Many have been pointed out in replies on this thread. As it turns out, the company doesn't even exist. Music Row Productions from Nashville is what you need to look out for so as to avoid being scammed.
I've been writing for over a decade. Just from my experiences with outfits like NSS and Paramount, I was pretty hesitant to buy into the idea from the start. Which is why this thread is titled "Songwriting Contract?" Note the question mark. When you are made an offer from a music group that loves your music but wants an investment on your part, that is always a big tell sign to let you know that it isn't something worth doing. If they really loved your music, they'd pay to have it done themselves. Not the other way around.
So anyway, I am grateful for all of the advice and encouragement. It means a lot. And once again, I am sorry I didn't expose the truth behind this earlier. But now you know and I surely hope none of you fall prey to something like this. At least be smart enough like I was to ask others before you commit to anything. That was my saving grace and I'm hoping it will be yours too if you find yourself in a similar situation. God bless and best wishes!
Wes
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that's too bad Wesley but at least they didn't get your money this time.I bit on that Paramount once,all i got out of them was a 250 buck demo,LOL.That was before i bought Band In A Box so getting the demo was actually fun but i wouldn't do it again.Since then i rewrote the song they recorded.Better luck next time,don't give up!Mike
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Thanks Mike,
It's sad that people do stuff like that. But they will pay for it eventually. It wasted some of my time but not my money. No harm, no foul. It's all good.
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