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For my inaugural newsletter, I thought I would start by showing you what makes a song work for sync.
The best way to learn how to get better at sync is to study the artists that get tons of them.
What better way to start than with the sync god himself, Outasight.
Unfortunately, many artists don’t realize how a few simple tweaks can take their song from sync troll to sync gold.
It’s not his network, it’s the songs
It’s easy to jump to conclusions why your song isn’t getting synced
- Supervisors just aren’t listening
- Directors only want to use popular songs
- The gatekeepers won’t let you in
But Outasight came out of the gate with lots of syncs before having much of a following of fans.
There are 3 specific reasons why his songs stand out from the crowd when it comes to sync:
1: Energy
Energy is the key to syncability. The tempo has to “sync” with the pacing of the film.
Any tempo will work in film but the likelyhood of your tempo fitting the pacing of the scene or spot is much higher with a mid to uptempo song.
Outasight’s songs are almost always mid-uptempo. Not too fast, not too slow. The goldilocks of sync tempos. It helps the footage move along without dragging or running the audience over.
Listen to some of his music and see if you feel it.
2: Broad Lyrics
Broad or vague lyrics get so much more sync opportunities.
Outasight’s lyrics are usually all encompassing. They bring you in without excluding anyone’s experience.
You don’t want to fall in the trap of writing the perfect song about “Seattle” when the film is set in Boston.
There’s nothing wrong with writing a song about a specific person or place, but a little tweak at the end of the songwriting process will triple your chances of getting placed.
3: Positive Lyrics
Happy people buy things. This rule especially applies to songs for ads.
Outasight lyrics are usually about a feeling or attitude
And he uses vocalise (“oohs and ahs”) – nondescript words that could work in any situation.
In Conclusion:
I would never ask you to write solely to fit to these rules.
Write great music from the heart, first and foremost.
But the chances of getting syncs goes up dramatically with a few tweaks at the end of the songwriting process.
Take these ideas into account and hopefully my next newsletter will be sharing your music as the new sync king or queen.