Collaboration at Songbay

Songbay has always been about bringing songwriters and lyricists together. You probably already know you can sell your songs or lyrics through Songbay. So how do you collaborate with songwriters and lyricists at Songbay? It’s quite straightforward-By uploading your work, you also showcase your talent to other writers around the world, and you can connect with potential songwriting partners through our Collaboration Zone. 

To demonstrate how this works, let’s look at one of our success stories! Australian lyricist Marie-Louise met Bulgarian songwriter Bozhidar Popov through the Collaboration Zone. Along with the help of Songbay’s creative team, they co-wrote and performed on a heavy metal song titled Chains and a hard rock song titled Mad Money. Both songs have performed impressively well on YouTube and other streaming platforms, as well as impressing the judges in some high profile songwriting competitions.

 

We caught up with Bozhidar and Marie-Louise to talk about their experience. If you would like to connect with other songwriters online, this article will explain how to achieve this through Songbay, as well as highlight some of our key features and services that might be of interest. 

Marie-Louise Anastas & Bozhidar Popov (collaboration at Songbay)

 

 

How did you find using the Songbay Collaboration Zone? What advice would you give to other writers hoping to use it successfully? 

Bozhidar: I wanted to upload my lyrics and some of my demos on an international music platform. I did some research on the internet and I found Songbay. I’ve uploaded some lyrics and demos, and Marie-Louise contacted me. I felt really happy about that and with a lot of mutual effort, and with the help of the Songbay (creative team), we managed to fully complete Chains. I would advise others not to hesitate, but to use the Songbay service if they want a professionally recorded song. 

Marie-Louise: Through the collaboration zone I met Bozhidar. I loved his instrumental The Unknown and the power and emotion in his playing. Once Bozhidar had worked with my lyrics to make Chains a strong song, he then said, “How do we get a song recorded?” 

I asked guys I knew here but didn’t hear back and I had to follow up, which indicated they weren’t interested, and they weren’t. Then I suggested using Songbay, as I had two songs written and produced through their Lyric to Song Service. So, from there Bozhidar worked with Songbay on the music side. They were my second choice to record Chains, and this was because I didn’t expect Gary (composer and producer at Songbay) and his team would do metal songs. How wrong I was!

This highlights two points of interest. Firstly, Marie-Louise was pro-active in contacting Bozhidar. You don’t have to wait for buyers to license your lyrics or songs. Some of our members get their work licensed solely by uploading to Songbay. However, we have thousands of users, so the best way to be visible is to reach out to potential collaborators and start a conversation. You can message fellow Songbay members directly through their profiles if they have this feature turned on, we recommend using our Collaboration Zone to find others that are actively looking to collaborate. You can access the Collaboration Zone through your user dashboard. 

Collaboration in action at Songbay

 

 

How to Collaborate with other Songwriters at Songbay

If you would like your profile to be included in the Collaboration Zone, switch on the collaboration feature in the ‘Songbay Account’ section of your user dashboard. 

Marie-Louise also mentioned our Lyric to Song Service. Did you know you can hire our songwriting team to put your words to original music? The result is a professionally recorded song composed by experienced songwriters. You’re free to use and release the song as you choose. Many opportunities in the music industry are sadly closed to lyricists that don’t have their work set to music, for example submitting to publishers. Our Lyric to Song Service helps writers get around this.
The songbay Lyric-to Song Service >>

(Marie-Louise used the Lyric to Song Service to create two songs prior to using the service again with Bozhidar to make Chains and Mad Money.) 

How was your experience using Songbay’s Lyric to Song Service? What did you do with the finished songs? 

Marie-Louise: Songbay’s Lyric to Song Service was an excellent option for me to have a fully professionally recorded song that demonstrated my lyrical ability. The whole process was enjoyable, straightforward, and easy. The Songbay team have the knack for interpreting the meaning and emotion of lyrics through their musical expression. Their musical arrangements create dynamic within the song. Their communication throughout the process was clearly focused on obtaining the best possible song for high client satisfaction. I definitely recommend this service. 

I have my finished songs available on Songbay for license and purchase, and I submitted them to Triple J Unearthed in Australia. 

As Marie-Louise and Bozhidar have pointed out, the Lyric to Song Service is also for songwriters. We can turn demos into mixed and mastered songs ready for release and sync licensing opportunities. This is what we did with Chains and Mad Money. Although we can provide all the singers and musicians required, you have the option to play or sing on the track. Bozhidar played guitar on Chains. If you’re a singer, you can record the vocals and release the song(s) as an artist. 

I hear you made the finals of the UKSC! Congratulations! Could you tell me more about this? 

Bozhidar: Our song Chains reached the semifinals of the UK Songwriting Contest and continues in the event to finals selection panels, so there’s a chance for us to reach the finals! The song has received the maximum star rating. The UKSC is an international songwriting competition. The judges are professionals and experts, one of them is Stuart Epps, for example, a British producer who has worked with Led Zeppelin, Elton John, Robbie Williams, etc. Mad Money also received the maximum score and reached the semi-finals and continues in the competition to potentially be a finalist. 

If you’re new to online collaboration, you might be wondering what it’s like to work with someone from another country. We asked Marie-Louise and Bozhidar about their experience. 

How did you find long distance collaboration? What were the challenges and how did you overcome these? 

Bozhidar: The long-distance collaboration has its pros and cons, of course. My main challenge was to learn how to operate with my DAW (Digital Audio Workstation). Chains was my first professional recorded song, so it was quite a work – I had to record all the guitar takes to a click track and that was a big challenge for me at the beginning. I want to focus only on the positive side of it – I’m really happy that I was part of this process! 

Marie-Louise: There are pros and cons to the long-distance collaboration, but overall, I enjoy working like this, as I am connecting with people I would probably never meet. I live near Fremantle in Western Australia, which is, or used to be, the most isolated capital in the world!

The benefit is that through the Collaboration Zone we can listen to people’s music or read their lyrics and then contact them. Initially, I contacted Bozhidar. We started with my suggestion for him to look through my lyrics and choose some he liked and take it from there. I let him know that he was free to make changes to fit in with his music. Then Gary and Bozhidar worked on the music side, which was a more complex process than just lyrics to song. 

I think most challenges can be anticipated and clear communication is very important for online collaboration, especially when dealing with people from other countries/cultures. Bozhidar is very focused and clear. He knows what he likes, so I have given him freedom to create the music and his fantastic video for Mad Money. I feel this freedom is the essence for the creation of great songs. 

I think collaboration online is efficient time-wise via email, etc. The personal connection of physicality isn’t there though, which could generate more ideas. Not having a band to work with limits ideas coming from jamming and other musicians’ input. But, as this isn’t possible, I am really happy with how collaborating with Bozhidar and Songbay has worked. I hope to do it again in the New Year. 

What did you learn from the collaboration process? 

Bozhidar: I have gained a lot of experience through this collaboration process – experience in terms of musical development in every aspect! I am practicing daily and learning music theory because I want to progress and develop. I am really thankful to Marie-Louise and to the Songbay team for the provided opportunity. 

What are your plans for the songs you created? 

Bozhidar: My personal goal for both songs is to spread them globally. Actually, we did this already! 

Do you have more plans to collaborate with each other and/or through Songbay? 

Bozhidar: I hope that I will continue my collaboration with Marie-Louise, because I like her lyrics – they are deep and meaningful. As for the Songbay service – yes, I hope that they will help me with the production of the next song – Self-Destruct … when the time comes. 

Marie-Louise: I would love to collaborate more with Bozhidar and Gary, and see Rage Unfold becoming more popular, through songs that really connect to people’s emotions, in this increasingly complex world. I hope one day we will all generate an income from our co-written songs. 

I have started writing more dark metal style lyrics. See what happens. The future is unknown. 

Do you use Songbay’s free copyright registration to protect your work? 

Bozhidar: I use the free copyright registration of Songbay – I find it really useful. Marie-Louise: The copyright option is great, and I always use it. It safeguards my Intellectual Property. 

After your songs and lyrics have been approved by our quality assessment team, you can register your work for free copyright protection. We really encourage you to make use of this feature. Copyright protection at Songbay >>

Would you recommend Songbay to other songwriters and lyricists? If so, why? 

Marie-Louise: Definitely use Songbay for song creation. Gary (Composer and producer from Songbay lyric to song team) is an expert in production and a fantastic drummer and pianist. He has wide experience in many musical genres and is highly professional in his dealings with clients.

Bozhidar: I would definitely recommend Songbay to lyricists and songwriters because of the professionalism of the whole team. They are also very talented, and they completely understand the idea which a certain songwriter/lyricist wants to follow and what he or she wants to achieve. 

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Thank you to Bozhidar and Marie-Louise for chatting with us and sharing their experience! We hope this inspires you to use the Collaboration Zone to connect with fellow songwriters – and potentially release new music in 2023! Learn more about the Lyric to Song Service and remember to make use of our free copyright registration and protection. We recently launched a new music distribution service – it’s free to Songbay members!

Songbay Music Distribution >>

If you’d like to hear more of Bozhidar and Marie-Louise’s work, their links are below – go and show them some love! Subscribe to Rage Unfold on YouTube.

Rage Unfold on Youtube>>

 

Bozhidar Popov 

Bozhidar grew up with heavy metal and rock music. His love of music helped him to overcome difficult situations and obstacles in life. He started playing guitar as a child and took it seriously as he got older. He’s @rageunfold on Instagram and TikTok. 

Visit Bozhidar’s Songbay page >>

 

 

Marie-Louise Anastas 

Marie-Louise began writing lyrics in the early 90s. She gave her first lyrics to a guitarist who played with her husband, and this resulted in the creation of three metal songs. She continued to write during band practices in her living room with various bands – her husband is a drummer. She has written plays and short stories, but she feels happiest when writing lyrics! 

Visit Marie-Louise’s Songbay page >>

The Songbay Lyric-to-Song Service >>