How do you get a song published?

keyz

Well-Known Member
Mar 7, 2004
891
146
✟1,782.00
Faith
Christian
Marital Status
Private
The short version is.. know people that know other people that know more people who connect you with people that know publisher people.

The longer version.. I don't entirely know, but I'm sure you can try Googling it.

But then again, are you just talking about how to record a song?
 
Upvote 0

Mr. 5020

Regular Member
Jan 7, 2005
333
18
40
Texas
✟8,071.00
Faith
Baptist
Marital Status
Married
Just curious what the process is. Anyone know of a good Web site that explains how it works? Thanks.
Publish it? Like...make an album? I assume that's what you mean, so...

The easiest way is to get somebody to record you. Does your church have a really good sound guy? After your song(s) are recorded, burn it to a CD. Make a bunch of copies, and make them look professional with labels and jewel cases (with inserts). Then you can sell them to other church members, or whatever you're trying to do. If you're trying to "spread your wings," give one of the aforementioned copies to your local Christian radio station (assuming the music is Christian).

If you have any other questions, feel free to PM me. I'll give you my e-mail address via PM if you'd like.
 
Upvote 0

fenderbender

Active Member
Nov 18, 2006
105
7
68
✟7,760.00
Faith
Christian
Marital Status
Married
There's a few ways to approach this but can you give us some detials about where you're currently at (e.g. Is your stuff already on cd? Is it registered with the library of congress?)

If you already have it on cd, putting some mp3 clips on MySpace and selling your songs through the site might be a good place to start. If you're not interested in making money with it, you could also upoad it to some of the P2P sites and then start telling everyone you know to put the word out.
 
Upvote 0
J

Jenster

Guest
Thanks everyone. Thanks for the taxi.com link, fenderbender. Looks like a lot of good articles there, and I'm starting to make my way through them.

My situation is that I'm starting to get into Christian songwriting, so I was wondering what does one do with songs once you've written them? I'm not a performer, so it's not like I'm going to go to the cafe and start singin' (they'd probably throw me out, lol! ;) ) or make CDs to sell.

My church is open to playing them, however, which is cool. And one guy at my church wants to send one of my songs to his OLD church, so they can play it too.

I guess what I want to know is:

- Have any of you registered your songs with the U.S. Copyright Office, and if so, tell me why you think it's necessary?
- Since I myself am not a performer, how would I get a song into the hands of a performer?

Thanks for the advice!
 
  • Optimistic
Reactions: 'Phillip'
Upvote 0

justme6272

Well-Known Member
Jul 3, 2011
432
114
✟87,557.00
Country
United States
Faith
Christian
Marital Status
Private
This is a HUGE topic, sort of like asking, 'how do atoms and molecules work together to form compounds?' I'll list what I believe to be the better methods rather than just post a link to a website cause I don't know of any one website that has in it all the things I will mention. If this is random and unstructured, well, it's stuff off the top of my head based on bits and pieces that aren't in any particular order, but still worth more than several websites put together (IMHO), even if I had the links to give you.

There are many books on the topic, again, with bits and pieces that may or may not be helpful, good advice. Ever heard of Songwriter's Market? It's probably the best known resource for finding who to promote your songs to, divided up by genre and industry professional, but I don't think it's the best way, especially in the relatively small world of Christian music, so I won't talk about that. If you have good music and follow the tips in this post, you shouldn't need it and wouldn't want it anyway. The best CURRENT movers and shakers you could connect to probably aren't even in the book.

Social media. Don't forget LinkedIn. Yes, some established Christian music people in Nashville are on there cause they understand the value of networking. You can invite them to be first level connections then ask how to submit work to them when you're ready, IF they are the best people for what you want to do with your song. I'm not going to send a demo to John Doe if he's the A&R Director for CMCG and I think the best singer for the song is under contract with Sparrow until that singer and/or Sparrow say they won't do it, or won't respond, which is effectively the same thing. Make up your preference list and work the list, in order. Other social media like Twitter can be discouraging. A well known artist will certainly have an account, but you can reply to their tweets (personal messages will likely be blocked) and their management or record label which gets it will never see your response or not give you the time of day, which is unfortunate cause you could have the greatest song ever written and the artist will never know it because they put up a wall of people between themselves and you, losing out on a potential gem in the process. Oh
well. Their loss, right? Cause your song is great, right?

One of the first broad things to at least think about before you try to attract anyone, is to what extent, if any, you wish to maintain publishing rights vs letting someone else handle it all. There are books that teach the business side of music written by entertainment industry lawyers, and the industry is constantly change. The information in them applies to all genres. A CURRENT lawyer has to know about all kinds of digital rights most musicians have never even thought of, and it can get complicated. That is a topic in itself too involved to address here, but you may want to start a publishing company of your own (fill out forms, pay a fee), deciding on a rights organization to join so that you get paid and retain legal control over your work, the big 3 being ASCAP, SECAC, or BMI. There are perceived advantages and disadvantages to each, depending on who you ask, without many websites or books listing them for you. I've only seen one really good unbiased source that compares them.

Assigning all publishing rights to someone else might be preferable to the songwriter who wants to keep their nose to the grindstone WRITING, every available waking hour, without allocating any, or very little of their time to marketing their songs. To do that, find out which publishers have a track record of publishing the type of music you want to publish. Choral? CCM? I would stick to the majors starting out, such as Word, Sparrow, Capitol Christian Music Group for CCM, Praise and Worship, plus add many more like Lorenz, Henshaw for choir. (Your post didn't say what your writing style is). The more the merrier unless you have a bias already toward one in particular. For choral, find a knowledgeable music minister with a choir in a big church and they'll know which companies are current. For CCM, the fastest way is to look at CURRENT CD's at your favorite Christian store. Personally, I look for the CD's that are current in the top 20-40 on Billboards CCM singles chart, whether I like the artist's music or not. If you're in a small town without such a store, drive to a bigger one that has one and prepare to spend a day or two, literally, with your pen and spiral notebook getting info. off your favorite artist's CD's. You'll begin to see the same names over and over, with the exception of smaller labels who may only record a very few artists but are still good at somehow getting their records onto the store shelves, whether or not they get much radio airplay. They may be thirsty for your work more than the larger labels and have the financial backing to get you on the radio. Just remember, their tastes and niche have to match yours, whoever it is.

As far as the 'who you know,' (without moving to Nashville and joining the right church), that would include 'plugging' your songs to artists, producers, and record company executives who are already involved in a way that is similar to your style (it's no different in secular music). Whether or not an artist is willing to go on tour right now (instead of working a job or having babies), may also be a factor. It helps if ANYONE knows you from previous submissions and/or successes, having a reputation for quality taste rather than constantly bothering them with every unfinished song idea that woke you up in the middle of the night. With a solid reputation, when they learn that you wouldn't even bother them if you didn't have a quality song (or artist, in the case of a manager looking for a record deal), you're more likely to get their attention, and quickly, before someone else get's your hit tune.

My first preference, for individual CCM artists you might hear on the radio that you already know are under contract and touring, is to 'pitch' a song to the singers whose voices and style I like AND whose voice I believe would be well suited to the style of the PARTICULAR SONG I'm promoting. If you don't get anything else, understand that the same song done by two different artists/arrangers/producers can make a HUGE difference. There are countless examples of hit songs whose original artist/writer only got so far with it, then someone else found it and made it much more successful. Your job is to match the song in such a way that you hit on the first release preferably, otherwise you'll never know what might have been if it had reached the right person(s). The 'right person' includes people with the 'ear' and vision to be able to imagine a certain artist or group doing the song, arranged and produced well, when all they may have is your rough demo. (Demos are yet another huge topic.) The recipient of your work might also have connections that they believe can improve your song and suggest a collaboration with another writer or producer who writes/arranges. Do you have to give up some of your royalties? Yes. The old saying is, 'half of something is better than all of nothing.' Again, that's your judgement call - part of the business side that many creative people hate, while others don't mind at all. Depends on the person. They may not even work on your song or contribute to it's improvement, but if you want it done by Michael W. Smith, he may want a cut of the action in exchange for doing it, take it or leave it. Why? Because he can. Or course, if your song is GREAT, that skews the flexibility in your favor. Just always remain flexible, keep an open mind, and NEVER, EVER, burn bridges that could turn people off and close the door to future submissions. Just keep plugging it elsewhere if you wish, and come back if nothing else pans out, knowing they may not be interested at that point cause their feelings were hurt that you didn't jump on their offer in the first place. But isn't that risk true in all aspects of life's dealings?

It's MUCH easier to get ahold of such a person in Christian music than pop/rock/country. I work my way down my list of preferred singers in order of preference, and only after all that I like have taken a pass on it (or won't respond) would I try others, with record company executives (A&R people, Artist and Repertoire) being next because they have a vested interest in matching good songs with artists under contract NOW (including new artists I don't even know about) when that artist has a project coming up soon. If someone said 'Amy Grant likes your song,' but it could be a couple of years, then they may want to share publishing royalties, ("because they can,") and/or put the song 'on the shelf' until she's ready. Do you want to wait? Do you want to give up part of your money? Only you can decide that. A proven track record skews negotiations in your favor no matter who you are, artist or songwriter or both. If the song is good, numerous people may clamor for it, as people wearing pink sunglasses take you to lunch to sell you on why they should get your song. Don't expect that at first unless you can write hits on your first attempts.

Some publishers may have set time windows during the year that they accept demos from the totally unknown general public with no track record and who have no connections to anyone. That's the LAST method I'd recommended. In Christian music, you can always find SOMEONE in the industry to start out with, even if no one has heard of you. With the open window method, a good song could get lost in the pile and never get heard, or heard by someone with no vision on what a song could become with the right tweaking. If you never hear back from someone, whoever it is, move on. Believe in your work and just say 'they missed out.' Countless good songs, and talented singers, were passed over, only to be 'discovered' by someone who heard potential. If no one in the world likes it and you still believe in it, that's when YOU need to have performing chops and garner a following in order to prove you were right and everyone else was wrong in their judgement. Or find an up and coming person who does perform who likes your work in hopes of them getting a record deal and taking your song with them.

Also keep in mind that some artists are geared more toward only publishing and/or recording their own work. Artists or publishers may say 'we aren't accepting outside material right now' or they may have strict submission policies that involve written communication about the song before you send the actual demo. This is to avoid being sued by some dude who never wrote a song in his life, claiming that a hit was stolen from them. Again, another topic in itself. This generally isn't a problem in Christian circles, but it happens in secular music all the time.

Those writing their own work, (i.e. lots of Praise and Worship artists), can write and perform prolifically, whether or not their music is very good. Most Christian music consumers don't have as high a standard as secular music consumers do. Other artists may not write at all, so your chances of getting them to do your song is better.

Besides targeting a specific artist, or record company executive, you could find someone who has ties to the artist you like if the artist is hard to reach. I.E. You know who THEIR publisher, record company A&R person, or artist manager is. An artist's manager would have to be nuts not to have their client listen to a song they received and liked.

You can keep spending the vast majority of your time writing while messing with as little of the 'business side' as possible just by following the industry enough to invest a minimal amount of research, some of which comes naturally if you already have favorite artists, which leads to everyone else in their circle, narrowing things down quickly.

This is mainly for CCM, the Christian equivalent of pop/rock. If you want specifically Praise & Worship music, (there's an overlap there), that narrows it down. Christian rock? That narrows it down too. Choral? You have to look for a publisher specializing in choral music, cause the bigger companies need time to make demos for their website and send demos to subscribers and it just takes more time to get churches interested in their publications, and considering that fewer and fewer churches have choirs, with so many choirs being made up of seniors who won't be alive in 20 years, the future looks bleak IMHO. Great choral arrangers/orchestrators of songs someone else wrote are few and far between, and some churches with choirs are still doing the works of classical musicians who included sacred text, like Joseph Haydn, Handel, and Ralph Vaughan Williams. With CCM however, there's always going to be a HUGE demand of well written songs with appropriate, heartfelt and/or scripturally based lyrics which are comparable to secular hits on mainstream pop/rock stations. There just aren't any, especially in the 21st century, and there should be. If your lyrics and music can touch people's hearts, you're WAY ahead of the game. There just aren't many really people writing for the Christian industry with that kind of talent cause if they were that good, they could make so much more money writing for secular artists and bands. (Think Lady Antebellum or Rascal Flatts if you're good enough, or others who have NO connection to Christian music.)

A track record writing of success in whatever genre can open doors to people in other genres. Need any better example than Katy Perry?
 
Last edited:
Upvote 0

justme6272

Well-Known Member
Jul 3, 2011
432
114
✟87,557.00
Country
United States
Faith
Christian
Marital Status
Private
The short version is.. know people that know other people that know more people who connect you with people that know publisher people.
Or just know publisher people.
(Or someone with the desire/money/power to record the song, and it will get 'published.')
 
Upvote 0

justme6272

Well-Known Member
Jul 3, 2011
432
114
✟87,557.00
Country
United States
Faith
Christian
Marital Status
Private
I guess what I want to know is:

- Have any of you registered your songs with the U.S. Copyright Office, and if so, tell me why you think it's necessary?
No, and it's not, especially for a newbie in Christian music with no track record who is using discretion in plugging their songs. Start opening up your recording sessions to strangers off the street and that's a different situation.

- Since I myself am not a performer, how would I get a song into the hands of a performer?

If you live in a town big enough that has them doing concerts there, hand them a CD or link to a demo, assuming they don't sneak out the back and hop in a limo like they're Aerosmith or Michael Jackson. Don't assume that just cause they're a big name that they won't hang out afterwards and talk to people. I've talked to numerous such people after concerts, including Stephen Curtis Chapman, Mark Lowry, and Point of Grace just to name three, after they came to some church or function within driving distance. I never went to concerts much and those were YEARS ago. They've talked to whoever approached them afterward.

Twitter, LinkedIn, or a record label, manager or publisher who they've already worked with who has the artist on their speed dial. (figuratively speaking).

Singers in church, if they are interested in a recording career, which they probably aren't cause they won't go on tour. I've known Worship Leaders and other praise team singers who sound every bit as good as famous recording artists, sometimes better, who would no doubt be on the charts if they recorded the right songs, but they're happy doing whatever it is they're doing and not interested.

See my extremely long post for other ideas. If you have good music and none of that works, I'd be shocked.
 
Last edited:
Upvote 0
This site stays free and accessible to all because of donations from people like you.
Consider making a one-time or monthly donation. We appreciate your support!
- Dan Doughty and Team Christian Forums