Why great songs never get heard
July 16, 2026
Ever wonder why some incredible songs never get in front of the people who can actually place them?
This has been my experience.
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Hi Chris, yes, indeed, I feel pretty discouraged. I’ve spent all this money in a couple years pitching to Synch through this program now and still have not had a placement. At times, I think that my music will never get synched, that I’m just one in a million , but then I meet with a music supervisor and get really positive feedback and get reinvigorated with hope…. But still no placements. I’m definitely questioning whether or not to hang in there or not. That said, I’ve really enjoyed the program and really enjoyed learning so much and meeting with the Music supervisors. Just really hoping to start getting a placement or two to feel like I’m doing the right thing. Thank you for all your efforts.
I am sorry to hear that, Jenn, especially when there are lots of other members getting regular placements. Come out to the Office Hours call coming up and let’s see if we can figure out what is going on with your music and/or targeting. See you then!
Thank you for this video. I feel like it is a difficult uphill battle to get my music heard. Specifically for the reasons you stated in the message.
It certainly is if you don’t have the right path to get your music heard. Thankfully there is a better and proven way!
Thank you so much for the encouragement, I really appreciate it! For ages I felt like I’ve been shouting into the void, but recently I’ve been feeling a little hope. I can’t wait for your next SYNC cohort next January!
Sounds great, Ben. See you then!
I agree.. it is and always has been about relationships in this business… and tenacity. It’s easy to get discouraged… and I do, but then I also know that I need to keep going if I want to get where I want to go. Sync Songwriter has given me an incredible leg up in the world of relationship building and sharing and pitching my music to supervisors who actually listen. I just got my first placement in less than 2 years with a supervisor, who was the first one I ever met with in sync club. I sent him songs every few months and stayed in contact with him. If we believe in our songs, ourselves and a little bit of luck and fate… it’s all possible. Thank you Chris, for another inspirational video and the reminder to keep going!
Hey great news, Robbie! Two years later is unusual, but I am sure you are not complaining. 🙂 Congrats and keep it rolling!
You are 100% correct. I worked as a film composer for over a decade and it took years to build those relationships. Back then we sent CDs in the mail and made cold phone calls. In-person networking was extremely valuable. Now that I’m pitching songs it’s all a digital world so that is something else to navigate. But like you, I believe the relationships are the foundation. There is a trust factor that comes into play when you meet one on one.
They are absolutely the foundation. Otherwise you are just one other musician floating in a sea of music.
Of course I feel like that. I have great sync songs, as do millions of other songwriters. I have songs that I know would work well in sync as do millions of other songwriters. How can you help with that?
That is what Sync Songwriter is all about, Gregg. Just reach out.
This video triggered something in me that made me want another video – one abut what supervisors look for in character and relationships. If relationships is key (as you have stressed many time), then what are the personality traits, or the relationship aspects (for lack of a more recognizable term) that supervisors crave ? It seems that if we become that person, or conduct our half of those kinds of relationships, they would love working with us. Now, that may sound a little like a be-everything-to-everybody desire, but really the things they are looking for are probably desirable, anyway. And this is before they even hear your music. I would love to be in a position of being in front of a supervisor that is thinking, “I love this guy and this relationship, so I am inspired to help him bring his music up to what is needed, to get the sync/placement.”
It has a lot less to do with personality traits, Chris. It thankfully is not a popularity contest. It really comes down to your music.
Hi Chris
Yes, I realise that building relationships is the way to go. I’ve had some great comments on my pitches but I still don’t really know how to follow up with the supervisors. I have emailed them with short lists but I have so much more to offer. I don’t know whether to follow up with emails or not. I have set up a sorted catalog on Disco in the hope it will be visited. But I don’t know if it will. I would love to work more closely with supervisors and suggest songs that might fit. But that would require them to send me briefs. Are they likely to do that? I just don’t know how to proceed from here without possibly becoming just another nuisance to them.
If you are in the current class, Kieth, this is very early to be thinking about follow ups. Just bring up your thoughts on the next coaching call and we can talk about it then.
Hi Chris my feeling about my music is that I think my lyrics are good, but Ai is the problem when I have an issue with finding someone to compose the music for me, so how do I find someone who can take my lyrics and make a hit out of them. Help lol
There are tons of online studios out there, Adan, including mine at Sundown Sessions Studio. Just find one in your budget and you are good to go.
Hey Chris… hate to say it but it does seem like an impossibility after doing everything you taught me in The Art of the Song Pitch. I have worked hard at this for a very long time and all I hear… crickets. It really comes down to right place at the right time. As I had said prior after one of your videos, I am ok with this. I love making music whether one or a thousand listen to it. I do wish everyone that is pursuing the golden ring but realistically, you have about as much chance as a college athlete turning pro… check the numbers. It’s about the same percentage as getting your music sync licensed.
Sorry that is what you think, Paul, but I have an awful lot of members who continuously defy those supposed odds. That said, it is really good to hear you are happy making music no matter how many people hear it. In the end you have to follow the path that is right for you.
Lottery? Yes, but it feels impossible. In fact the first LP with my former band, Kra, was called “Doing The Impossibull” (1986) and it is one of the best albums (almost only instrumental music) I’m on. But get any of it into a film? We played on Finnish National TV, both in studio settings and LIVE broadcast, and we played LIVE, here and there, minor festivals, an uphill battle, sometimes aided by people in the business hearing about us.
From ca 1989 I’ve been mostly writing for the Finnish national instrument, the 5-string Kantele, which has helped me get gigs (solo) in schools, kindergartens, libraries, old age homes etc.
I’ve done music for theatre in the 1990s and on, and for some amateur films, even for TV, but always when I’ve thought I’ll be taking off, it has stopped. And those at the Finnish Radio who have liked my music are mostly pensioneers or dead by now.
I have difficulties in mustering any optimism any longer. And all these people on the net who want to “HELP me get my music heard” ask for sustantial fees I can’t afford.
Right now I’m working on a 20 song CD for which I was granted a couple of grants, bigger than hitherto, but yet not to make a living from. Selling CDs today? Hmm?
If you think it is a lottery, Stani, then that is what you will end up playing. There are far better ways and that is by connecting with the right people in TV & film. You don’t want to just trust someone online saying they can get your music heard, you need to know that you will be meeting with the actual people who will place your music. Wishing you the best.
This hits the nail precisely as to how I have felt and thought over the past 4 years in Sync Club. Yet what it always comes down to for me, anyway, is, keep the negative thoughts at bay, know that eventually it will pay off both emotionally and otherwise. This experience has been more about personal growth and shedding old habits and ways of thinking. Given the direction mass music is going, this is really the only path that matters, and ultimately, its the music creation, the song writing and producing, that matters to me. Thank you, Chris, for keeping us focused.
Thanks, Jim. I don’t like hearing about people who have been doing this awhile with no syncs when others have been landing them regularly. Hopefully I see you at Office Hours.
I joined AOTSP on a recommendation – and the first effect was to force me to go into the studio so I had something to present! (I’d been procrastinating, ‘meaning to do it’ for a while). So net result was an album! Fab! Moving in to Sync Club, I guess I have the same feelings as others – I may not win it, but at least I am in it. However, the process has definitely been motivating, and I’ve learned a huge amount about presentation, and the positive feedback has been energising, feeding in to other aspects like gigs and getting radio play. Obviously the crux is coming in September – whether I’ll sign up for another year – not sure yet – it’s a tidy amount of money to spend on what is essentially a gamble, even though the odds have been vastly improved over being just another email punter.
Great to hear it lit a fire under you. 🙂 You shouldn’t look at it as a gamble, but instead a formula that works, it just needs to be executed in the right way. Come out to office hours and we can talk about that further.
It seems like everybody we are dealing with in this program, meaning you and the Supes, go into what all the challenges are in the multiple processes of getting the songs into the right hands and then building the relationship. What none of youse involved however say, is what do we SAY or DO to get responses. Will we EVER have one of these people pass on a word of encouragement on the material we send? Is it just endlessly sending pitches, hoping and wondering if anybody even SEES or LISTENS to the song? I went thru this in Nashville, pitching songs to artists, publishers, band members, even monkey grinders standing in front of Union Station Inn, waiting to see Andy Reis who is Mandy Barnette’s band leader. He’s also the best guitar player you ever heard and heads up The Time Jumpers, who play there every Monday night. Or used to. Anyway, I got monkey-bit for my troubles, but DID talk to Andy. He plays on 3 of the CD’s I’m pitching, so there’s some fine goin’s on going on. We’re all a little frustrated, Chris. I know. It’s the nature of the business. I/we accept that. And if it was easy, everybody would be doin’ it. Oh, that’s right. Everybody IS. Waiting is the hardest thing in the world to do, especially with pre-conceived expectations. And then they don’t show up. Like ships that don’t come in. (great Diffie song) It can really beat you up if ya let it. Don’t let it. I lived next to Joe, and watched him actually nearly break his windshield, he slammed his hood down so hard one night after another (his 4th) rejection when he first moved to Nashville. The night he finally signed his deal, he leaned on the same truck and cried like a baby. It was a special moment, and me and my roomie cried with him. Then we got bombed. Ships DO come in. I BELIEVE that. I’ve had success. I’d give it all for just a little more. 🙂
Thanks for sharing your story. My friend one time said to me he wanted to show me something. He opened a cupboard in his room and it was full of box after box of rejection letters. He never gave up though and eventually moved to Australia and had a successful career in the music business even singing for the Australian President at one point. So i guess if you believe enough in yourself and your abilities you cant go wrong. But for me its the music that matters. Some people are driven by the promise of money or fame or whatever but i think if you love creating music and you can spend your time doing that then you probably already are a winner in my humble opinion even if it doesn`t always pay the bills.
Great to hear you see that it works, Paul. Like you said, Andy played on your albums because you built the relationship. That is exactly what you are doing when you are meeting the music supervisors at Sync Songwriter face to face. That is the surest path forward I know and why our members see the success they do.
Hi Chris – Thanks for the video 🙂 I think it helps in this whole process to have some kind of financial backing to stay in the game. This pursuit is definitely a costly thing from the get go. I don’t mean sync club in particular. I mean the whole process. When I asked my later-to-be wife so many years ago to marry me, I explained that I knew, even back then, that creating music in some fashion or another was not something I did, it was who I was, and that it wasn’t going to change. And in all these years, writing for the Atlanta symphony, recording with gospel groups, playing for many years in theatre productions and teaching and mentoring aspiring composers, like you said, it always came down to relationships; period. It always has and it always will. But, to stay through any course of productivity, it takes resources. And, I think that’s where folks feel the squeeze so much. I know I do. It’s all about having enough gas in the car to get to the next station.
It’s great to hear you are a creator for life. Yes, we need resources to do all the things associated with getting our music out there and is one of the reasons why I created Sync Songwriter. It is one of the few places you can get paid really good money for your music. Come out to office hours coming up to see if we can solve your challenge.
Hello Chris, thanks for this blog and your (continued) encouraging words. What we have been taught in the 2026 AOTSP about doing our research and targeting our songs for specific music supervisors makes so much sense. You have said that it’s a numbers game, and we have to do the work! Do the research, send a targeted (and well written) email to the specific music supervisor (with our links from DISCO) and wait. (And remember to put the info about that email in our “tracking” log!) I used to work in radio advertising sales and the value of targeted marketing is the same. And also, if it’s about relationships, we have had the opportunity to connect with other songwriters in this program, people we probably would have never met before. These connections are part of building that relationship network you talk about, in addition to connecting with music supervisors. I know there are lots of well-known singers who already have a lot of albums and songs that are “out in the world.” I am happy for those people. A rising tide helps all boats. I am grateful to be in a position where I had some creative chops to write a few good songs and able to afford a good studio (because I did not want to do the “tech” side.) I’m grateful to have taken the AOTSP program because I learned a lot about the music business and the program helped energize my energy around my own songs and other people’s music, too. I will do the work, and stay unattached to the outcome. If a placement is meant to happen, it will. I know there are lots of songs I’ve heard in movies and TV shows that have touched my heart. I’m grateful for music and to have songs I can share. Thanks for your vision to help independent songwriters. My impression is that you are a person of integrity, in a world that may sometimes lack integrity. I believe that what we put out into the world is what we get back. Thank you for your contribution to our careers. You must be proud when you hear about former participants who get placements. You’ve done the work, with the commitment to help others. You are a very bright and caring person (and the same can be said of the Sync Team). With your commitment to help others, that kind thoughtfulness will return to you in many forms. May you be filled with peace and always have a song in your heart! (Thanks for taking the time to read our comments. It means a lot that you do it.)
Thank you for the kind words, Kristi. You have it figured out, now let’s go do it!
Yeah, like the previous comments, it’s discouraging spending all the time and money on a hope, and recognizing that even the encouraging comments from a supe who wants to hear more is not a guarantee of anything. There are simply too many people writing very good music and my good song that might fit something is in a room with so many other good songs that also fit. Numbers. What I tell my band mates, and what I try to remember myself, is that we play and/or write music because that is what we do, not because it’s our day job. I wish it was, but I am not going to stop because it isn’t….yet. It may never be. But SYNC Songwriter is as good an avenue as I have known so far. We’ll see. I am fortunate to be able to afford it for now. I am sure there are 1000s of better song-writers that don’t can’t afford this chance or even know that such a thing exists. Music / art is precious.
Thousands?! Try millions of songwriters who are all competing against each other doing the same thing. If you are in a room and where a supervisor gets a number of songs they can count on two hands for all their opportunities and then you multiply that with lots of supervisors and all their projects, that is why our members get all the placements they have. They are not competing agains the millions.
Thanks Chris… It’s easy to see you care and that you have been on the up and up since we started. That’s rare in this business so I sincerely thank you for that. I appreciate all the info we’ve been armed with during this class. I have learned a lot or at least what NOT to do. At this point it will just be up to each and every one of us to keep pushing forward with what we’ve learned. I’ve done that for years… sometimes you win, sometimes you lose but Tenacity does win eventually. Although it is difficult to know exactly what a MS is looking for, when we do our research and homework, the opportunity sits before us. Thx for the opportunity…
It sounds like you just need to work on the targeting better, Richard. You got this!
Hi Chris, I don’t believe it’s impossible. But it is somewhere between difficult and unlikely.
All my songs were Produced in a Professional Commercial Studio environment, and have gotten some substantial notice on social media. However that’s where the buck stops
Any ideas?
It’s hard for me to offer advice without being able to hear your music, Martin. It really just comes down to having music that is good enough to get into TV & film and then building relationships with the people who place it. That’s it.
Even my friends and family have shown little interest in my musical ventures. I’d post a song online and it would never get past the first few listeners because no one would share it. I had given up, had several unfinished songs in my DAW. A friend showed me what was possible with suno so I used all my old demos, prior recordings and unfinished tracks to train suno and produce really outstanding versions of my songs. A couple weeks after finishing that multi-month project I found this program and learned those suno versions had no value here. I’ve been remixing the older tracks that were suitable and finishing the newer ones over the course of this program, so everything I’m sending in is a recent effort. I do hope to get a placement but I am also glad to have the motivation to dive into the recording process again. I had no audio on my 1st pitch session so basically got nothing out of it, including an invite to share more songs. In general I hold little to no expectations from anyone for anything but it would be a dream to find a niche in this industry.
Yes, unfortunately music supervisors do not accept AI produced music. They want humans expressing the emotion, not a computer. If you redo them with an online studio with real players, you can definitely get them synced.
Is a real shame on the AI front chris. I uploaded one of my demos of a ballad i had through suno other day and it produced it beautifully even keeping to the original piano parts i had written. It did add the icing on the cake so to speak but I was genuinely blown away by how good it was. But i understand the issues around AI in general with sync and potential copyright issues but i feel that if people are using their own material and simply using AI as basically like a sound engineer to help with workflow that should be something hopefully the sync community may look at changing in the future because AI is here to stay regardless of if we like it or not. Its not like you can copyright a chord progression after all so why should AI producing music be any different?
I think mostly people don’t like being sung or played to by a computer. We connect with music because of the human spirit behind it. The copyright issue is of course the big one. Music supes just don’t accept AI. It’s probably like the difference between fast-food and regular foods. There will be a place for AI, but where it matters it will likely remain in the human domain.
Thanks for replying Chris. I came back to see if you did respond which i always do because i know you value your time and i value your opinion. I was quite anti A.I music to be honest but having heard one of my rough demos being handled beautifully by suno after a few remixes and using a woman’s A.I voice i changed my opinion. It will retain the melody of your copyrighted composition if you set the level right in sunos settings which is quite an important point i would like to emphasise as regards copyright. Suno is improving all the time in what it does. I believe some people are using the stems and adding the human voice element back into it. As you say there will be a place for A.I. Time will tell i guess if that will be in sync to some degree. Thanks for getting back to me.
There is a place for AI, Ray, it’s just in the lower tier stuff that doesn’t pay much if at all and you are competing against a tsunami of AI tracks. In the mid and high tier it is human music only and will likely stay that way. You can’t copyright AI generated music and people don’t like being sung to by computers apparently. 🙂 That said, I love hearing about your continued creativity with it.
Hi Chris, I feel very discouraged as well. I have been pitching in the last 2 years on TAXI and I have had some songs forwarded but no placements or followups in any of those forwards. I spend every year to be part of it but its beginning to all feel like I am gambling my life savings away creating Music. I always feel like stopping because I realize there is no money or fame and the funds is not there often to support this dream of just being heard and seen in my ART . And as each year passes by…. I feel more and more anxious, restless and sometimes stupid for even trying to dream. I’ve written many songs about this feeling as an outlet . But with every year that passes by…. Music is beginning to feel like its destroying my senses and assets in a way that leaves me with a bitter taste to not keep going. Apart from all these feelings.though .. I am also very thankful for being able to write music again. After a 40 year hiatus, I have accomplished more that I thought in the past 3 years and have met so many amazing creators and industry people since that reemergence 3 years ago I would have never even imagined being part of this group with a few songs under my belt to play for people to listen to. For now, I will continue on this journey in hopes that I will say to myself someday… that this path is worth the direction in effort that I have taken …if not monetarily… at least in the satisfaction that I have built myself a catalogue of songs I am very proud of. These experiences have shaped my beliefs so far… in hopes that I can become the best I can possibly be in this ART. Moreover Through connections here and there..I am building something worthwhile while I am still living and creating from the Love of this ART.
That is great to hear you are still making music, Michelle, but you sound like one of the countless musicians out there playing the sync lottery. There is a better way forward.
Chris, I did not sign up for your course but I did participate in the online meeting where you described your course. It did sound interesting, you certainly sounded sincere and knowledgeable. I’m retired, thankful, (after 30 years of working in sales), to finally have time for my musical passions. I love writing songs, coming up with riff’s, melodies, song structure, lyrics, playing the guitar, bass, keyboards, recording everything. Why didn’t I take your course? I retired because I wanted time to do for me. I spent my whole life doing for my customers, my bosses, my family. I didn’t want to jump through hoops anymore. My songs are for me. If I have to make my songs so they appeal to someone then it just becomes work. I have not actually put my music out there at all. No streaming, (Why would I do that? They don’t pay you). You also run the risk of someone uploading music using your name, (not your music). Then you have to spend countless hours filling out forms, talking with customer service trying to have the music removed, often to no avail. I don’t want to spend my time doing that. Having your songs online also leaves you open to having these Ai companies scraping your music and then copying it. No thanks. And if I decide to upload some videos of me playing music you also run the risk of Ai copying aspects of your look, sound, backgrounds. Why go though all the effort of creation if someone’s just going to copy it? Seems like the internet is the Wild West. Would be nice if congress got off their ass and started to put in place some protections for creators. Copyright seems like it should protect you but Ai seems to be making an end run around that. I’ve thought about creating my own website so family and friends could listen to my songs but not so sure I’m going to do that either. Seems like you would still be subject to Ai scraping. I used to really enjoy playing my music for friends. I was really proud of what I created. But then, you never knew if they were just saying nice things to be polite or because they really liked it. And then they would also say it reminded them of X artist. I would go listen afterwards to X artist and would be like, what the hell are they talking about? Sounds nothing like that.
I have toyed with the idea of copyrighting my work, has protection. The problem is I feel like I need to have my own publishing as well. And if I am going to do publishing then perhaps I should set up an LLC just in case someone wants to sue. Starting to sound like work again plus my accountant does not do LLC’s. So… I just do music for me. I enjoy it and that’s good enough for right now. Perhaps I’ll change my mind at some point? But thanks for encouraging everyone.
Thankfully you don’t have to write for sync. They are looking for authenticity. At Sync Songwriter, you literally just get on calls with music supervisors, play them what you have, and can land tracks in shows, movies or ads. It sounds like you have found your path though, and there is nothing wrong with it being a retirement hobby. Wishing you the best!
When I moved to L.A. to get a record deal, it took me a while as I was still playing gigs. I joined a band that was focused on getting a record deal. We played showcases and shopped our music to every label in town. We did end up getting signed and my lesson learned was, it only takes one person to say yes when everyone else says no. Only takes one.
Yup! And in sync you can have a lot more of them saying yes.
How can I get songs listened to for evaluation if they would suit for SYNC. I understand that SYNC songs don’t need to be hits. they need to be right. Thoughts?
You can have your songs evaluated for sync inside Sync Songwriter, Tobe. Just reach out if that’s something you’d like to do.
Hey, Chris, thank you for this video! I am in your 2026 AOTSP and have learned so much – I had no idea before your class on how to do this at all but have been writing songs and performing all my life. I am excited (just through 2 of the 4 pitches now) and plan to keep going, but also trying to enjoy the ride and not get nuts about getting synced while I’m determined. You are a great teacher and very encouraging…and you remind me that I can’t win if I don’t try!
Thank you for the kind words, Louise!
Thanks Chris, for creating a path thru the wilderness and opportunities to have our music heard by those in a position to create sync placements. Everyone in Sync Songwriter has been terrific to work with. Relationships take time. I worked in advertising sales for many years. I found that where I focused my energy was not necessarily where my actions paid off, but that the cumulative effect of being in the game, learning and doing my best, my efforts were rewarded over time. Sync Songwriter offers support, structure and opportunity for “happy surprises” and the sense of “being in the game”. I am very grateful to be part of this world!
Exactly! Relationships are cumulative. When you have them with a bunch of supervisors, that is how to get steady stream of placements.
So it’s all about the relationships and not about the music, mmmm! It should be about the music more so. I learned from a friend that use to manage artists, he said he met many of the music sync supervisors and he said it’s all a click. They use the same people over and over. It’s very rare they’d use an unknown’s music. On a side note I’ve heard songs in movies that I thought were just terrible. Like it was the cheapest thing they could get. Or a family member or friend’s. I think it is like someone said, like putting a message in a bottle and throwing it in the ocean hoping someone will find it. Although, that might happen quicker than getting a song in a movie. But good luck to all with that.
Who said sync licensing wasn’t about music. 🙂 You are right, music supervisors typically don’t use music from unknowns, it’s all about relationships. If you think success is like putting a message in a bottle, you’re going to have to be awfully lucky to find it.
Hey Chris- thanks for the video. What’s the #1 way to establish these relationships you’re talking about?
The only way I know how is through Sync Songwriter, DG. Just reach out if you are interested in doing that.
Hi Chris…I’m right there with Jenn in her earlier comments: almost to the end of year 2 / universally very positive meetings w/ supes [and have met with the vast majority of them at least once] without a placement yet / you and the team have been great to work with and I have learned a lot / on the fence about the value of signing on for a 3rd year.
Sorry to hear that, Bruce, especially when we have members getting steady strings of placements. Come out to office hours coming up to see if we can figure out why that is happening.
I’m reminded of the final lines from Pink Floyd’s “The Wall”:
And when you’ve given them your all
Some stagger and fall
After all, it’s not easy
Banging your heart against some mad bugger’s wall
That sums up how I feel. I’ve been trying and trying to get my stuff heard – not as an artist, because I’m not a good singer or performer, but as a songwriter. I genuinely feel that my songs have got a lot better over the past two or three years, and if I’d been in the right place at the right time, I’d have had a couple of Number 1 hits, or had one of my songs featured prominently in a major film or TV series. But it feels like my music just isn’t wanted – it’s not cool, or it’s too old-fashioned, while utter garbage (this year’s winner of the Eurovision Song Contest comes to mind) is celebrated as the best thing since sliced bread.
And yet, even though I’ve often given up and decided I shouldn’t bother trying any more, I find that, after a while, I want to have another go, just in case it works this time. Then I end up nearly bankrupting myself, paying for all sorts of services, and they never seem to help.
That is the beautiful thing about sync licensing, Mike. You don’t have to fit into a box. There are so many opportunities out there, that there is a home for every song. It just comes down to connecting with the right people.
I go through various phases, feeling frustrated, but then reminding myself I am in it for 1. the long game and 2. because I love writing and recording music. When I first started studying ‘sync’ and how to get there, it was suggested to have a five year plan and I think that was probably good advice. But you have to be proactive and stay with it, you have to be diligent and consistent. I just keep visualizing *that* email or call.
I would say there is no such thing as a 5 year plan in sync. If you do it right, it is a same year plan.
I post this with hesitancy because I don’t want to come off sanctimonious.
I’ve been working a lifetime dedicated to music and the last 16 years of a full time music career, raising a family on a single musicians income. Now I’ve been balancing creative time into the sync world all while trying to figure out how to keep my fan base engaged in my life and music that I’ve built over the past 20 years.
I can’t make a hit song, viral video or sync placement happen, so why do I still do music. Why do I keep coming out to my studio, spending time and money on this thing I can’t seem to let go of? Because it not only feeds my soul but it also feeds a few other souls and some I’ve never met and never will. But always, just when I’m about to stop, I get an email or a comment that spurs me on.
I do this for myself, I do this because I’ve been given a gift to hone and share, and I do this for those who may never let me know about that one song at that one time made a difference in their life.
Take this for what it’s worth but I myself wouldn’t and can’t imagine doing anything else. I’m now 54 and I don’t plan on making any career changes to the contrary.
Sync is just one more way a musician nowadays has to try and make happen. Yes, it is my retirement plan but I’m gonna keep writing and releasing music and performing. All these avenues collectively bring in enough income to keep going. Right now sync hasn’t paid, but one day it might. Until then, I keep creating.
Keep on friends.
I love your spirit, Ted. Just remember that success in sync is about worker smarter, not harder. Wishing you the best!
I’m nearing the end of year 3. no placements yet, but i’ve been able to build at least one great relationship, and have a direct line to several other supes. I totally believe it can happen. I’m willing it to happen this year. Full disclosure: I’m living with my parents. They both have some very difficult health challenges – from degenerative muscle disease to chronic pain to blindness to a never-ending roller coaster of blood pressure and PTSD. They’re 86 and 85 years old. I would love for something to happen in sync before my mom passes. I never managed to accomplish much before my grandmothers died (it didn’t help that I had un-diagnosed ADHD until a couple of years ago). I sat and sang and played some of my songs for each of my grandmothers maybe once or twice – it was scary for me to even do that. I’ve never sung my songs in front of other people. That’s definitely some of the appeal of the sync world. I just wanted to try this so I wouldn’t be on my deathbed someday regretting that I never made the attempt. We’ll see what happens, I think something good will come of all this.
If you only have one good relationship and a line to only a few others at the end of 3 years, you are doing something wrong. It might be that you are not selecting the right supervisors to meet with who are looking for your particular kind of music. Just make sure you tracks are the quality they need to be and then make sure to target it well. That is how so many of our members get placement after placement. A simple formula, but it takes some work to get it right.
I think it was in one of your interviews with a supervisor where she mentioned that is took five years to get a placement for an artist she was working with. Pretty easy to imagine what that artist’s feelings on this question might have been at about four and a half years. I suppose that is a good argument to continue making music, continue to get better from the knowledge you gain, continue meet like minded people who can help, and continue to enjoy the process.
Yes there are always outliers like that where a sync happens years later. I just heard about an artist from Montreal who just landed a big car commercial with a song he recorded in 2010! They typically happen in weeks and months, so it must be a shocker for those outlier artists.
This is my 5th decade in the music business, and it seems to me that to succeed you must gather these three: you need to be in the right place at the right time with the right thing.
Modest talents sometimes rocket to stardom when they happen to hit all three. Truly innovative artists often can’t get traction because their offerings don’t resonate with the public or the powers that be. Hugely successful idols can crash and burn when they are out of sync with the times.
So what to do? Find our core and do the work, intuit where taste is heading, and stay touch with those who are responsive to what we have to offer.
And hope the stars align.
You nailed it on the first point. You need to be at the right place at the right time, which is what Sync Songwriter is all about. It puts you in front of the people that matter when you have what they are looking for. That is how our members get so many placements!
Hello Chris.
Honestly, before Sync Songwriter I was feeling like I was getting close to being at my wits end. I did not know how to reach out to music supervisors, and sync libraries weren’t appealing to me. Then somehow, you showed up on one of my social media feeds, and I felt and believed that I would at least learn “how” if nothing else. I am proud to state that I not only learned how but, through you and your team having supervisors speak with us, and the invaluable pitch sessions; I am comfortable reaching out and submitting to the supervisors I have spoken to, as well as trying to create new connections. I do have to upgrade to “Disko” but that goes with the territory. I am very grateful for you and your team and our time together. And I do believe I will get a sync placement in the near future. Thanks again. Wieland
Great to hear, Wieland!
It depends what day you ask me. I feel that you are right. Cold emailing is a needle in a haystack and what you’ve put together is beyond impressive. I’ve in the running (hopefully) for a movie project and that shows how possible it is but there are several consider: first of all, iin the end will the music fit the scene, is it the best match. Also, a number of briefs come through where they couldn’t be further away from your wheelhouse. And lastly, a number of years back I had a song recorded by Dionee Warwick that fell through the cracks and it was supposed to be a done deal. There are many things out of our control-so the best thing is to forge ahead with a smart plan. Thought this career can be very expensive to pursue.
You are obviously on the right track, Ellen! In your case it just comes down to numbers. Instead of two or three fires in the iron, it’s great to be able to connect directly with lots of music supervisors and that is when the magic happens.
Hi Chris,
All my life my problem has been not having any contacts. However since joining your course for the first time I meeting Music Supervisors online and it has been a fantastic experience! I have actually built some great relationships but as yet not a single placement. I know it is a waiting game but I am at the end of my tether and even running out of money which may force me to pack it in (which just is not me!). Just hoping for that miracle to happen!!! Living in hope!!!
Sorry to hear that, Harin, but know that the success I see over and over isn’t just the music supervisors I put people in front of; it is giving them what they are looking for when they are looking for it. A big part of this is making sure your music is targeted to the right opportunities. No matter how much they like what you do, they have to be able to use it in the shows, movies, and ads they are working on.
Excellent topic and I think I can lend some perspective. I started writing songs in the early 70s, played some of them in numerous bands. We even played them as an opening act for Blue Oyster Cult, The Tubes and Eddie Money to name a few. The crowds loved us! And nothing happened after for the songs or the band. I was also a technical program manager in high tech and know relationships there were the foundation of my success. I have never felt as close to making something real happen for my writing than I have since the discovery of this class and the learning/connections from it. I choose to keep positive vibes and look forward to my first sync placement ,60 years into pursuing this dream!
I am anything but discouraged. I am optimistic and encouraged! I registered for AOTSP with a fair bit of skepticism about how (or if) the program would be at all beneficial in helping me get exposure for my music. I certainly don’t know if the four Pitch Sessions will result in placements, but the feedback received from the Music Supervisors has been extremely validating and motivating. Beyond that, the wealth of information made available to the class has been invaluable. Sure, I could have googled, chatGPT’d, and researched the information piece by piece, but to have such a broad scope of sync licensing education available via a single source has been such a worthwhile investment.
Thanks so much for this course. I’m so behind in watching everything–life is so busy! Once I finished my songwriting masters, I jumped into grad level opera courses (just for fun) as well as many other unexpected commitments. But I’m hoping to catch up as much as possible and I’m enjoying meeting the supervisors. I’ve had great feedback but no placements yet. But they’ve all been incredibly supportive about my music, so I’m happy I’m here.
This course has given me the hope to continue on this path. You’re right, I don’t have a lot of time. I turn 80 next month and I’ve spent a lifetime working toward this period in my life where I can finally focus my time and effort on the music I have written. I can’t thank you enough for the constant encouragement and concern you have for our well being. RpT
With my involvement in iHeart Media, radio, various productions, it is fact that relationships are everything, and this applies beyond sync to the whole industry of media. The saying is “Who you know isn’t half of the battle, it’s the whole war”.
As for the feeling, I would say still uncertain. Beyond these pitch sessions, starting a connection from cold still feels unclear, unlikely. Due-diligence gives leverage, that’s valuable, but wont matter if the messages get lost in the void. Avenues I see are building out networks, finding less crowded contact methods, and standing out as to not be just another song solicitation. Lots of great information here, with valuable feedback from the sups themselves. This all helps paint the picture of the sync industry.
Meeting people in the TV & film music industry is exactly why I started Sync Songwriter.
Thanks Chris! You reviewed my song in early January and said it was perfect for Grey’s Anatomy. And within 72 hours I received the e-mail and call!! Working on the final touches of my first album. I cannot thank you enough for the inspiration to get me going and keeping me focused!