Conversations with Jason Blume

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jason Blume. 

Jason, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I grew up in Philadelphia. I joke that I’m from the South, but it’s South Philly. My father played mandolin every day and my sister signed a major record deal when she was sixteen. Her group rehearsed in our basement. So, it wasn’t surprising when I started writing songs at twelve. I would write poems, then strum a few chords on my father’s mandolin or a guitar and sing the words I’d written. In high school, I fronted an acoustic trio and was the lead singer with a rock band that never got farther than my parents’ garage. 

I majored in psychology at Penn State and took every music and composition class I could squeeze into my schedule. I performed my original songs and my favorites by Joni Mitchell and Cat Stevens in local coffeehouses. After graduation, I worked in a psychiatric hospital and planned a career in psychology. I had a special interest in psychology because my father suffered from agoraphobia. He had been unable to walk a block from the house for more than thirty years. During my college years, I worked with my dad, serving as his pseudo phobia therapist and healing our relationship in the process. I’m writing a book about that, but that’s another story. 

While working at the psychiatric hospital, I spent nights and weekends as a strolling mandolinist at an Italian restaurant and performed in nightclubs, bars, and coffeehouses. After a year, the hospital I worked at offered to pay for my Master’s degree if I would commit to working for them after graduation. It was my fork in the road. I thought about it, but my heart knew that if I didn’t pursue being a singer and songwriter, I would never forgive myself. 

I recorded a demo of three of my original songs, packed everything I could fit into my Datsun Honeybee, and with $400 (and no credit cards) I headed to Los Angeles. I was sure I’d have a #1 song and be driving a Mercedes within a year. It didn’t even take that long for the Mercedes. I got a job taking rich peoples’ cars to the car wash! 

A temp job led me to a position in public relations and management for some big celebrities. I stayed more than a year and learned some invaluable info about the business of the music business. Then I landed a temp job in the country music promotion department at RCA Records. I had never listened to country music and next thing I knew, I was immersed in songs by Dolly Parton, Kenny Rogers, Alabama, Charlie Pride, K.T. Oslin, Sylvia, Ronnie Milsap, and so many other iconic artists. My first day on the job, I stuffed vinyl singles into envelopes and mailed them to radio stations. It was the debut single by an unknown act named The Judds. That first Judds’ album blew out every misconception I’d ever had about country music. The songs, the production, musicianship, and of course, the vocals were incredible—and I knew I wanted to write like that. 

I wrote a song that I thought would be perfect for the Judds and I brought it to a publisher. It was the first country song I’d ever written. I wound up rewriting it seven times to incorporate the publisher’s suggestions. Along the way, I brought in an awesome writer and musician, Bryan Cumming, to collaborate. Although we were living in L.A., Bryan hailed from Georgia, so I figured he must know how to write country music. 

After rewrite #7, the publisher overnighted the song to his Nashville office. The next day, I received a call congratulating me on my upcoming single! The song, “I Had a Heart,” was recorded by a terrific, soulful artist named Darlene Austin who was signed to an indie label. It peaked at #63 on the Billboard Country Singles chart. Not exactly a smash, but while it was still rising with a bullet, I took my first trip to Nashville to write with Don Goodman, who had produced the track. Don had written some incredible hit country songs, including “Ol’ Red,” “Ring On Her Finger, Time On Her Hands,” “Dixie Road,” and “Angels Among Us.” 

Don didn’t show up for our writing session and his wife Gayle set me up to write with AJ Masters (who passed away much too soon). Forty-five minutes later we had written a song called “Change My Mind.” It was light years better than anything I had ever written, and I was sure it wouldn’t take more than a week or two to get that song recorded. Three years and seventy-five rejections later—eleven years after I moved to L.A. to become an overnight success—the Oak Ridge Boys recorded “Change My Mind,” and suddenly, all the Nashville publishers who hadn’t returned my calls were offering me staff-writing deals. 

I signed with Zomba Music Publishing’s Nashville office because they owned a record label (Jive Records), had offices around the world, and were successful in multiple genres. I figured I would have an “in” to work with their artists, and I would be able to write in various styles. That was the best decision of my life. I would probably still be there if Zomba hadn’t been sold. Ironically, the Oak Ridge Boys’ version of my song did not do well. You’ve heard of a song having a bullet. This one had an anchor! But five years later, John Berry recorded “Change My Mind” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GI36TNAWPcQ) and he slayed it. It played on the doorbell of the Green Hills home that it paid for! 

After a couple of years of going back and forth between Nashville and L.A., I moved to Nashville, where I rented a converted attic in a home in Sylvan Park. Mike Hollandsworth ran Zomba’s Nashville office and he was brutal on my songs. But he was amazing at pointing out what needed to be stronger and pushing me to not settle for anything less than my best work. Looking back, I guess I learned how to critique songs and develop writers from him. During my twelve years at Zomba, my songs were on albums that sold more than 50 million albums and I had singles on the country, pop, and R&B charts—all at the same time. Readers can listen to many of my most successful songs by. clicking on http://jasonblume.com/hits.html . 

People are surprised to learn that Britney Spears flew to Nashville to write “Dear Diary” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IR8cPHfLuus) (from her “Oops, I Did it Again” album) with me and my collaborator Eugene Wilde. We produced a demo with Britney’s vocal at a studio on Music Row. I wrote with several of the Backstreet Boys and Gary Baker (“I Swear”) at Gary’s home in Alabama. That’s where we wrote the Backstreet Boys’ “Back to Your Heart.” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KaO9Yls3b8s) I never imagined I would move to Nashville and wind up writing with pop mega-stars. 

The first time I took a songwriting class, the strangest thing happened. I looked at the teacher and I knew that was what I wanted to do. I wanted to write hit songs and gain credibility as a songwriter so that I could teach. I developed the BMI Nashville Songwriters Workshop and have been teaching it for thirty years. One of the most popular features of the workshops is that I critique a song from every attendee, and when I find a song that I think is truly exceptional (not just perfectly crafted), I forward it to up to ten publishers. Six of my students have written #1 singles. I’ve lost count of how many signed publishing deals and how many placed songs on hit albums and in TV shows and movies. FYI, those workshops are now online and are open to anyone. I also teach other online events as my schedule allows. Readers can learn about the workshops (http://jasonblume.com/workshops.html) and my song critique service (http://jasonblume.com/pro-song-critique.html) at my website www.jasonblume.com (http://jasonblume.com/index.html). 

Teaching songwriters is my passion and probably my greatest talent. I’ve taught in more than ten countries. Presenting a masterclass at the Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts, co-founded by Sir Paul McCartney in the building that was formerly Lennon and McCartney’s high school, was about as good as it gets. I’ve also been honored to teach for Berklee College of Music. 

Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) is a tremendous resource for songwriters, in addition to being powerful advocates to protect songwriters’ rights. I’ve anchored their song camps and taught for them many times, so I was excited when they asked me to write lessons for their members. After I had written eighteen of those lessons, Donna Michael who was with NSAI and is a talented composer, artist, and minister, suggested that I had the basis of a book. I had never thought about being an author, but it was a way to reach more people than could ever attend my workshops. 

For eighteen months, I wrote that book from 6 AM till 9 AM Monday through Friday before going to my publishers’ office to write songs. The book, 6 Steps to Songwriting Success was published by Billboard Books and became the #1 songwriting book at Amazon. It was followed by Inside Songwriting (https://tinyurl.com/mr44c2u7), This Business of Songwriting (https://tinyurl.com/mssu6nb5), and a revised and expanded 2nd Edition of 6 Steps… (https://tinyurl.com/2p8pcb28) I’ve also written more than 100 articles for BMI’s magazines, MusicWorld and The Weekly, and I’ve been interviewed as a songwriting expert by the New York Times and Rolling Stone magazine, and have been on CNN International, PBS, the BBC, and other media. My magazine articles are archived at my website (http://jasonblume.com/songwriting-articles.html). 

Those who subscribe to my email list (http://jasonblume.com/contact-us.html) receive a free 35-minute video, “3 Things You MUST Do For Success,” a monthly newsletter, and twice-weekly tips to enhance and nurture creativity. One doesn’t need to be a songwriter to benefit from it. 

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
When I first moved to Los Angeles, I only worked fifteen hours a week so I could devote my energy to learning my craft and writing and recording songs. I lived in one room in a horrible area—no kitchen. I shared a bathroom down the hall with junkies, hookers, mice, and cockroaches. There was a SWAT team on the roof of my building the day I moved in! 

I ate cat food when all I could scrape together was eleven cents. Sometimes, people hear that and think I must have been miserable. But it was one of my happiest times because I was pursuing my passion, and I had no doubt I would soon be successful. 

When I got tired of eating kitty tuna, I started working temp jobs. Some of them were truly awful. At one point, I shredded paper eight hours a day. 

For every success I’ve ever had there were probably a hundred or more disappointments. That’s just part of the music business–and any creative endeavor. Songwriters and other creative people need to have the tender heart of an artist–and the skin of an armadillo. 

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I sometimes joke that I specialize in being versatile. I’ve had successful songs in the country, pop, R&B, rock, and Christian genres, as well as in the Asian markets. I attribute that to having grown up with so many different types of music in my home. I’ve also done a lot of work for TV and Film (“Scrubs,” “Friday Night Lights,” “The Guiding Light,” Disney’s “Kim Possible,” “Assassination Games,” …), and I shared an Emmy award and an additional nomination for my contribution to two PBS documentaries. 

One little-known fact about me is that I write greeting cards for Blue Mountain Arts. For me, it’s like writing songs, but without the need to rhyme, write melodies, and record them. They’ve sold more than 8 million of my cards. They are in Cracker Barrel stores, as well as other locations. 

As an extension of my teaching, I sometimes do keynote speeches and I speak and perform at private corporate events, and write a song with the participants as a group. 

I’m profoundly grateful to have earned my living as a writer for almost thirty years now. I love writing, whether it’s songs, books, articles, or greeting cards, but I feel most centered–most alive–when I’m teaching. I feel like it is what I was born to do. 

What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
I have no doubt that it’s my stubborn persistence—my refusal to have a “Plan B” or accept anything less than success—that allowed me to accomplish so many of my goals. I probably have much more determination than natural talent. I hung in eleven years until I earned a meager living as a songwriter. It was a total of sixteen years before I was enjoying the kind of success I had imagined. 

I’m grateful to still be getting my songs recorded and to be mentoring the next crop of hit songwriters. My latest release is “Come Back,” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tn8U4VOh37A) the debut single by K-Pop-style band “Crossing Rain,” and I’m working with the kids in the band. 

As I think about what I’m sharing in this article, it’s almost hard for me to believe that the kid with “impossible” dreams went on to live those dreams. 

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: http://www.jasonblume.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/songwritingwithjasonblume
• Other: http://jasonblume.com/contact-us.html