DSA 2024 SONG CONTEST SEMIFINALISTS ANNOUNCED at Monthly Meeting in November

 

DSASC2024 SEMIFINALIST

DSASC2024 SEMIFINALIST

AMERICANA

1. And They Danced to Embraceable You

2. Devil Rail 

3. Dodged a Bullet 

4. Fishin' on the Guff 

5. Funeral In Wichita

6. My Own Way

7. Second Chances

8. The Growing Years

9. To Stone

10. You Don't Know What You Don't Know

CHRISTIAN

1. Blood of My Son. 

2. Common Thread

3. First trip to Church   

4. Goodbye

5. In You Alone. 

6. Is that You Jesus? 

7. Pray 

8. Save Me

9. The High Pasture

10. This Little Baby 

COUNTRY

1. All I’m Hearing Is Goodbye

2. At The Heart of Love

3. ATV

4. Come On My Side

5. He Never Shrugged

6.  I Wanna Ride Horses

7. Love of a Good Man

8. Memories Find Their Way Home

9. Only The Warriors

10. Shades of Blue

11. She's Gonna Leave a Scar 

12. Something That'll Last 

13. Stand Tall 

14. Twilight Legends

15. Wedding Party

16. When You Were Loving Me

INSTRUMENTAL

1. Alone To Wonder

2. Blackest Night

3. Ma Bonnie Lass

4. Midnight Mush

5. “Song for Tim – To a Life Well-Lived”

6. Wings of freedom

LOVE SONGS/ EASY LISTENING

1. 1111

2. Broken Home Lullaby

3. Each and Every Moment

4. Fool Against Nature

5. Head Over Heels

6. I Guess We're Even Now

7. Mara

8. Mr. Moon

9. Nothing Short of Paradise

10. Second Time Around

11. Second Chances

12. Shadows In the Garden

13. That Man You Imagine

NOVELTY

1. Bass Ackwards Tonight

2. I Can't Rhyme

3. JESUS, WHEN YOU RETURN, BRING ELVIS

4. My Darling Daffodil

5. Popcorn

6. Riley and His Marching Band

7. Skip Tracer

8. Sleigh Full Of Love

9. The Door To Your Dreams

POP/ROCK

1. Breathless 

2. Celebrity

3. DikDok 

4. Dream Again 

5. Girltime

6. I’ll Never Be a Falling Star 

7. Inconvenient #3

8. Jagged Memories 

9. Just Chillin’ 

10. Last Stop for Sanity

11. Love is Real

12. Music Box

13. Nothing Good 

14.  Prey

15.  Somebody Special 

16.  The Past is not through with Me

SINGER SONGWRITER

1 Between the Rainbows 

2 Defuniak Springs 

3 Every Moment, Every Memory 

4 Fabulous Flying Machines 

5 Fun in Heaven 

6 He Never Shrugged 

7 I Knew Her When

8. I'll Never be a Falling Star 

9 Inside My Dreams 

10 Life Had Other Plans 

11 Love of a Good Man 

12 Petrified 

13 Remember Me 

14 Second Time Around 

15 She's Like a Melody 

16 Shine On 

17 Someone, Somebody 

18 Today and Tomorrow 

19 When to Say When 

20 Without Knowing the Night 

33rd Annual DSA International Song Contest Winners Announced in January at Awards Program

 Dallas Songwriters Celebrate Songwriting at Annual Awards Show

DSA celebrated winners from the Annual International Song Contest and the Young Songwriters Contest in January 2024.

 

Dallas, TX, February 24, 2024 --(Blogger.com)--The Dallas Songwriters Association presented their 33rd Annual Song Contest Awards highlighting 2023 songwriting contestants via Zoom with a live stream to Facebook featuring live performances by semifinalists, contest winners, and multiple presenters. 

“Their were so many talented entries,” said Americana Judge Jenni Mansfield Peel, "that it made my job very difficult ." “The songs just keep getting better each year."

Winners of the DSA 33rd Annual International Song Contest were announced in eight categories, plus the Grand Prize winners. http://dsasongcontest.blogspot.com.

Judges were industry professionals who judged songs based on six elements of a song:  hook, melody, lyric, structure, originality, and truth.  DSA offered over $5,000 in prizes.  Each category winner won a free membership to DSA.  First Place winners received $100 and 2nd place winners received $50. 

Once again, DSA partnered with Broadjam, who provided fantastic prizes to some of our winners, including a 1-year Broadjam Primo MoB Membership ($199.95 Value). Other prizes awarded were: one song critique from Barbara McMillen, Associate Professor of Songwriting at Collin College, recording time at JoMusik Studio, and two tickets to Between the Waves Music Conference.     

33rd Annual Song Contest Awards

             Grand Prize Winners

 

M'Lynn Musgrove of Los Angeles, California, the Grand Prize Winner of the 2023 Dallas Songwriters Association International Song Contest is enjoying her new Casio PX-S1000 Privia Piano, for her song "Fade Away." She also placed 3rd with her song "Safety Net."

M’Lynn began writing songs at age of 12 after growing up in a musical family.  Her career began at age 15 while attending Booker T. Washington High School for the Visual and Performing Arts where she was inspired and moved by her talented peers.
In 2016 she was a semi-finalist in the B.W. Stevenson Memorial Singer/Songwriter Competition hosted by Poor David's Pub, where she was the youngest participant. Also the same year she was accepted into the LA Grammy Summer Program at USC.
In 2017 she traveled back to LA to record at 64Sound Studios and created her first EP, “Grounding” which gained traction in Dallas and throughout global radio stations. Her song “Just Take Time” was named #2 of 2018 by Mi-Soul Radio in London, while another song off the EP. “Gave All My Love Away” was trending in France. Her two latest singles “T.F.I.L.” and “Paralyzed” were recorded locally in the summer of 2018, and released early 2019.
M’Lynn has been accepted into the music/songwriting programs at Berklee School of Music in Boston, The New School in NYC, Loyola, in New Orleans, Belmont University in Nashville and The University of Miami- Frost School of Music in Florida. She was one of 12 chosen for the Bruce Hornsby Creative American Music songwriter program.
Besides being the DSA 2023 Song Contest grand prize winner for her song, “Fade Away” which also won 1st place in the Love Song/Easy Listening category, She is also a Grand prize runner-up for her song “Safety Net” which placed in the Pop/Rock category. "Safety Net" also made the top 10 out of thousands of entries in the Tiny Desk Contest Top Shelf 2023.

 

The 2nd place Grand Prize Winner of the 2023 Dallas Songwriters Association International Song Contest is Wayne Gathright for his song “Country USA.” He also won first place in the Country category for his song "Close Enough" and Honorable Mention in the Singer Songwriter category for his song, "Behind A Wall". He was also the winner of the Dallas Songwriters Vern Daily Songwriter of the Year for 2023.

He was chosen 2019 'Songwriter of the Year' in Austin TX after winning 2 separate song contests in 2019 . He has also been the 'Publisher's Pick' at the Texas Songwriter's Symposium for multiple songs. He has written and recorded over 150 songs.

 Will Townsley from Arlington, Texas won a Grand Prize Honorable Mention for his song,"Nothing To Do With You". A former writer for Curb Publishing and Al Jolson/Black and White Music, both out of Nashville, Will Townsley’s songs have been recorded by Jason Ashley, Colt Prather, and others.
Will has performed with artists that include Sammy Kershaw and Joe Nichols and opened for Jake Owen, Brett Young, Chris Jansen, Richie McDonald (Lodestar), Larry Stewart (Restless Heart), Tim Rushlow (Little Texas), Blues Traveler, and The Wilder Blue. He has performed for major organizations including the Dallas Cowboys and was invited to perform at songwriter showcases that include the world-famous Bluebird Cafe in Nashville, Tennessee and the Wildflower Music Festival.
Will teaches currently teaches music industry courses at the University of Texas–Arlington.

             Grand Prize Winners
1. Fade Away by M'Lynn Musgrove, Eva Honey, Dallas, TX
2. Country USA by Wayne Gathright, Austin, TX
3. 3. Safety Net by M'Lynn Musgrove, Eva Honey, Dallas, TX
HM Nothing to Do With You by Will Townsley, Arlington, TX

  Judge Roy Elkins comments: https://dsasongcontest.blogspot.com/p/dsa-2023-song-contest-awards-grand.html

 

Category Winners

 AMERICANA/FOLK/BLUEGRASS,,,,,
1. My Beautiful Mistake by Louis Cate, Alexandria, VA
2. When You Were Loving Me by Andrew & Elizabeth Wolf, Washington, DC
3. Bayou Sef--Dedicated to Frank Allen Swayze by Charles Carter, Terrell, TX

CHRISTIAN/INSPIRATIONAL,,,,,
1. I'd Be A Fool by Theodore Henning II, Fort Worth, TX
2. Other Side of the Wind by Louis Cate, Alexandria, VA
3. The Media's at War by Charles Carter, Terrell, TX

COUNTRY,,,,,
1. Close Enough by Wayne Gathright, Austin, TX
2. Nothing to Do With You by Will Townsley, Arlington, TX
3. Dallas by Charles Carter, Terrell, TX
HM. I Fall Apart by Renee Safier, Redondo Beach, CA

INSTRUMENTAL,,,,,
1. Song for George by Andrew Wolf, Washington, DC
2. Armadillo Blues by Theodore Henning II, Fort Worth, TX
3. Summer Daze by Lance French, Rowlett, TX

LOVE SONGS/EASY LISTENING,,,,,
1. Fade Away by M'Lynn Musgrove, Eva Honey, Dallas, TX
2. Until You Become Mine by Phil Ipsan, New York, NY
3. We Say I Love You by Kenney Noguera,  Conconully , WA

NOVELTY/CHILDRENS,,,,,
1. Hey Little Hero by Kelli Caldwell,  Portland, OR
2. Like This (A Dancing Song) by Kevin Reardon, Riverside, CT
3. The Door To Your Dreams by Mark Patterson, Plano, TX
HM. Santa Claus Got Lost by Louis Cate, Alexandria, VA
HM I Got An App For That by Charles Carter, Terrell, TX

POP/ROCK/ALT/R&B,,,,,
1. Everything by Ethan Senger, Canton, GA
2. Look Away by Christy Sasser, Fairhope, AL
3. Safety Net by M'Lynn Musgrove, Eva Honey, Dallas, TX
HM Pick Up Those Pieces by Kenney Noguera,  Conconully , WA

SINGER/SONGWRITER,,,,,
1. Lonesome Is As Lonesome Does by Louis Cate, Alexandria, VA
2. Life Is Hard by Eric Ramsey, Scottsdale, AZ
3. Wonderland by Trinity Reed, Plano, TX
HM Behind a Wall by Wayne Gathright, Austin, TX
HM Forever Drive by Jeffrey Widman, Plano, TX

 

DSA honored Emma James of Corpus Christi, Tx with the Young Songwriters Award. https://youngsongwriterscontest.blogspot.com

 

 YOUNG SONGWRITERS CONTEST
Dreaming Wild by Emma James, Corpus Christi, Tx
Happy For You by Ava Della Pietra, Old Field, NY
Worst Of Times by Ava Della Pietra, Old Field, NY
Your Plans by Nyasia Robreno, Heartland, TX
I Don’t Know the Words by Braden Meek, Grapevine, Tx

 

 

DSA celebrates and continues to honor the hard work of their members by presenting the Vern Dailey Songwriter of the Year Award and the Best Song of the Year Award on Feb 17th.

DSA Facebook

DSA YouTube

 

 

About DSA

Dallas Songwriters Association is a 501 C-3 non-profit educational organization dedicated to enhancing the overall personal growth and professionalism of our members. With a passion for music and songwriting, DSA offers various events to support their members’ growth through workshops, open mics, networking, showcases, song contests, and community service.  Support DSA by visiting https://dallassongwriters.org/.

Contact

Dallas Songwriters Association

https://dallassongwriters.org

32nd Annual Song Contest Awards Grand Prize Winners

On January 14, 2023, the DSA 2022 Song Contest Awards celebrated winners of the contest with a program that was live streamed to Facebook and now available on Youtube. The program features performances by contestants and announcements of the winners. Our grand prize winner is a French and Canadian national, Thierry Coupey. Second and third place runner up is Mike P Ryan.

Thierry Coupey of Quebec, Canada, the Grand Prize Winner of the 2022 Dallas Songwriters Association International Song Contest is enjoying his new Casio PX-S1000 Privia Piano, for his song "Redemption (The Last Waltz)."

Thierry also won all places in the category of Instrumental with Redemption, Soothing Times and Mes Series B. Born in France, he grew up studying classical and jazz. Work took him the Quebec, Canada where he has been living for more than 20 years. He joined the Broadjam community in 2012, as well as, SOCAN and began to pull together his creativity from the last 30 years. He posted his collective creative works in order to take advantage of the networking opportunities. If you visit his Broadjam site at https://www.broadjam.com/notabene you will notice that he has 149 songs posted. 

Thierry is an accomplished artist, a skill he has honed since childhood.

More on Thierry's art from his facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/thierry.coupey.notabene

I had an opportunity to ask Thierry a few questions.

DSA
1. How and when did you become a songwriter?

Thierry Coupey
Composing music has always been in my genes I think, as far as I can remember. It looks like I was born with a need to express myself in arts, drawing first, at age of 5, first sketches, female esquisses, but music writing took over around age of 10 or 12 I would say. I remember in my village in France, at age 15, with accademic courses, I got my parents enrolling the Choir 'Viens et Chante' and I was harmonizing a lot of songs for this 4 register choir. My sister Nathalie, at that time wrote also a few french lyrics songs as well on some of her melodies.It was only much later, that english song writing was tried in Canada, with my Broadjam membership since 2012

DSA
2. Are there any songwriters that influenced your writing? Do you do any co-writing?

Thierry Coupey
A lot... :-) And my old friends from France will smile :

Back in the beginning in French : Jean Jacques Goldman, Michel Berger, Charles Aznavour

In english : Elton John, Barclay James Harvest, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, Pink Floyd, Fleetwood Mac, Roxy Music...Queen

More recently : Sarah Brightman, Hans Zimmer, Lady Antebellum

Since my english writing is not native, yes I do co writing in that sense. I bring the music and expect more expertise in the english lyric writing from peers.

Actually, when I write in englsih, I always try to get some input from co workers. I am discreetly asking fro their opinion at work (in the IT department of my employer, we have a lot of englophone / native bilingual people)

DSA
3. What is your writing process, i.e. do you start with a melody or something else? Do you write lyrics?

Thierry Coupey
Either way. Often I would say, I let my fingers free on the piano. And there comes a catchy melody or chord sequence. If it sounds a bit familiar, I try to alter a few things to make sure it is really an original. Recording this exercise on the spot as an draft audio is also essential, as it can take time to lay down my findings on paper.

When I am not on the keybord, say in the car, I may thing of a speech to a friend or family, for a special occasion, or to express how I feel. And a series of rhymes can come to my mind. People say I am a poet. But I am just trying to find the best word at the best place.

I really like writing because thoughts are so fluid and short life, that I better take my time to find the best way to express it. And laying things on paper, taking time to do so, really pays off. At least, for me.

I have also on hand a synonym dictionary, as well as rhymes dictionay, antonym...etc... in french and english. But honnestly,I sparsely use them. Excess will disrupt the sponaneity of thoughts and will certainly mask a big part of their authenticity.

DSA
4. How did your DSA song contest winner “Redemption” come about and why do you think it is such a good song?

Thierry Coupey
ceivedBeing recognized for hard work is the dream of all artists I think. Beyond money, prizes, etc... winning such a contest is the utlimate reward a music composer can dream of. Especially because it was against lyrics submissions, experienced songwriters, in all categories and genre.

Come on, how could one even imagine that would be possible ??

I was certain that my track Redemption was a good one. May be not by best shot I have ever produced. But now, with all the critiques received and the detailed analysis from Roy Elkins, I am certain it is a raw diamond that needs to be even more polished and used in a movie or a big scene soundtrack.

(See below for Roy’s critique of the song)

Inspiration on this music track emerged when a good friend of mine made me discover Charlotte Cardin's songs (who is getting international from Quebec I think). I also made french lyrics on Redemption, and got it sung by my old friend Ingrid (remote from France, with whom I collaborated a few times already) : a very emotional french song about Human Resilience : Guerrier Admirable

DSA
5. What advice do you always give to people who want to be songwriters or improve their songwriting?

Thierry Coupey
Write on paper. Not always on electronic devices as it slows down the natural flow of inspiration. Use pen and paper sheets. Listen to lyrics on radio, analyze, play with words, think outside of the box, say things differently.

Get an audio recorder on hand (just a push button) even in the car (or in the shower :-). Essence is to capture things as they flow.

Also dont hesitate to get feedback from friends, or even coworkers who dont necessarily know you intimately, so they will bring more objectivity to their insights.

I have followed the '50 songs You Should Write' Madison video broadcast by Roy Elkins, who gave me a great set of options to widen my inspiration. Like trying to compose in a different key, write on a specific subject, alter the tempo and time signature. Roy helped me a lot in this subject to improve. And I would recommend to follow his hints and tricks.

THINK AND EXPLORE: 50 Songs You Should Write with Roy Elkins | Making a living as a musician is difficult, but it can be done. Join local musician and Broadjam founder, Roy Elkins as he breaks down how to... | By DreamBank - Madison | Facebook

Thierry receiving the Privia keyboard

Judge Roy Elkins comments on the winning song, Redemption (The Last Waltz).

Easy, genius, humble, intellectual and respectful is how I would describe this piece. The song starts with a minimal drum beat in 6/8 time. At 12 seconds a simple melody begins on a B note on the 1 and easily plays to the 5th below on every note of the measure. Then the rhythm is repeated beginning on the D below playing a similar pattern. For the most part, the rhythm is repeated throughout the entire piece and one feels it building each time. But at 55 seconds it comes to a sliding mechanical stop, then repeats the rhythm pattern with another tasteful selection of notes. Some other effects are added in, eventually a violin with a counter melody. Then the arrangement picks up a little steam at 1:35 and the listener feel it’s ready to take off at any moment. Beautiful arpeggiated strings enter at 2:11. The listener continues to wait for it to explode as it grows a little more, then another mechanical stop, followed by sopranos that could have come directly from a Carl Orff rehearsal to this session. It never does detonate like I thought it might. It was disappointing, no wait a minute, it was genius. Clearly this writer has some training, coupled with natural talent as I feel they could have taken this to a whole different place, but the magic of this piece is “what they didn’t play.” Sometimes we writers want to cram as much in as possible, but this is a patient writer who knows how to captivate with simplicity. Brilliant work and I would love to hear more from him/her. Although this is not my favorite genre, it will be in my personal collection. Although the sound selection was brilliant, especially the sampled chorus, one could probably replace any of these sounds with any other sound and it would still work as the melody is so engaging. It’s a high quality melody and why this song is one the best in this competition. 

The 2nd and 3rd place Grand Prize Winner of the 2022 Dallas Songwriters Association International Song Contest is Mike P. Ryan for his songs Some Goodbyes (which place 3rd in the Singer Songwriter category) and Between Heaven and the Ground (which won an honorable mention in the Singer Songwriter category).”

Mike Ryan's Southwestern roots and keen eye for detail have made him a favorite among Texas music fans. He has been a finalist in The Kerrville Folk Festival “New Folk” competition and the Dallas-based Wildflower Singer/ Songwriter contest. He has performed twice at The Dripping Springs Songwriter Festival and is a semi-finalist in the past year’s Dallas Songwriter’s Association Song Contest. No stranger to success outside the Lone Star State, he has been a finalist in the Connecticut Folk Festival Songwriting Contest and a winner in American Songwriter Magazine’s lyrics contest. In 2017 he won first place in the Roots/Americana category of The Mid-Atlantic Song Contest. He is a combat veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan. You can find his website here: https://mikepryanmusic.com

Mike performed on the Awards show which is post on youtube HERE.

Judge Roy Elkins Comments:

2nd place Grand Prize Winner is Some Goodbyes 

A great hook. We all hear lots of songs about leaving, but this one is different. The singer is a son leaving home and talking about the advice his mother gave him as he was getting ready to go. She tells her son he’ll find love with this advice “You’ll swear that she’s your forever love, but the first one almost never is.” An excellent line. As he’s leaving, he sings, “We both laughed a little, when she said, I’m too tough to cry.” This song is filled with so many lines that could be hooks in other songs and is an example of a lyric that is perfectly coupled with the melody. If you read the lyric by itself, it is good. But with the melody it’s fantastic. My guess is this song was worked on and crafted as this is certainly done by a writer who has many songs under their belt. Congrats on this awesome piece of music. 

As I have said so many times before, it is difficult for an instrumental to win a songwriting competition. In the past, I think I have only picked one to win and very few have placed in the top 5. I listen to all of the songs about 10 – 15 times while evaluating. This year, one song stuck in my head through the whole process from the first listen to the end. I kept humming this tune over and over again.

3rd place Grand Prize Winner is Between Heaven and The Ground 

I enjoyed this a lot as the melody and “feel” of the song is amazing and Between Heaven Hell is a great hook. The melody is simple, pleasant to listen to and married well to the lyric. You can hear someone singing this around the campfire or sitting on a stool in a club. As I listen to this, I hear a potentially much larger song. I only say this from a commercial perspective, as I love the song exactly how it is. While I love story about flight, I think modifying the lyric to a vague reference of being high on love “Between Heaven and the Ground.” This could make a strong hook in a unique way to say the same thing writers have been saying for years, but with different words. If this was my song, I might experiment with a little “less about flight and more about love” approach and I don’t think you’d have to change many words around. It’s very good as is, my suggestion is for a broader commercial market and the ability for other genres to cover it I graded this very high. Hope this helps! Production note: Excellent, great recording of the vocal. 

More awards are planned for March 25th when DSA will honor Opening Bell, Tone Shop, 3 Amigos and Patty Allen Driver as outstanding community partners. 

DSA celebrates and continues to honor the hard work of their members by presenting the Vern Dailey Songwriter of the Year Award and the Best Song of the Year Award on March 25th.

DSA Facebook

DSA YouTube

 

 

About DSA

Dallas Songwriters Association is a 501 C-3 non-profit educational organization dedicated to enhancing the overall personal growth and professionalism of our members. With a passion for music and songwriting, DSA offers various events to support their members’ growth through workshops, open mics, networking, showcases, song contests, and community service.  Support DSA by visiting https://dallassongwriters.org/.

Contact

Dallas Songwriters Association

https://dallassongwriters.org