TAXI.com

I swear I don't complain about every return I get (check my posts) but this is the second listing that has questionable return criteria in the last 3 months. (You can read the first one here: http://forums.taxi.com/topic97252.html). However this is another example of either writing by whomever writes the Taxi listings or Taxi screeners who aren't reading the listings they are screening for.

I submitted 3 songs with FEMALE vocals for Taxi listing Y121220SS and all 3 were returned. Here are the comments the screener left for each returned song on this listing:

SONG #1:
"Song has a lot of potential. Good lyrics and melodies. Well produced, however it will not work for the male group that this listing is searching for."

SONG #2:
"Well produced. Good Melody. Not right for the group looking."

SONG #3:
"You write, good and quirky melodies. There's a place for you in music, just need to perfect artist to pitch too (in regards to Taxi)."

And below is the original Taxi Listing. Note that the screener returned my 3 songs because they "will not work for the MALE group that this listing is searching for" yet the listing mentions NOTHING of this being for a male pop group. They reference a Jason Mraz song and a Christina Perri song which makes me think that either male or female songs will work for this group.

WHAT IS GOING ON TAXI???

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GRAMMY AWARD-WINNING ARTIST/PRODUCER needs great CONTEMPORARY SINGER/SONGWRITER and CONTEMPORARY POP SONGS for a successful Pop group's next major release. They're looking for intimate BALLADS and DOWNTEMPO songs a la "I Won't Give Up" by Jason Mraz and "A Thousand Years" by Christina Perri. QUOTING THE SOURCE: "Lyrics should be relatable with a vulnerable openness and sincerity. Lyrics that really touch people." Lyric themes can include: relationships (good or bad); family; and overcoming challenges/obstacles etc. Please avoid cliche lyrics. They're looking for songs that sound ahead of the curve. Production and demo performances should be top notch! Please submit one to three songs online or per CD, include lyrics. All submissions will be screened on a YES/NO BASIS - NO CRITIQUES FROM TAXI - and must be received no later than Thursday, December 20, 2012. TAXI #Y121220SS

My guess is the screener felt the songs weren't right for THIS group and the word male wasn't the key word in this sentence. This was an extremely high bar listing for a grammy award winning producer. The song would have to match the style of the group as well as being undeniably great. I'm sure many excellent songs got returned.

But to be sure, why not drop a note to Taxi and ask for clarification?

Casey

Hey Casey,
I appreciate the reply but you can't argue that there was an obvious discrepancy here. Whether the bar is extremely high or whether my songs were good or not is actually beside the point. The screener referred the fact that I submitted a female song for a male group as either THE reason or A reason that they were returned. I'm claiming that it was the reason as no other critique was made other than it not being right for a male group.

I find it to be a big oversight from a company who claims to give us as much information as possible in their listings so we can make better submissions. I definitely would not have submitted these 3 songs sang by a female, in a Christina Perri style, if I had known that it was for a male singer. Even if felt the songs were universal enough to be sang by either sex, I would've at least had a male sing on the recordings before submitting them.

I will take your advice and contact Phil about this. Thanks Casey!