Tag Archives: Coldplay

SONGWRITING TIPS: Mix up music genres to create something new, says Avicii

July 26, 2014

The trend toward songwriters mixing up music genres in order to create something different and fresh—and also help them reach new audiences—appears to be gathering pace.

Swedish dance producer/writer Avicii has just announced that his next album will blend rock with electronic dance music (EDM). This follows his previous flirtation with a combination of bluegrass and big-room house on his crossover hit ‘Wake Me Up’.

Avicii says he plans to add a rock flavour to his next album with guest appearances from Jon Bon Jovi, Green Day’s Billie Joe Armstrong, System Of A Down’s Serj Tankian and Chris Martin of Coldplay. Other guest artists are expected to include Wyclef Jean and Matisyahu (on a reggae/EDM duet).

With his new (as yet untitled) album, Avicii is also echoing the recent call by Disclosure for EDM writers to use a broader range of chords and song structures.

Commenting on the new album, Avicii recently told Rolling Stone magazine: “It’s going to be a lot more song-oriented. True [his 2013 debut album], was an attempt at that, getting electronic music in a song format.”

Other singer-songwriters who are taking this ‘fusion’ approach to writing songs include Taylor Swift who has hinted that her new album will push the boundaries of her sound by featuring greater cross-pollination between different genres.

Jessie J also shares this view: “I feel like pop’s taken a really good turn at the moment,” she recently remarked. “I feel like artists are experimenting. That’s what music should be about, pushing boundaries.”

And British singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran’s new hit album, X, features a broad mix of genres, sonic ideas and songwriting styles that stretch his original folk rock sound. Sheeran said he deliberately set out to “rock the boat a little bit” with his new music.

As a possible indication of Avicii’s upcoming collaboration with Chris Martin, here’s his remix of Coldplay’s ‘A Sky Full of Stars’ …

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“How [Not] To Write A Hit Song! – 101 Common Mistakes To Avoid If You Want Songwriting Success” is available from Amazon as a US paperback, UK paperback and as an eBook from Amazon’s Kindle Store, Apple’s iTunes Store (Books/Arts & Entertainment/Music), Barnes & Noble’s Nook store, and from KoboBooks.

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Posted by thehitformula in Composers, Electronic dance music, Singer-songwriters, Songwriting Ideas, Songwriting News, Songwriting tips, Writing lyrics Tags: Avicii, Billie Joe Armstrong, books about songwriting, Chris Martin, Coldplay, Ed Sheeran, formula for writing a hit song, hit song formula, how to write a hit song, Jessie J, Jon Bon Jovi, Serj Tankian, song writing, songwriters, songwriting, songwriting advice, songwriting formula, songwriting help, songwriting how to, songwriting ideas, songwriting method, songwriting mistakes, songwriting process, songwriting success, songwriting techniques, songwriting tips, Taylor Swift, writing lyrics, writing songs

U2 win Golden Globe for Nelson Mandela song ‘Ordinary Love’

January 13, 2014

U2 have won this year’s Golden Globe award for Best Original Song From a Motion Picture for their song ‘Ordinary Love’ from the Nelson Mandela biopic Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom.

The U2 song beat Coldplay’s ‘Atlas’ from The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, ‘Let It Go’ by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez (from Disney’s Frozen), ‘Please Mr. Kennedy’ by Ed Rush, George Cromarty, T Bone Burnett, Justin Timberlake and Joel and Ethan Coen from Inside Llewyn Davis, and ‘Sweeter Than Fiction’ by Taylor Swift and Jack Antonoff from One Chance.

After receiving the award, U2’s Bono said: “This really is personal, very very personal. This man turned our life upside down, right side up. A man who refused to hate but he thought love would do a better job. We wrote a love song because it’s kind of what’s extraordinary about the film. It’s a dysfunctional love story.”

Meanwhile, Alex Ebert beat legendary film composers John Williams and Hans Zimmer to win the Golden Globe for Best Original Score for his work on the Robert Redford movie All is Lost.

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“How [Not] To Write A Hit Song! – 101 Common Mistakes To Avoid If You Want Songwriting Success” is available from Amazon as a paperback, or as an eBook from Amazon’s Kindle Store, Apple’s iTunes Store (Books/Arts & Entertainment/Music) and Barnes & Noble’s Nook store.

Read a FREE sample of the book HERE (USA) and HERE (UK).

Posted by thehitformula in Singer-songwriters, Songwriting News Tags: Bono, books about songwriting, Coldplay, formula for writing a hit song, Golden Globe, hit song formula, how to write a hit song, Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom, song writing, songwriters, songwriting, songwriting advice, songwriting formula, songwriting help, songwriting how to, songwriting ideas, songwriting method, songwriting mistakes, songwriting process, songwriting success, songwriting tips, Taylor Swift, U2, writing lyrics, writing songs

“HOW [NOT] TO WRITE SONGS IN THE STREAMING AGE – 40 MISTAKES TO AVOID IF YOU WANT TO GET MORE STREAMS” - This book shows how the dominance of music streaming is having a profound impact on songwriting and the structure of songs. Songs that connect in the streaming world are no longer the same as songs that work on traditional media, like radio. Successful streaming now requires a different type of song. This means songwriters who want more plays on streaming platforms need to rethink their songwriting approach in order to meet the specific needs of streaming audiences. This book aims to provide a better understanding of the new building blocks of song structure in the streaming age. It examines essential elements found in the construction, melodies and lyrics of the biggest streaming hits – and highlights the most common errors made when these key components are built into a song. To help new songwriters avoid such mistakes in their own songs, the book provides 40 insightful tips and a comprehensive Checklist for creating more streaming-friendly songs. The book is now available from Amazon as a paperback and eBook, and also from leading eBook retailers like Apple Books, Kobo and Barnes & Noble.

‘HOW (NOT) TO WRITE A HIT SONG! – 101 COMMON MISTAKES TO AVOID IF YOU WANT SONGWRITING SUCCESS’

With a 5-star rating at Amazon, this book takes a close look at the essential elements that are consistently found in the structure, melodies and lyrics of all hit songs.

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Most writers have had to endure the disappointment of having their songs rejected, and ended up asking: “Could I have done more to make my songs better?”.

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“HOW (NOT) TO WRITE GREAT LYRICS! 40 COMMON MISTAKES TO AVOID WHEN WRITING LYRICS FOR YOUR SONGS”

The 40 most common lyric writing mistakes are exposed in this new book by experienced music publisher and music consultant Brian Oliver.

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The book includes a comprehensive checklist of more than 100 potential hazards that writers can measure their own lyrics against.

“SURPRISING RHYMING FOR SONGWRITERS AND POETS -THE ALTERNATIVE RHYMING DICTIONARY”

With more new songs being written than ever before, songwriters are finding it harder to sound original and craft rhymes that have not already been used. “SURPRISING RHYMING” is a new kind of rhyming dictionary that aims to make it easier for writers to avoid clichés and create rhymes people may not have heard before.

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