Jeff Mallett, UNISONG, The Muse's Muse, and The Songwriting Education Resource have joined forces to bring you a chat room especially for songwriters. Join the fun in "The Songwriting Discussion Room" on Monday nights from 6 pm PST (9 pm EST) until however long you'd like to keep it going. Basic instructions can be found at the top of The Muse's Muse Chat Rooms page. We look forward to seeing you there!
Pete & Pat Luboff have been teaching songwriting workshops since 1979 and currently teach a unique collaboration workshop in which all the writers participate in writing a song together. Using lessons learned from songwriters around the country, they wrote 88 Songwriting Wrongs and How to Right Them, published by Writer's Digest Books, and were recipients of the National Academy of Songwriters "Excellence in Education." Award. They are also A&R song screeners for TAXI.
As songwriters, the Pat & Pete Luboff have had success with "Trust Me," the first single on Snoop Dogg's "Topp Dogg" album, "I Wish He Didn't Trust Me So Much," a No. 2 chart recording by Bobby Womack and Calvin Richardson's "Country Boy" album, "Body Language" by Patti LaBelle (gold album) and the featured song in the John Travolta movie, "The Experts," among others.
They have both served as board members for the National Academy of Songwriters; Pete as vice chairman and Pat as president. Pete was a governor of the Los Angeles Chapter of NARAS for many years, including stints as vice president and secretary.
One of the nation’s most successful songwriters and respected songwriting teachers, Jason Blume is one of only a few writers to ever have singles on the Country, Pop, and R&B charts - - all at the same time. His songs have been recorded by artists including pop superstars Backstreet Boys and Britney Spears and are on albums that have sold more than 35 million copies. Blume’s song “Change My Mind” was a top 5 Country single for John Berry and was awarded a prestigious ASCAP Award for being one of the most performed songs of the year. Jason Blume presents songwriting workshops throughout the United States and internationally and his songwriting lessons are used in seminars by BMI and the Nashville Songwriters Association International. 6 Steps to Songwriting Success: The Comprehensive Guide… by Jason Blume has been published by Billboard Books and is now available.
Complimenting her 21 years as president of The New Music Times, Inc. (an artist management and publishing company since 1976), Jeri Goldstein's background runs the gamut of working inside the entertainment industry as concert promoter, tour coordinator, commercial television production engineer for an NBC affiliate station, commercial country radio DJ, photographer and graphic artist. She was the agent and manager for some of the top touring acoustic artists on the circuit including Robin & Linda Williams and Garrison Keillor And The Hopeful Gospel Quartet. Goldstein has booked national and international tours for artists performing in country, folk, gospel, bluegrass, contemportary, classical and children's music. She has also booked tours for theatre and dance. She created two innovative programs as a resource for performing artists-- Manager-In-A-Box, a consultation program, is designed to help performing artists, agents and managers enhance their career development. The Performing Biz is Goldstein's seminar which is presented at universities, festivals, and conferences, and for art councils or to individual groups of performing artists.
Author of "How To Be Your Own Booking Agent
Former owner of Jaffe Music Consulting and founding officer of the Atlanta Songwriter's Association, Joann Braheny, has a wealth of experience in the music industry. Her previous assignments included Billboard magazine, CBS Records, Arista Records, Warner Bros, ATV Music Publishing, Island Music, ABC-TV, NBC-TV, Dick Clark Productions and various entertainment law firms. She is currently a creative career counselor and has conducted creative process seminars for musicians, artists, and songwriters, as well as management level workshops for companies, organizations and schools throughout the U.S. and abroad.
JOHN BRAHENY is one of the most recognized and respected names in the music industry, and, more specifically, in the songwriting community. He is referred to as "the songwriter's best friend" for his tireless efforts to create education and discovery opportunities for songwriters, to help bring public attention to songwriting as an art form and to champion songwriters' rights. His activities in these areas include:
Co-founded and directed (with Len Chandler) the legendary Los Angeles Songwriters Showcase (LASS). This national non-profit service organization for songwriters, which BMI sponsored for 18 years, was the first on-going, organized weekly showcase exclusively for contemporary songwriter/performers in the Los Angeles area. During the early years of the organization they provided exposure and encouragement to an impressive list of later-to-be-successful new writers and writer/artists in all genres including Stevie Nicks and Lindsay Buckingham, Janis Ian, Warren Zevon, Karla Bonoff, Stephen Bishop, Wendy Waldman and the world's most successful contemporary songwriter, Diane Warren, for whom Braheny and Chandler critiqued over 150 songs when she was only 15. The live showcases evolved into an international membership organization whose members could submit songs on tape to industry professionals by mailing them in from anywhere in the world for the weekly Cassette Roulette and Pitch-A-Thon sessions.
Braheny and Chandler were responsible for innovating songwriter events and activities that serve as models for organizations all over the world. Among them:
Author and Journalist
Braheny wrote the best-selling and highly acclaimed Writer,s Digest book, The Craft and Business of Songwriting (Writer's Digest Books 1988, 1995), now in its third printing. (See Amazon.com for online reviews.) The National Academy of Songwriters has called the book "A veritable songwriters bible. This is the definitive work on the subject of songwriting."
He wrote the Songwriters Handbook for the American Song Festival, a bi-weekly "Songmine" column for Music Connection Magazine, and has contributed to Songwriters Market, Songwriter Magazine, Keyboard Magazine, Musician Magazine, The Musician's Business and Legal Guide and American Songwriter among others.Interviewer
Along with more than 600 interviews with music industry professionals and hit songwriters at the weekly Songwriters Showcase sessions and Songwriters Expo panels, Braheny conducted and edited more than 150 interviews for the Songwriters Musepaper, the monthly magazine of the Los Angeles Songwriters Showcase.
Since 1997 he has co-hosted Samm Brown's For The Record, a music industry interview and call-in show on KPFK (90.7 FM) every Tuesday from 10-ll p.m.
John's expertise in interviewing songwriters is so well known and respected that in 1997 he was commissioned by Disc Marketing's In-flight division to conduct a series of interviews with both legendary and contemporary hit songwriters for United Airlines, in-flight audio Songwriter Channel. The series is so popular that it went from being heard on a limited number of flights to all United flights within months.Educator
Braheny continues to be in demand to conduct songwriting/music business seminars for colleges, universities and organizations throughout the U.S. and Canada.
He has taught songwriting and music industry classes at UCLA, Grove School of Music and the Trebas Institute. He currently teaches "Anatomy of a Hit" at Musicians Institute in Los Angeles. He developed the class to teach new songwriters the elements of hit songs and records as well as marketing and sociological factors that influence the success or failure of records. He uses today's hits in all styles as well as classic examples through the past 70 years.Networker
Braheny maintains a high profile in music industry. He has served three terms on the board of Governors of the L.A. Chapter of NARAS, the Recording Academy (who present the Grammys) and edited their newsletter, The L.A. Record. He is past- president of California Copyright Conference, an organization of entertainment attorneys, music publishers and record company executives. He is currently on the board of directors of the National Academy of Songwriters (NAS) and serves on the boards of advisors for many songwriters organizations throughout the U.S. and Canada.
Sara Light is a professional songwriter who holds a Master's Degree from Rutgers University in English Education. While living in NJ, she was an instructor at Rutgers University and studied lyric writing with Sheila Davis from 1989 to 1992. After moving to Nashville to pursue songwriting, she served as the Nashville Songwriters Association International's (NSAI) Membership Director until 1996 when she signed as a staff songwriter for Zamalama Music. She has been a guest lecturer at several NSAI regional workshops, the Nashville NSAI Workshop Pro-teaching series, and Belmont University. She has served as a judge in several national songwriting contests and teaches her popular class on lyric writing each spring in Nashville. She is currently a part-time faculty member at Vanderbilt University and a full-time staff songwriter. Several artists have recorded her songs including Steven McClintock and John Michael Montgomery. Her song, "Home To You" is the title cut on John Michael Montgomery's newly released album and the current single.
Pat Pattison is a professor of music and songwriting at the Berklee College of Music in Boston. He developed the curriculum for Berklee's songwriting major -- the first of its kind anywhere -- and frequently conducts songwriting workshops around the United States. He is the author of Writing Better Lyrics, Managing Lyric Structure and Rhyming Techniques and Strategies.
Jon Ims is a singer-songwriter originally from Denver Colorado. He is the writer of "She's In Love With The Boy" recorded by Trisha Yearwood and was BMI's songwriter of the year for 1993. Jon also wrote the #1 song "Falling Out Of Love" recorded by Reba McEntire. He currently has the title cut on Confederate Railroad's new album, "The Big One". He is a faculty member of NSAI's Song Camp and a former Kerrville New Folk winner. Jon is currently working on writing and recording his own CD project.
Songwriter/Arranger/Producer/Musician Jai Josefs has been earning his living entirely in the music business for over twenty years. Credits include Jose Feliciano, Little Richard, Bonnie Bramlett and many others.
Has written songs for MCA, RCA, Motown, Disney, and numerous TV shows and movies including the Michael J. Fox sitcom Spin City and Edward James Olmos' recent film Roosters.
Author of Writing Music for Hit Songs, the definitive book on contemporary melodies, chord progressions and grooves published by Simon & Schuster and endorsed by hit writers including Diane Warren and Michael Omartian.
Has taught classes in songwriting for UCLA, The National Academy of Songwriters, and Nashville Songwriters Association International. Has given seminars for dozens of songwriter organizations throughout the U. S. and Canada.
Versatile composer/lyricist who has collaborated with eight different top-ten hit writers, contributed to over twenty-five CD's, and written instrumental music for many film and video projects.
Dinah Brein is a writer/producer, now living in Nashville. She has had songs recorded by Stephanie Mills, Christopher Cross, Thelma Houston, Fee Waybill, Rita Coolidge, as well as having her music heard on Melrose Place, Brimstone, Baywatch, and in such films as Jack Knife, Lambada, Homer & Eddie, Nightmare on Elm Street, Perfect, Kick Boxer and many others. She has songs on hold currently with James Ingram, JoDee Messina, John Berry, Martina McBride, Anita Baker, and Colin Raye. She has a dog who loves her and a wacky sense of humor. A quote by Sally Field, "I like her.......I honestly like her"!
Pat and Pete are the authors of "88 Songwriting Wrongs & How To Right Them".
John Dawes is the author of "The Musician's Guide to Web Promotion"
Grammy-nominee Harriet Schock is the author of "Becoming Remarkable". She teaches songwriting in L.A.
Among other things, hit songwriter Alan Roy Scott is a founder of Unisong.
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