What would you ask a songwriter about a song?

Ask questions and get answers about how to make music in any particular way. Hardware or songwriting or whatever.
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jb
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What would you ask a songwriter about a song?

Post by jb »

If you could ask multiple Song Fighters to all answer the same question about any of their Song Fight entries-- their choice-- what question would you ask?

Some examples:
  • What's the structure of the song?
  • What did you use to record the song?
  • What was your approach to the title?
  • How satisfied are you with the song? The recording?
  • Which part of the song are you most proud of?
  • Which part of the song do you like the most?
  • Which came first, the lyrics or the music?
  • Did you do multiple versions of the recording?
  • Is there anything you came up with that didn't make it into the final recording?
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Chumpy
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Re: What would you ask a songwriter about a song?

Post by Chumpy »

  • How did you compose the vocal melody? Did you just sing it, or did you use an instrument?
  • Do you think of lyrical meter in terms of strong and weak stresses?
  • How did you come up with the chord progression, which instrument did you write it on?
  • How hard did you work on lyrical phrasing?
  • How did you process the vocals? Did you comp? Did you tune?
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Re: What would you ask a songwriter about a song?

Post by grumpymike »

These are questions that can be applied to a particular song or in general.

How many tracks do you have in your DAW?

What does your DAW project look like? I want screenshots and photos.

Do you organize or order your tracks in specific ways? Are there any unique workflows you take to help manage them?

Which tracks do you typically do first?

Which tracks take the most time? Which are typically after-thoughts?

Do you record scratch vocals or instruments first, and then go-back and do them proper?

Do you need to hear the chords before you start writing and, if so, do you need to do them on a particular instrument?

How many hours do you typically spend on a song?

Do you add reverb/delay to many tracks, and if so, how much?

What is your favorite production addition from a song? The cherry on the top of a well-crafted song that nobody hears except you.

How long does it take to render your song?

What is your “retreat” strategy when a song isn’t working and you need to force it to work?
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vowlvom
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Re: What would you ask a songwriter about a song?

Post by vowlvom »

  • Did the song all explode out of you fully-formed, or was it a gradual process of adding things / sections?
  • Did the song get substantially longer or shorter at any point in the process, when you realised it was too short, or long?
  • Did you have another song, artist or particular genre in mind that you wanted this song to sound like?
  • Was there anything that you attempted in this song but were forced to back away from because it didn't work?
  • Do you feel like you would have liked a particular element of the song to be done in a different way, but were forced to make compromises for any reason?
  • How did you know when the song was finished?
  • How did you feel about the song at the point when you realised it was finished, and has your feeling about it changed since then?
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fluffy
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Re: What would you ask a songwriter about a song?

Post by fluffy »

  • Did you expect this to win?
  • No, seriously.
  • Wow, really?
  • Do you agree with how it was received in general?
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Pigfarmer Jr
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Re: What would you ask a songwriter about a song?

Post by Pigfarmer Jr »

How do you feel about this song now and has it changed from the time you submitted it?
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