How to Produce a Song from SCRATCH

This video is very helpful!❤

The non-linear method sounds like it would work for me. However, I've yet to produce even a minute of my own material. I've got all the bells and whistles but I'm just completely overwhelmed and paralyzed. I guess I'm just afraid of producing the first piece of shit which is what the first 100 will be anyway. This weekend I'll just have to get over myself.

Great video! Thank u!

This video helped me SO much. ✨

Amazing advice

This is gold.

Great video!

you're so real for this, i love you

Awesome!

Non of the ways will work unless one understands the lead melody or what possibilities will be for the lead in mind....isn't it.. you are creating something for something...vocals in most cases

Hi! You have great videos! I remembered this channel and came back again :) Unfortunately I can't access your website :( Cloudflare says "Access denied". I think it's done by region, could you please add Russia to permitted regions?

Great Video, Very Helpful. Quick Tip If you turned down the lights just a bit and make them warm color, the video would look a bit better. :)

Hi . Im getting toward the mixing stage on a song, my first one. I hoping to find a video on how to correctly record the vocals . The nuances I’m used to with a performance microphone are different from the studio mic … i was wondering if their are some videos on that

I start 10 - 15 songs at a time, but as I get the arrangement done and start mixing, I suddenly decide I don’t like it - or - I feel it’s not good enough. After critical analysis, I develop a list of things to fix or change. Some minor, like ‘change the snare sound’ to major ‘craft a better guitar hook’. But, the list seems over-whelming so I often never finish the song. Out of 10 - 15, I might only finish 1. Sheesh!

I subscribed to your channel a long time ago, but forgot why. You are the music production guru! You share such good advice and explanations in these videos. A huge contributor to the music community - Thank You 😄

Non-linears probably my go to, helps the song flourish in the moment. Keep up the great videos! :)

all your vids have lots of insight , thanks so much!!

Great advices Nathan. Simple but very understandable for a beginner

I'm producing a song, in the pre chorus section of which I'm stuck in due to lack of ideas.
This video assured me that it is okay to move on to parts of the song I'm confident in rather than going in a fixed sequence. Though it seems obvious to me now, I felt like a guilt moving on to the chorus when I don't have the prechorus down. lol Now, I'm cured.
I'm just a hobby musician, a guitarist, but I know a pretty good amount of theory,and had been gigging with actual professional musician friends for few years, and only recently I got interested in producing my own pieces entirely by myself and so far, I'm having fun doing it.

I love how humble you are in these videos. Most channels on production, songwriting, mixing, etc, often sound so sure of themselves.
They make it sound like they have it all figured out, and that's the only way to succeed.
It's always a breath of fresh air when someone can admit that their way isn't "the way".
Keep making great content man!

it's funny how this guy gives out a thousand dollars worth advices and tips for free... and I have been putting into practice some of his productions advices.. and man.. I owe my life to this guy.. it's unbelievable how mixing is not as important as a great music production... Thank you Nathan! greetings from Colombiaa!

I'd just like to add that it's important to try all these methods, as they can all work for you at different times and produce different results - or even a combination of them on one song.

Nathan, a few days ago I caught your video on the importance of investing in a great sound library. You mentioned how the So Cal Drum Kit in Logic is so recognisable. [GUILTY]. Could you, perhaps do a video on how to take Logic's drums and "spice" them up - for those of us working purely with the DAW, who can't afford upgrades right now. I'm sure a lot people would find that information a blessing. Thank you.

Hey ! Did your dog walk trough a closed door ?! :-)

Hey Nathan, solid advice again. I would add that it's good to have a scratch / sketch vocal (even if there are no lyrics yet) as early as possible, especially for beginning producers, because it's important to arrange the other instruments with the vocal space / melody in mind. So parts don't get in each other's way later.
I have a hybrid workflow of writing and producing, but mostly stick to a linear approach. In these modern times, it's helpful to abandon the idea of a "demo track" and work with the mindset of a final production from the very start. (This means, like you also do, getting things right the moment you record or program then.) I think the most important skill for a producer to develop is to be very nitpicky on the details, while also maintaining the big picture of the production as a whole. To be able to balance the micro and macro level when creating a song. Cheers!

Love seeing your dog in the background 🐶

This is good. Nathan always spells it out. It's good to have more than one approach to songwriting and to production. I like sometimes to put a series of hooks straight into the DAW in MIDI and figure out how they assemble as a writing process. Starting with the chorus as BamBam says is a good move. If you're a songwriter that always starts with verse one and has difficulty finishing songs, this is for you.

What is the best free Production Software for a PC on your opinion? I‘m not sure if I should buy one yet and I wanna level up from using a mobile app to a PC Software.

Your channel is gold, thank you Nathan

Nathan I was planning on finally starting to produce my first song today now I understand how to make a melody better. Then here you are posting a video about it. Thank you so much I can wait to watch this video later and finally begin to work on producing my first song.

I always....ALWAYS....start with my Chorus. Here's why:

1. If your Chorus or Drop sucks....the entire song....sucks.
2. I spend 90% of my time making sure my Chorus has as much drive and impact as possible. So I decide how long my chorus will be and make my production time spent on that 8 bars alone.
3. Once I have a proper chorus, I work backwards. Slide them down in the DAW and easily make my Verse Progressions that are in contrast to my chorus. This keeps you grounded in your song. Keeps you from wandering around and it will never let you forget the goal. This is the biggest problem with song writers. They get lost and add too much because they have no idea where they are going. Identify your Mountain Peak....now you know where you are traveling. The Destination is set. So everything MUST complement your journey to the Top.

My teacher used to say....You are climbing a mountain with your music. The Peak of the Mountain is the "make or break moment". So start on the top of the mountain and it's easier to slide down the mountain to the valley from there. I find that I can produce MUCH MUCH faster songs with A+ quality if I start at the top of the mountain..... the big reveal.

Try starting with a Chorus. For me, this was a game changer. Even if I'm working on pre recorded vocal tracks....I won't even listen to the verse progression at the start. I'll skip them and find the Chorus and let my mind sit there never listening to the verses at the start. This allows my brain to find the PEAK and slide down to the valleys with ideas based off the CHORUS....not the verses. You can squash your brain by allowing the verses to get in there early. So stay away from verse progressions when hearing a vocal for the first time. For me, it frames everything.

Bottom line is this....If you have a C+ chorus.....You have a C+ Song. Delete and start over. Why waste your time with something that is a C+? Strive to be A+ all the time....I have hundreds of songs during the trial and error Chorus Development that I simply said to myself......It sucks. So....move on to a new idea. Start again.

The Chorus is your mountain Peak. That is where your time should be spent. Everything else will fall into place if you have your destination as epic as you can.

Wish you had more views. This is exactly where I get brain-freeze - I have an idea, start writing it, get a comparison track, of course my barely started track sucks in comparison but I somehow don't realise that, I just hear mine sounding awful in comparison to the other guy's and sorta give up. Hate myself for it, but it happens to me too often. Thanks for explaining this.

Chris.

Starting my music production journey soon! Glad that I found this video. 👍🏻

i knew something like this was coming after all the live streams u have been doing on YT

I love your videos they inspire me so much to make more content 🔥🔥🔥🔥💜💜💜💜keep going 💜and keep inspiring 💜💜

Yay first comment