WHY YOU MIGHT NEED A SONGWRITER

Music in this generation is arguably at its most controversial time in the history of entertainment. The artists we once considered the gatekeepers of hip hop or prodigies of R&B are slowly but surely losing their stamina in the eyes of the ever developing younger generation. With that being said, our conclusions are based on a collective order of opinions from people ages 13-28 (roughly). If you're new to our forum, be advised that nothing we say holds any value but is still worth considering. All of the information being shared today should make you critically think about the kind of artist you want to be because that's what Spark The Dope is here for. We want to help you take your artistry to the next level so here are some reasons why you should consider having a songwriter. 

Jay-Z won songwriter hall of fame in 2017 according to Billboard and other sources. Most people recognize Jay-Z for his legendary rap status and beat production so to some hearing songwriters credit for the first time, this might come as a surprise. Actually, most major artists get their songs written for them. It's not a matter of being lazy or they just don't feel like it. In fact, many music artists will probably admit that they'd much rather write their own songs especially if they're involved with a record label. But since we're not here to educate you on the crazy lifestyle of celebrities, we can start off with the first reason to consider having a songwriter. Time. Think about how long it took you to put out your first album (if you have ever). Not only did you spend hours at a time coming up with lyrics, but you had to gather a team of people who were excited enough about your craft to even produce it in the first place! This is easier said than done. Money goes into it as you have to pay for studio time, beats, promotion, and more. The writing process is different for each individual, but for the sake of perspective, Genius has an article thread about the average time it takes to write a song. One person claimed to have done 1,000 songs, recorded 50, and only released 16! With this in mind, having a songwriter in this case would probably cut the time it takes to put out a song in half. On top of that, you could probably save yourself a fair amount of money for studio time since you'd know exactly what to record by the time you go there.

"Time is money. Okay. What else?" Money is all part of the music industry game. The more of it you have, the better your chances of getting where you want to be. While it's not guaranteed you'll be the hottest artist out or most popular, you are sure to gain yourself enough fan base to support your music for the long term. This is the same as if you were to utilize a songwriter. Even if you have doubts the song will be a hit because you didn't have full creative control, there's a higher chance you will be considered more than "just another rapper/singer". The reason being is that you are going to appeal to a different audience. Your core fans are the ones who will rock with you no matter what music you put out because they know what you're capable of. If you put out something unexpected, they are more likely to tell others about your work because they see you as multi-faceted. Being an indie artist makes this favorable for your career because people will be able to see your growth and you get to call the shots. A misunderstanding about songwriters is that they often write entire songs for artists based on what they think the artists' niche is. While the latter is true, the reality of co-songwriting is a more complex process than it's given credit for. You have to copy wright your work with a service such as BMI  to earn royalties, keep up with the latest upcoming artists and popular genres, and go through paperwork to decide who gets credit for what. These things sound easy but it gets complicated if you include a co-writer. This means while you might have came up with a cool hook and melody, the versus or part of them might have been done by someone else. 

At this point, you are probably still not sure weather or not having a songwriter is worth all the trouble. It's okay. As mentioned before, each individual artist is unique and their journey different. Maybe having a songwriter does not appeal to you because you have room to grow and want to see what you can do. On the other hand, if you are often told that your music "sounds the same" or your lyrics "are repetitive", it might not be such a bad thing to consider. Either way, the music making process has a lot of creative hands involved. Recognizing that it the first step to achieving your full potential as an artist. Because you stuck around to the end, Spark The Dope wants to offer you a chance to work with a talented songwriter! Her name is Dream Rayne. You'll find her music and external pages below. If you are interested in a co-songwriter or even beats with a hook/vocals, feel free to e-mail us: sparkthedope@gmail.com. 

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