Musikalisk artist

#1 That Familiar Sound

Step away from music for a second. Think about how shoppers are accustomed to seeing certain presentation styles of consumer products at stores. You buy orange oranges, not blue ones. Similarly, radio listeners are used to hearing certain “styles” of songs. Study the hottest songs in your genre.

The vocals, chord changes, melodies, layers—all of it. You will never catch an A&R rep’s attention because you sound completely different. It will be because you sound familiar, only slightly different. A different shade of orange. The band Five for Fighting's vocals sounds like a different shade of Dave Matthews’. They just sold 500,000 albums. Pete Yorn’s voice sounds like a different shade of Eddie Vedder's. Coldplay is a different shade of Radiohead. Get over the idea of “selling out.” If you want them to sell, make sure your oranges are orange - no one buys blue ones.

#2 Repetitive, Simple Melodies

Creed, U2, and Lenny Kravitz are three of the biggest bands in the world. Their melodies are extremely clever, but basic. Start humming their songs without lyrics. Something strange happens. There is a boatload of repetition, melody-wise. A breeze for any ear to follow. Familiar almost. This is purposeful.

These acts have been around the block and know what sells to broad audiences. Non-complex melodies. They are proven masters at crafting catchy melodies, by keeping them simple. Simple repetition is powerful.

#3 Generalize

The goal here is to make it easy for people hearing your song to connect it to an emotional experience in their own lives, past or present, whether they realize it or not. This means less specifics. Appeal to many, not just a few. If your song tells a story, leave out misleading details and paint a broad picture using vivid—but universal—words.

Goo Goo Dolls are a perfect illustration of this. Like them or not, they sell albums. They color their songs with general words like “dreams, life, world, earth, angels, forever, touch” that are effective. Sarah McLaughlin is also an expert simplifier. Although her lyrics often descriptive, she strategically scatters universal words like “angel, life, cold, storm, church, ghost, snow, shadow, time, dream” in her songs. It pulls a listener’s emotional strings perfectly. Learn from Sarah: generalize masterfully.

#4 Speaking of Lyrics: Study Up

This sounds strange, but it works. Hop online and print out lyrics from any ten bands in your genre. Pick multi-platinum selling acts, bands the industry respects. Now start reading, and play a little game: memory.

Certain words will keep popping up over and over—it is shocking! Themes pop out too. Figures of time for example: Hanging by a Moment (Lifehouse), Stuck in a Moment (U2), 3 a.m. (Matchbox 20). Themes that are easy to connect. Study lyric trends, they are no accident. They sell.

#5 Nothing Comforts Like A Repetitive Instrument

Pop in Dave Matthews “Space Between” and listen to the guitar line during the chorus. It is a melody that stays constant—allowing any ear to immediately connect with it—while the underlying chords change.

The bass guitar line in Bon Jovi’s “Living on a Prayer” uses the exact same technique, endlessly repeating itself, while the keyboard leads the chord changes. U2’s guitarist Edge was notorious for this.

Listen to the first 30 seconds of “Where the Streets have No Name” or “With or Without You.” The concept is brutally simple, yet ingenious. Give people something to latch on to, so that chord changes are then gentle and seem more natural. Madonna and the Police are also pros at employing this trick. Try it sometime. Give your listeners’ ears something to hold on to besides just vocals. Comfort their ears and they will want more.

#6 Take It Up an Octave

Look at a hit like Goo-Goo Dolls “Iris.” The verses are delivered so low vocally, that when the course hits (“And I don’t want the world to see you…”) exactly one octave higher, it grabs you.

Or look at Madonna’s protégé, Michelle Branch, in the chorus of her crafted hit “Everything.” On the syllable “Ev” during the course she jumps an octave. The chorus is your chance to soar. Coldplay know how to soar. Show your range, and people will not forget you.

#7 The Stripped Down Third Chorus/Verse

I just mentioned Michelle Branch and her song “Everything.” This tune also does a superior job of stripping before the last chorus kicks in. You only hear vocals, light guitar and bongos, that’s it. How about Creed’s “When You Are With Me,” with only a flanged guitar and vocals the third time around?

Or Nickelback’s enormous hit “How you Remind Me” on the last chorus. These stripped parts are what make the hair on a listeners arm stand up straight. They pack a strong punch and most young bands could use that. Strip down baby.

Luke Eddins is the owner and manager of LukeHits.com, a company that shops potential hits from unsigned bands to Film and TV producers.