Contemporary Enough?

[AlanHall]

Thanks to all for your feedback. I will continue to try and improve the track. Much of the feedback was great but some of it, I vehemently disagree with. I won't be posting on the forum again.

Good luck to all with your projects.

Cheers.

I have liked the stuff you've posted, and yet having like it I've made suggestions about what I thought could be improved. Also, like 95% of the folks who post on this forum, I have a long way to go before the stuff I write is commercially viable. I heard it said that excellent is not enough in this game; the music has to be excellent and then progressed from there to be truly irresistible in order to be recognized as great music. Each one of us has strengths and weaknesses; the weaknesses must be turned into strengths or our craft will languish.

I'm inviting you to have thick skin and to find the good in each painful review. This forum is the best "FREE" place to get the feedback we need. I put free in quotes because there is a cost - the damage done to the ego. Allow a bruised ego to be the broken ground from which new things can sprout. Not using the forum is to not use a most valuable resource. Please reconsider.

[cosmicdolphin]

Thanks to all for your feedback. I will continue to try and improve the track. Much of the feedback was great but some of it, I vehemently disagree with. I won't be posting on the forum again.

Robert

Sync Licensing is a hard hard thing to get into and highly competitive. It's rare that one person can get over the bar by doing everything themselves. i.e. write, play, mix, master and sing so don't get mad.

Take feedback for what it is. One person's opinion - weigh it against their experience and judge it how you see see fit. Take it all with a grain of salt but if you see a trend of the same feedback from multiple sources over a period of time then no matter how vehemently you disagree with it you might have to face up to the fact that they could well have a point.

It's very hard to be objective when it comes to your own music, I would urge you not to quit the forums but that's your choice.

Mark

[Robertj64]

Thanks to all for your feedback. I will continue to try and improve the track. Much of the feedback was great but some of it, I vehemently disagree with. I won't be posting on the forum again.

Good luck to all with your projects.

Cheers.

I have liked the stuff you've posted, and yet having like it I've made suggestions about what I thought could be improved. Also, like 95% of the folks who post on this forum, I have a long way to go before the stuff I write is commercially viable. I heard it said that excellent is not enough in this game; the music has to be excellent and then progressed from there to be truly irresistible in order to be recognized as great music. Each one of us has strengths and weaknesses; the weaknesses must be turned into strengths or our craft will languish.

I'm inviting you to have thick skin and to find the good in each painful review. This forum is the best "FREE" place to get the feedback we need. I put free in quotes because there is a cost - the damage done to the ego. Allow a bruised ego to be the broken ground from which new things can sprout. Not using the forum is to not use a most valuable resource. Please reconsider.

Hi Alan

I am fine with constructive criticism. For me, it is not about ego. It is about the deep truth behind why people cannot give their two cents without being destructive. Those people who are blunt, insensitive with sweeping judgments (without taking the time to know me) have deep issues of their own. I am too old to put up with that. If that is the cost to get my music into a library, no thanks. I hoped for better on this forum. There are other means and resources to use out there. Thank you for your concern. It is much appreciated. I will post if I see someone in need but for me, my music posting here is pretty much done.

Take care
Robert

[JohnDroese]

I'm sorry you feel I have a destructive personal agenda and deep issues.... There was a reason I asked you your end game before I gave you advice.... I asked were you an artist? No you didn't say that I asked if you were a vocalist? No you didn't say that..... what you said is you wanted to get your music into tv and film and I gave you the best advice for that goal.... Now if you said you were an artist or a singer I would never tell you to get another one... You Do You

Best of Luck
John

[Robertj64]

Hi All

So here is the listing that I was posting about under this "Contemporary Enough?":

A Wide Range of CURRENT-Sounding SONGS with Lyrics about "Relationships" is needed by a successful Music Licensing Company that’s presenting music directly to a TV Series.

NOTE: We purposely avoided putting references in this Listing, as we felt they could potentially be more misleading or limiting than helpful. This company is only interested in hearing contemporary Songs in the following genres: Rap/Hip-Hop, R&B, Pop, Dance, Indie Pop or Rock, and Singer-Songwriter.

Mid-to-Up-Tempo Songs are usually more easily placed; but if you have really strong Ballads or Down-Tempo Songs, those could work as well in this context.

Quoting the Company: "We're not looking for only love songs. We're also looking for songs that work for family and friends – songs about loving and caring for those around you."

Please send modern Songs that could give viewers a warm and fuzzy feeling. Your submissions should have well-crafted melodies, great choruses, and honest lyrics that express what the company has asked for above. Your production can range from simple, stripped-down performances to full-blown productions, depending on the genres you choose to submit. Whichever approach you decide to take, be sure that your production is high-quality and competitive with other artists in that genre. Well-executed, heartfelt vocals could really help you hit the nail on the head as well!

Avoid references to specific names, dates, times, places, brands, and profanity in your lyrics, as it will make your Songs more “sync-able.” Do not submit any material with unauthorized samples of other artists’ songs, sounds, or any other form of media. Broadcast Quality is needed.

This company offers an EXCLUSIVE deal. You’ll split any upfront sync fees 50/50. They’ll get 100% of the Publisher’s share, and you’ll get 100% of the Writer’s share. You must own or control your Master and Copyright. Since this is an EXCLUSIVE deal, please be sure the material you submit for this pitch is NOT already signed with other Libraries or Catalogs. Please submit as many Songs as you’d like, online or per CD, and please include lyrics. All submissions will be screened and critiqued by TAXI. NO DEADLINE EXTENSIONS for this request. Sorry folks, but we're on an extremely tight deadline, so please don't ask! Submissions must be received no later than 11:59 PM (PDT) on Friday, September 11th, 2020. TAXI # S200911RT

TAXI # S200911RT

Here is what I submitted:
https://soundcloud.com/vocalsky/friends


Last night on Taxi TV we got to play the screener on some percussion cues. In that spirit, I got results back. Anyone care to guess if it was a forward or a return? If it was a return, why? Looking forward to your comments. I will paste the result shortly.

Cheers!
Robert
https://soundcloud.com/vocalsky

[cosmicdolphin]

Anyone care to guess if it was a forward or a return? If it was a return, why? Looking forward to your comments. I will paste the result shortly.

I would have returned it because the vocals are pitchy, and the kick drum and bass are not in the pocket with each other

[Peterg]

I would guess it’s a return due to vocal tuning, and possibly too much effects on the vocal so you can’t hear the lyrics.
But I think the happy vibe suits her brief.
Peter

[Robertj64]

Thanks to all for your input.

I have attached the feedback from the screener here:


Feedback for "Friends"
S200911RT
Share Your Feedback
What I like most about this song
I certainly liked the Reggae influence of your song “Friends”, Robert. It also has an upbeat and cheerful sound that is enjoyable.

I think you could improve this song by
The song isn’t as current as it would need to be for this pitch. That’s both in the sound choices of the production as well as how the overall composition of the material is designed.

I returned or forwarded this song because
This is not moving forward because it isn’t contemporary enough to meet the needs of this particular placement opportunity.



To summarize, the song isn't current enough and it was returned.

So just some thoughts here from my perspective. I note that this screener did NOT make one note of the vocals being off pitch. Secondly, I made sure that every note in the vocals were on key. I used a vocal correction software plus I added a piano track and went along the melody line to make sure that nothing was off pitch. This is not to say that there could have been problems with the vocals. The vocals could be sung stronger, maybe the notes were sung too long or too short....maybe the dynamics of the vocals sung were a problem. Maybe the melody line wasn't right for the song. That said, the vocals are the first thing that a screener looks at and absolutely the first thing he would return the track for...without a doubt in my mind. Nothing was said here. The "Additional Things I Noticed" section was left completely blank.

Secondly, I checked out the Forward blog to see what kind of songs were forwarded. I heard a lot of stuff that could easily not be "current". To be fair, Paul did say that there were things on the low end that needed to be fixed in the mix and I agree with him. Certainly, there is consensus with him and the screener in that the sound choices may have contributed to the track being returned. I was expecting to see something from the forward blog to be illuminating but sadly this is not the case.

I humbly thank everyone for their time and input. It is very appreciated!

Cheers,
Robert
https://soundcloud.com/vocalsky

[cosmicdolphin]

I note that this screener did NOT make one note of the vocals being off pitch. Secondly, I made sure that every note in the vocals were on key. I used a vocal correction software plus I added a piano track and went along the melody line to make sure that nothing was off pitch.

Even so I still stand by my comment, the intonation is off. It was the very first thing that jumped out at me

[Robertj64]

I note that this screener did NOT make one note of the vocals being off pitch. Secondly, I made sure that every note in the vocals were on key. I used a vocal correction software plus I added a piano track and went along the melody line to make sure that nothing was off pitch.

Even so I still stand by my comment, the intonation is off. It was the very first thing that jumped out at me

I think you have to be careful here because intonation is not the same as pitch. You said in your previous comment that the vocals were pitchy. That is very different. Pitch is precise and the note is either on or off. Intonation is the combination of pitched notes together. For example, I can sing on pitch each note but be off because the on pitch notes are not right with the key. It may seem picky but it does the world of confusion when offering feedback.