Revealed! Songwriting: Collaboration & Co-Writing
Learn professional songwriting methods and discover strategies for collaborating with artists around the world
What You’ll Learn:
- How a real co-writing session works through a live songwriting demonstration.
- How to generate new song ideas and bring them to life.
- How to build confidence and develop valuable skills specific to creative collaboration.
- Industry standard protocols for file sharing and demo recording.
- How to properly prepare for a co-writing session.
- How to access networks of artists, musicians, and songwriters to collaborate with.
- Practical steps to take during and after a co-writing session.
Who is this for?
- Songwriters who want to know how co-writing is different from solo writing.
- Songwriters who want to collaborate but don’t know where to start.
- Songwriters who want guidance on the best practices for preparing for a co-writing session.
- Songwriters who want to co-write, but think they may not be skilled or experienced enough.
- Songwriters seeking guidance on how to structure a co-writing session.
- Musicians who are looking to connect with other artists.
- People who want to learn from professional songwriters who are also expert teachers.
Requirements:
- No experience or skills required – just an open-minded approach to creative collaboration.
Testimonials
Course Description:
Open up a world of creative possibilities and build professional skills & networks through co-writing and collaboration in songwriting.
For many songwriters, musicians, and artists, co-writing with others provides some of the most exciting and rewarding moments of their creative lives. Connecting with others through collaboration opens up doors and opportunities that you may never have considered possible as a songwriter.
This course has been designed to take you step-by-step through the co-writing process, in three main sections:
- Preparation
We give you a checklist of things to do before you get into the room with another writer or musician. This checklist will build your confidence and maximise your chances of success when you start writing—you will learn what kinds of ideas to bring, in what form, as well as what not to bring to a co-write. - Process
We take you behind the scenes and show you a live-demonstration of our co-writing methods, guiding you through the songwriting process whilst also noting things to avoid and common pitfalls. - Professional Practice
We provide industry-standard protocols that will help you continue your collaborations beyond the first session – we show you how to establish a reputation for being easy to work with and well-organised, two important traits that will attract collaborators.
Each Drawing on more than 20 years’ experience, we show you the ins and outs of co-writing and professional collaboration – how it differs from writing alone and how you can start to build skills and relationships in the music world and beyond.
We also answer some of the most commonly asked questions:
- Is there a formula for writing a song?
- What should I look for in a co-writer?
- How and where do I find people to collaborate with?
- How do you best structure a session?
- How do you deal with anxiety and feelings of not being good enough?
Course Content
Introduction
1 Lecture (2min)
- Welcome to the course
Preparation
6 Lectures (43min)
- Get to Know Your Collaborator (and their work)
- Bring Stuff (and lots of it!)
- FAQ #1 – What should I look for in a co-writer?
- What NOT to Bring
- Settings Expectations & Goals
- FAQ #2 – Is a matched level of experience or skill important?
Process
12 Lectures (1h 7min)
- The Co-Writing Process
- Having a Conversation
- FAQ #3 – How do I deal with the anxiety of not being good enough?
- Find the Title (at your earliest convenience)
- Create a Song Map
- Co-Writing Demonstration
- FAQ #4 – Is there a specific formula to writing a song?
- Give it a Chance
- FAQ #5 – What if the co-writing session isn’t going well?
- Don’t Talk About It Whilst Doing It
- FAQ #6 – How do you best structure a co-writing session?
- FAQ #7 – Tips and techniques for finishing a song in 3 hours
Professional Practice
6 Lectures (25min)
- The Splits
- Stay in Touch
- File Sharing
- Be Easy to Work With
- FAQ #8 – Where and how do I find co-writers and collaborators?
- Wrap Up
Meet the team
Keppie Coutts and Ben Romalis
We are Keppie Coutts and Ben Romalis, two professional songwriters, performing artists and teachers with over 40 years of collective experience in the music industry.
We have studied and taught at some of the best contemporary music colleges in the world including Berklee College of Music, Sydney Conservatorium, the Australian College of the Arts, the Australian Institute of Music, the LA School of Songwriting and JMC Academy.
Our goal is to help people write better songs! Our belief, having worked with thousands of songwriters (many going on to find careers and success in music), is that your songwriting, like all things, can get better with meaningful and deliberate practice. Our intention is to share the skills, knowledge and ideas that we’ve had the privilege of gathering with others who embrace the art and craft of songwriting.
Are you ready to join us?
Self-Paced Online Course
Songwriting Collaboration & Co-Writing
- 2.5 hours on-demand video
- 4 downloadable resources