 |
"There are many trails up the mountain, but in time they all reach the top." -- Anya Seyton SongU.com campus news  Hi
everyone, Hope you had a great week. It's been busy around here with the start of the new college teaching semester along with working on SongU.com upgrades. The year is definitely in full swing. I know the faculty, as well as some of you, are still getting familiar with our new e-Classroom setup. With that in mind, I've decided to start running a "Hang" every Monday in the new e-Classroom for a while to give you a chance to familiarize yourself with the classroom and answer any questions you might have (see details below). So stop in on Monday and say hi. I'm also in the process of preparing my annual state-of-the-site address which I'll route in the next week or two. I'll run down the list of new features and upgrades we have planned as well as our vision for the coming year at SongU.com. We added a host of new features in the past year and we've got another ambitious agenda for the upcoming year with some great new features planned. Every Monday In Jan/Feb: e-Classroom Orientation/Mic/Sound Check with Danny In order to allow everyone to get familiar with our new e-Classroom format, I'll be holding a regular Monday session starting this Monday. I'll give you a run through of the new e-Classroom features, check your mic, video and hang out and chat a bit. You'll get to meet new people, try out the new technology and when it comes time for your next class at SongU.com, you'll be all set. So I hope you'll join me for GEN 140 e-Classroom Hang and Sound Check starting this Monday, 1/23 at 7pm ET. Registration required. See the SongU.com Catalog after you login. Resolution Buddies 2012: Last Call It's a lot easier to stick to your resolutions and accomplish your goals if you have a friend to check in with regularly. So here's the deal. We'll pair you up with another SongU.com member to be your resolution buddy. If you maintain regular weekly email check-ins with each other for through the first quarter of the year, you'll earn 3 SongU.com Credits. If you make it through the first half of the year, you'll earn 6 SongU.com Credits (that's enough for a Quickie Song Evaluation). And, if you make it all the way through the year checking in once a week with your resolution buddy and posting your monthly goals on the discussion board, you'll not only be a lot farther along in your songwriting career, but you'll earn 12 SongU.com Credits! More details and signup are available on the member homepage. SongU.com opportunities for: Pop, R&B, Dance, Hip-Hop • A golden Street Pitch Opportunity #808: Thelma Houston, Dionne Warwick, and more (see full description in the My Pitching area). Bob D. says “The President of the label is calling me every day!! Where are your songs?” C'mon guys, let's see if you can get a cut on this project. • Singer/Songwriter/Producer Andre Deyo, aka MrDeyo (“Jenny From the Block”), will be teaching a variety of workshops focused on the Pop and Urban market throughout the year. Register now for SONG 175 Writing for the Urban/Pop/Dance Market. In this month’s class, Andre will lead you through the best elements of Rihanna’s latest single “We Found Love” and discuss how you can incorporate them into your own writing. • FDBK 280 Urban/Pop Feedback and Mentoring with Andre Deyo first Saturday of each month at 11am ET. Also, he is booking Private Consultations (and hint, you might want to try Coach #3954 ;-) • Nancy Peacock is continuing to listen for special Film/TV opportunities. Needs Alt Rock, Blues, Hip/Hop, Pop, Pop/Latin, Urban. Through February 15th (see full description in the My Pitching area). • Several "Fast Track" ongoing publisher listings are looking for songs in multiple genres for artists and media projects. As always, all regular pitching opportunities, like the ones listed above are included with your SongU.com membership. Speaking of Fast Track Pitching Opportunities: New Ongoing Listing! Mitzi Matlock Music/MM Publishing, a new Nashville-based company that already has a cut on Montgomery Gentry’s current album is looking for great songs to expand their catalog. Street Pitch guest, J.N., has been charged with bringing in new material to this company and he is particularly interested in hearing members songs that have been designated as “BEST OF”, “RISING STAR” or “GOLD STAR”. In addition, they are also looking specifically for uptempo contemporary country or contemporary rock songs with attention-grabbing lyrics. He is very much looking for songs and he’s been listening like crazy…this is your chance to get in with a new publisher. Go for it. Special Event Pitch: Golden Ticket/Write With Hit Songwriter Marty Dodson! To kick off 2012, we will be launching a new special event pitching opportunity this week (lyric-only writers can submit songs too!). This is your chance to be the recipient of a “golden ticket” for a 2.5 hour in-person (or Skype) one-on-one session with hit songwriter, Marty Dodson! Marty has had numerous cuts by such artists as Carrie Underwood, Kenny Chesney, George Strait, Billy Currington, Emerson Drive, Julianne Hough, Darryl Worley and many others. We've set up a special listening page for Marty and those who submit songs will be pitching directly to him. Marty will mark "maybe" on his favorites. Once the field of songs is narrowed down to the "maybes" Marty will listen again to determine the winner of the "golden ticket" one-on-one session. Note: If you are singing your own demo, please include that information on your lyric sheet. This is an opportunity to have some one-on-one time and learn from one of today's top writers (Marty's full bio will be available in the "My Pitching" area this week). Also, please note in order to be fair to Marty that only the member submitting to the pitch opportunity is eligible for the one-on-one session (co-writers, your band, extended family, long lost relatives, etc. are not). Good luck to all!! See You "On Campus" If you have any questions or problems, please use the Help/Support area on the site where you'll find lots of FAQ's to assist you. If you can't find your answer there, just submit a Help/Support form and we'll do our best to help you out. Ok, that's all for now. Have a great week. Best wishes, -Danny -------------------------------------------------- Danny Arena www.SongU.com Courses, Coaching, Connections Facebook: www.facebook.com/danny.arena Follow: www.twitter.com/SongU_DotCom Listen: www.SongU.com/members/Danny |