Skip to main content

Is Your Songwriting Inspiration-Dependent?

Is Your Songwriting Inspiration-Dependent?
Is Your Songwriting Inspiration-Dependent?

by Kapa Freeman

Talent may be keeping you from your songwriting goals, but not in the way you think.

There's an idea in the songwriting community that's really harmful. It's the idea that you have to have "talent" to write songs that people love. I know, because I used to think that too. It was crippling.

When you run into negative feedback on your songs, you feel like you should quit because you "Just don't have the gift.". We get this idea because hit songwriters make it look so easy, but watch any documentary on a hit songwriter's life and you'll see how many bad songs came before their good ones... and how many drafts went into the classic ones.

Talent can actually be a songwriter's handicap if it's not combined with skill.

The talent-only songwriter essentially relies on inspiration to give them songs that people connect with, but inspiration can be a crutch... a pretty unreliable crutch... and it comes and goes when it pleases. And when you don't have it, you simply can't write a good song without it.

Why?

Because you can't control it. In other words, depending on inspiration is basically writing songs on accident. Great songs aren't written on accident. There's an exception to every rule, but do you really want to bet that you're going to be the exception?

The alternative to being a talent-only songwriter is being a skilled songwriter. The talent-only songwriter writes great songs on accident, but a skilled songwriter writes great songs on purpose.

  • They know how to write lyrics that connect emotionally.
  • They know how to format melodies to make them memorable.
  • They know how to combine the two so they flow naturally.
  • They know how to use harmony to make a chorus explode.
  • They know how to use rhythm to ramp up energy.
  • The skilled songwriter has full control over their songwriting process.
  • They don't wait for inspiration to give them permission to write a great song. Inspiration takes orders from them.

Talent will only take you but so far. Skill will take you as far as talent can take you, and far beyond.


Check out all of the posts related to Music Marketing: 


Kapa Freeman is the Founder and Songwriting Coach of The Intentional Songwriter, whose goal is to help musicians become publisher-ready songwriters so they can access songwriter-only income streams that pay more money for less of their time.

After taking an "assembly line approach" to songwriting, Kepa added consistency to his songwriting and went from song rejections to publishing deals over the course of a year. Now he uses this same approach to help musicians go from beginning to publisher-ready songwriters in a matter of weeks.

https://www.prosongsonpurpose.com/




Tags:

Popular posts

"Jesus Christ" by Robin Vane: From Shame to Mercy, One Surrender at a Time

Robin Vane's "Jesus Christ" is a beautiful EDM track with a powerful message. A message, or better said, a testimony, that you'd expect to hear across a coffee table, or during an informal church gathering. It's raw, honest, and quietly brave. The song starts by looking back to a younger self, when he "had no hope" and "stopped believing," stuck in a season where it was "dark," lonely, and defeating. In other words, it names the kind of despair many people hide, even today, including our younger generations.  Robin continues to sing about when the turning point hit: Jesus "knocked on the door," and how he opened up to "love in the flesh." He also sings about what happened when Grace found him before he was able to clean himself up… Robin shares, "I surrendered and fell to my knees," and "I was weeping for the first time." That moment became a line in the sand for Robin: "I will never...
More >>

"Hallelujah" by Kensie Breen: Finding Grace in Every Broken Hallelujah

Kensie Breen's "Hallelujah" takes Leonard Cohen's timeless song and gives it a warm, country-Christmas vibe. Kensie, just 14 years old, beautifully emphasizes the reality of faith, the never-ending clash between biblical beauty and human brokenness.  Staying true to Cohen's original lyrics, Kensie traces David and Samson's stories. Stories that remind us that even when we've "done our best, it wasn't much," and still we can stand before the "Lord of Song" with our praises. The song gives us the hope that every hallelujah on our lips, holy or broken, can still rise to God.  So what does that mean for us? It means our imperfect worship still matters. Our mixed-up, mid-December heart still counts. It invites us to stop looking for excuses and just praise, because He is listening. He hears our praises, and He knows our hearts. May Kensie's beautiful rendition of Cohen's "Hallelujah" remind you that true worship isn...
More >>

"Your Love" by Kevin Winebarger - When Mercy Becomes Your Identity

Kevin Winebarger teamed up with Joshua Frerichs and Benji Cowart to create this beautiful song. "Your Love" tackles that discouraging voice we all hear from time to time, the one that whispers that we're not enough and that we are defined by our past. "Once a liar, always a liar," and all kinds of variations along this same line of thought. This song isn't about wallowing in shame. "Your Love" is a celebration of the grace that changes everything.  The opening lines hit hard: "I could believe that I'm not enough // It's clear to see I don't measure up." Yep, we've all been there! But this isn't how God want us to be defined… He loved us first! "It's just what You've done // Because of Your love." That's the heart of everything.  Kevin places the change the God brings into perspective, "I could believe that my mistakes // Will follow me down into the grave // But I'm not who I was....
More >>