Alright, here's the deal:
From Jan 30th till Feb 28th i am going to write, perform, and record an original song a day, every day, for 30 days.
…seriously
…join me
Did i mention it's a contest?
Here're the rules:
There are two levels of difficulty, with two levels of prizes.
LEVEL 1 (for those who wish to push their edge):
Write the lyrics and music for a complete, original, song each day (or write 3 songs a day for 10 days… or write 30 songs in 1 day. Whatever. Just as long as you have 30 songs recorded by 11:59:59 pm Feb 28th.)
What is a song?
You decide. Maybe you'll write and record a 30 second jingle. Maybe a 10 minute epic. Maybe you'll record yourself and an acoustic guitar. Perhaps you'll throw down acapella style or a friend will beatbox behind you. Set your own goals, set your own definition.
What is not a song?
No Scatting. At least 70% of your lyrics must be lyrics (yes, “baby, baby, baby” is okay, if it's followed by what you think of “baby”)
No free-form poetry set to random noodling. A song has structure. A song has something that resembles singing (at least as much as Lou Reed or Cake.)
Sorry. We need some criteria, and the line is drawn just short of William Shatner.
No covers. Write the song, write the lyrics.
It's a contest? What do i win?
If you slink past the finish line on March 1st with ye olde sack of 30 songs, you will gain the oh's and ah's of all your friends and family. You will get bragging rights for years to come. You will have a great icebreaker for wooing potential romantic partners…
… AND you will receive (from me) a rare, gold encrusted, PDF certificate naming YOU as the coolest person in the entire multiverse.
LEVEL 2 (for those who wish drive themselves insane):
Same as above.
- But:
- Each song must be at least 2 minutes long.
- Each song must have a melody and harmony
- Each song must have at least 1 vocal, singing comprehensible lyrics, and at least 3 other elements (like drums / bass / guitar, or deep rezzy bloops / high screechy bloops / sitar, or hand claps / piano / chainsaw… you decide)
…psst, i'm doing level 2.
Is there a better prize for LEVEL 2?
You bet there is! BETTER bragging rights. BETTER wooing potential… and an even BETTER PDF certificate (diamond encrusted, worthy of framing.)
FAQ
Why are you doing this?
'Cause i'm crazy.
Is there a precedent for this kind of thing?
It's kinda like NaNoWriMo for music.
Why would anyone do this?
It's about the magical power of deadlines. It's about bragging to everyone you know that you are going to do something scary, something impossible.
Why should I do this?
Because life is about doing crazy, scary things that we don't think we can do.
Just to risk looking bad, to risk doing something you thought you couldn't do. Give someone a goal and a goal-minded community and miracles are bound to happen.
It's about pure creativity. It's about abandoning our inner critic, leaving our inner editor at a day-care center for a month. It's about seeing what comes out when we don't have time to worry our dreams into nothingness.
Chris Baty, creator of NaNoWriMo, once said:
The quickest, easiest way to produce something beautiful and lasting is to risk making something horribly crappy.
Great works of art can be created in a month.
One more quote from Chris:
The glow from making big, messy art, and watching others make big, messy art, lasts for a long, long time. The act of sustained creation does bizarre, wonderful things to you. It changes the way you look at art. And changes, a little bit,your sense of self.
Why would I do such a stupid thing?
Do it because it's stupid.
This is impossible
Do it because it's impossible.
Drop me an email at 30s30d@systemcrasher.com or respond to this post.
- Tell me:
- Your name
- Your email address
- Level 1 or Level 2
…see ya in february
