Challenging Assumptions About What Audiences Want
Every time I've tried to write a song based on what I think audiences will like, I've ended up hating the song. And the songs I'm surprised and delighted to have written tend to be the ones audiences like best. Trying to determine what a group of people will like or respond to has been mostly a fool's errand. If I've tried to create a song, an event, or a presentation from the assumptions I make about what people want, it usually is a recipe for failure. In this Coffee Break, I remember the time I lived in Nashville and attended writers' nights almost every night that I lived there. I was always amazed at how many writers tried to take radio hits and turn them into success formulas. At that time, popular country songs were about tractors, trucks, and line dancing. So, many writers would try to latch onto those trends and themes in their songs every night. Of all of the writers I met, only one had any success with one of these themes, and the reason his song go...