Family stuff actually feeds my indie songwriting, not kills it

I hear a lot of indie folks say that you need to be free from family ties to make real art. I totally disagree. My best lyrics come from moments with my kids or arguments with my spouse. For example, a song I wrote about my sister's wedding got our band its first radio play. Those daily home things give my music a truth that fancy studio time can't buy. Maybe it's not for everyone, but for me, family is my main muse. Let's stop acting like domestic life is the enemy of good indie music.

3 comments

3 Comments

brown.nathan4d ago

My three year old's nonsense bedtime stories gave me the opening line for our last single. That lullaby bit got more fan mail than anything we ever wrote about being sad in a city.

reese_patel2d ago

My buddy's dad used to hum the same three notes while fixing their old porch swing every spring. Last year my friend turned that little hum into the main riff for their whole EP, and now their dad cries every time he hears it. Said it was the sound of coming home after long shifts at the plant. Funny how the boring stuff you hear your whole life becomes the part that makes people feel something. They even sampled the actual creak of the swing hinge.

miles_anderson94d ago

Ever try to write a chorus based on your toddler's crayon drawing? My kid drew a "rainbow snake eating the sun" last week and I swear that nonsense is the heart of my new demo. It's got this weird joy my older, angrier stuff never did. @brown.nathan gets it, that lullaby bit is proof. Honestly, the grocery list or the fight over socks, that's the raw stuff. My band mate wants deep poetry but my best hook came from my spouse's actual to-do list.