Michael K. Washington, DC
"I loved it and found it inspirational and barrier breaking.
I would do it again.
At the end of the day I vastly exceeded what I thought I was capable of."
Andrew L.
Toronto, ON
"My favourite part was posting completed songs!
It was always accompanied with a wicked sense of accomplishment"
Paul f.
Takoma PK, MD
"This course is worth it.
I learned a ton about songwriting and myself as a musician. I made progress on things I'd been stalled on for decades. I kinda can't believe the progress I made with my songs after being stalled for so long... Fantastic A+. "
Don C.
Guelph, ON
"ZeroToSong was transformative and has truly opened up a new world to me, and I cannot express my appreciation enough.!
It felt like a peek into a secret world... Scheduled deadlines and group accountability were the kick I needed to get to the finish line. "
What Participants Are Saying:
Write your best work
Anyone can compose a melody.
Anyone can create a simple rhyme.
Anyone can record on a smartphone.
Anyone can find their way to books, blogs, articles, and interviews revealing knowledge, secrets, and tips from the world’s most successful hitmakers.
So why don’t we?
Maybe the volume of information is overwhelming, or everyday life is too distracting, or easy access to recording technology makes us feel like we can get around to it eventually. Whatever the case, too many talented songwriters are sitting silently on their abilities. Too many songwriters are living through the most exceptional time in recent history and not sharing their perspective or articulating their experience.
There’s never been a better or easier time to show up as a powerful creative force, exercise your talents and get songs out of your head and into the world.
ZeroToSong is a songwriting bootcamp like no other.
Structured like a thirty day challenge, you will write 10 songs in 30 days while building a sustainable creative writing practice. Strictly timed daily writing exercises will tone your creative muscles and keep you immersed in a songwriter’s mindset
Two weekly lessons combined with songwriting prompts will sharpen and internalize foundational songwriting concepts.
Two weekly zoom meetings,
with a 4-6 person learning group, allow you to share ideas and learn from your creative cohort.
Feedback from students and coaches will help you understand and refine the ways your music connects and resonates with others.
Topics covered in this course include
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Song structures
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Chord progressions
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Melodic structure
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Lyric writing
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Killer hooks
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Advanced use of rhyme
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Tension and release
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Creating catchiness
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Emotional modulations
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Melodic math
10 Songs in 30 Days
Over the course of 30 days participants will write 10 complete original songs. These will be the combined result of daily timed writing exercises and focussed creative songwriting skills practice.
The goal throughout ZeroToSong is to practice what we learn and to strengthen our skills, so that ultimately we are ready to act with creative precision and confidence when the stars of inspiration finally align and our muse walks through the door.
Better songs reach more people
Just because an idea is presented as a song doesn’t guarantee that it will rock anyone’s world or evoke any kind of reaction... ever.
Songs, when well crafted however, stand the best chance of communicating in the way we’ve all experienced… on a deep emotional level.
Well written songs connect deeply with humans because they tap into learned cultural patterns and adhere to complicated frameworks of delicately interconnected rules.
Creating songs within these frameworks requires a number of skills. These skills intertwine seamlessly through music to make an impact much greater than the sum of its parts. The good news is, these are the skills we learn and sharpen through ZeroToSong.
Who is this course for?
This course is for people who want to write great songs. Songs that:
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Other people want to hear, sing, and share
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Tell the story of our extraordinary times
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Articulate a unique perspective
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Communicate delicate and nuanced combinations of emotion
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Connect emotionally with others
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Evoke reactions
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Stimulate ideas
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Resonate in peoples’ minds
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Make change
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Spread positivity
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Inspire others
Share your gift
Share songs and ideas that help others through this inconceivably unstable chapter of humanity.
Jumpstart
creativity
Supercharge your creativity, your ability, and your own song catalogue.
mastery
Learn the creative techniques, exercises, and processes used by the world's best loved “hit”
songwriters.
Writers'
block-buster!
Strengthen your creative brain and be ready to show-up for inspiration, whenever it strikes.
Tap the power
Uncover the powerful songs and ideas inside you that deserve to be shared.
find your voice
Convert a lifetime of playing and hearing other people's songs into a powerful expression of your own voice.
level-up
If you've ever heard a song and thought you can do better... This is your time to do THAT.
make things better
Make the world a better place with your voice, your perspectives, your vision, and your songs.
This course is for songwriters, from all genre backgrounds and experience levels, who want to level-up and refine their distinct songwriting craft. Over thirty days, participants will learn, practice, and internalize songwriting techniques, skills, and shortcuts used by the world's most successful songwriters.
It can be helpful if you can play and instrument or have a basic knowledge of recording,
but not essential.
This course is for anyone who knows the power of a well crafted song and wants to create some
of their own.
You will go deep.
Over thirty days you will write and workshop 8-12 songs that didn’t exist before you started this course. You will focus on qualities you like about songs that have influenced you and make songs that can do the same for others. You will deliver songs, sometimes when you feel like you are not even close to ready and hopefully sometimes when you’ve never been more ready.
The magic of ZeroToSong is that you will invest valuable time, energy, and hard work into your craft. You will be blown away by the volume of work you deliver in a short amount of time. You will be blown away by the help and support you receive throughout the process. You will find voices inside you that have been silent for years. You will write songs that you can share for the rest of your life.
This course is a 30 day marathon. A lot will be expected of you, and more importantly, a lot will be given. Like any worthwhile pursuit, the more you put in, the more you will get out, and that could not be more true for ZeroToSong.
Bust the creative blocks!
For 30 days you will live, think, and work like a professional songwriter. Short, easy, practical, daily routines, combined with two weekly songwriting prompts will kickstart your creative practice and allow you to burst through any perceived obstacles that previously held you back. Over a full month, you’ll build a creative practice, overcome any resistance, and escape feelings of time scarcity.
Delivery deadlines will gently push you through the stagnation of analysis paralysis. Accountability to a small learning cohort will motivate you to show up with honest work and fuel you in ways impossible to duplicate in true isolation.
What to expect?
ZeroToSong is a chance to show-up as a songwriter and work in a safe environment of trust, honesty, and respect. Together we learn, practice, create, explore, develop, sharpen, share, and discuss. You become an integral part of a community of creatives, all pushing through the same challenges; all giving their talent the attention it deserves.
Expect to commit 6-10 hours a week between reading and learning, 2 weekly meetings, actual songwriting, and any optional one-on-one coaching. That said it's always up to you. The more you give the more you'll get!
About ZeroToSong founder Zach Kellum
Zach is a longtime songwriter, composer, and creative director. His music was included in the 2020-50th Anniversary season of Sesame Street, his songs and scores continue to be heard in ads, tv shows and films. Through the 1990's and early naughts, Zach wrote and co-wrote for both of his bands, Rare Indeed and MINTband.
During non-covid-lockdown, Zach regularly accompanies yoga and meditation classes on his pedal steel, improvising live dreamy soundscapes. Zach believes in making the world a better place through his work. This can mean sharing songs that make people happy or playing music that soothes ragged nerves through uncertain times.
ZeroToSong was conceived to inspire others to show up as songwriters; to share their voices and be heard, to sharpen their skills and amplify ideas, and to add greater depth to the collective soundtrack of our shared experience.
ZeroToSong Bootcamp
Our next 30 day bootcamp is scheduled to run from September 13 - October 8, 2021. Tuition for this program is $295 (CAD).
ZeroToSong
3 Day SONG Weekend!
Over three days, you will go from ZeroTo Song!
Friday - participants meet over zoom and are guided through a creative song prompt.
Saturday - each participant works one-on-one with a coach, posts progress, and shares comments on other participant's work.
Day three - We refine and share our songs for comment from coaches and other participants.
Our next 3 Day SONG Weekend is scheduled to run October 22-24, 2021.
The fee for this three day workshop is $75 (CAD).