John Braheny is a top consultant for songwriters, performers and industry entrepreneurs. He is a consultant and screener for TAXI, the independent A&R company, and offers valuable feedback on songwriting craft and business and career strategies for performers.

Singer-songwriter Ari Hest is a self-made success story. Even while under contract to a major label, he decided to break loose so he could record and release new music directly to fans on his own terms. The result was “52″, a collection of 52 individual songs written, recorded and released one at a time every [...]

Hello! I’m Mary Shaw, and I have just taken over the reins as publisher at Serve The Song. I’d like to thank Brian Casel for creating a wonderful blog and giving me the opportunity to continue his efforts to bring you the best information on songwriting, performance and production. These are some big shoes to fill, so I’ll do my very best to bring you the latest and greatest on a topic very near and dear to my heart.

Serve the song. It’s a saying that sums up the essence of what we do as songwriters. In a way, I see the process of writing a song as a series of small decisions which craft the direction and overall presentation of the musical idea. Stay true to your inspiration. Serve the song.