Do you have writer's block right now? Chances are this isn't your first time having it, and it definitely won't be your last. Writer's block comes for us all- but always for a reason. We don't always know the reason, in fact I would argue that most of us have no idea why it happens sometimes, but always for a reason. As someone who has spent MONTHS on end with writers block, I am beginning to learn a little more as to why I have it and things I can change to help to move past it and fall in love with writing music again, and I want to spend a few blogs helping you out with things that I'm learning. And I'm no expert, definitely not, I'm only talking from my experiences with writer's block and I think some of it may be of use to you. So today, I want to talk a little about one reason I sort of figured out today. It might seem really obvious, but it also leads to a bigger problem found in the music industry and it's very prominent in the EDM scene.
How excited were you about your last track that you wrote? And I don't mean excited for the release, or the mixing and mastering, or the fact the quality sounds great- when were you excited and thinking 'fuck, I've written a song that is going to IMPACT somebody. And shit, if it doesn't impact someone else, it has IMPACTED ME.'
Think about how much music has changed since professional recording has existed. Since the music industry became a business for all artists. I don't know about you, but I haven't seen the next Aretha Franklin, the next Kurt Cobain, the next so and so. And of course there never will be, but my point is nowadays music feels like it's sort of sold its soul in exchange for a fuck load of money. Is that 100% true? God no, I can name a lot of amazing artists of this generation who are fucking beautiful song writers. But look at yourself and your goal. What REALLY is your goal? Take a long hard think about it, because your actions will end up leading to your future. So think carefully about WHY you do things. Why do you write music, really? Is it for money? Is it for nice sound design? Is it because you want to play shows in front of thousands of people, or because you want to impact millions of lives? Do you want to leave a mark on the world?
Now think about the music you're actually making. Does it fulfil that for you? I mean, if you want to be rich and famous, are you writing pop, mainstream music? Because you probably should be. Do you want to make an impact? Make music that impacts you, because you are human just like every one else- and chances are lots of people will feel the impact. Maybe you've never thought about why you do it, so you should probably do that first. Think about what the music you're writing does for you, and how will that work for other people.
Maybe you realise your goals in music by the type of music you're already writing. Maybe you need to adjust your goals to your music. It's really what feels right for you, but these are just all things that as a musician, you should probably be thinking about.
You've probably read all that, and now are wondering 'Mack, I thought you told me this was to do with writers block and you've just ranted on about my goals in music.' But that's exactly it- maybe the source of your writers block is because you're not writing the music you REALLY want to be writing.
You're forcing yourself to write something you just don't feel like making at the time. I literally just had this, by the way. I opened FL and went to the song I've been working on for the last few days, it's this tranformery riddimy track that just sounds super metallic. To be honest, I don't like the track any more, the sound design sounds amazing and I'm very proud of it but there's no depth to it. Listening to that track is like dating a hot 10 with a shit personality. So instead I closed it and worked on a track that made me depressed. I was honestly feeling quite depressed for no reason and I just wanted to work on it. No writer's block AT all, it came naturally.
Why? Because I focused on how I was feeling, my goals as a musician, and I figured out that to work on a track, I had to do something that matched how I was feeling, and when you can do that, you'll get some great fucking music that you can listen back to and be proud of. I feel like the EDM scene puts far too much focus into 'bangers' than using the incredible tools we have to create something that really impacts some lives. And yeah of course, not every track has to be like that. But.... think about it for a second. Be self aware and think about what you're doing, and why you're doing it. Question yourself. If you don't like the honest answer, then change something. Do something different. You have a habit? You always start your song with serum? Open a new VST. Always have 2 drops in your song, and you can't think of anything good for a second one? Do something COMPLETELY different. If you just copied and pasted your first drop but changed a few tiny little things to make it sound different and it doesn't excite you, then fucking stop. Take a break, or just change something. Fuck, if you're really stuck, if you have a guitar, piano or some sort of instrument, start with that. Make a song with that. Please don't limit yourself to something you don't always enjoy. And yeah I love a good hard banger every now and then, and they're fun to make and play to a crowd. But try something else! Something new! Don't be afraid. Just don't force yourself to make music you don't like. Please.
I hate to think that somebody reading this could have just written an incredible song for piano, but because they normally make hybrid trap they are afraid to release it. That beautiful song you keep meaning to release might die with you, and nobody will ever write it the way you did.
Most of all, be happy! See you all next blog. Stay fresh my dudes