Mentorship
When I look back on my early days as a songwriter, I wonder what it would have been like to have had regular access to a songwriting mentor and how it might have helped fast track my career to that next level. Unfortunately, mentors didn’t seem to be as visible when I was starting out as a songwriter, or were they?
Since the pandemic there seems to have been an influx of online mentoring companies in all different fields, songwriting mentorship is one of them. In-fact SongWriterCamps online workshops and camps really took off during the pandemic and we saw a big increase of people globally, really connecting with their dreams and true calling. (I guess it takes a pandemic to make you look at your mortality, your bucket list and what you prioritize in your life).
I never thought of myself as a teacher or a mentor to be honest, so it was a surprise to me to take this rather, left field step at this stage of my career. It helps if you have a business partner who is a really great teacher and a natural mentor. Richard always inspires me to be a better teacher, (his wife Lesley is a teacher), he’s so much fun to be around, extremely talented and knowledgeable about the industry and I’ve learned so much from him. Through all of our camps and workshops, I’ve actually learned a lot from myself too. As creators we tend to doubt ourselves a lot and I think what I underestimated was how much I had to offer and how much satisfaction I would get back from mentoring others. It is incredibly rewarding.
One of the first mentoring gigs I had was back in 2002 on the first series of BBC1’s Fame Academy in London. It was a live streaming show, kind of Big Brother meets UK Pop Idol. A group of artists living under one roof being mentored by a singing teacher, a dance teacher and a songwriting teacher (me) and a therapist. (Believe me, being on camera and filmed 24/7 was no joke, you needed a therapist, we all needed a therapist!). It was an education in itself doing a TV show like this and it made me realize how much I had learned along the way that I could share with others with my experience and skills. I’m happy to say I’m still friends with some of the mentees that were on that show and it’s so wonderful to see where their careers have taken them since.
Though I might not have had a songwriting mentor as such, I learned on the field so consider many of my co-writers my teachers. I was also lucky enough to have had some great publishers along the way who believed in me. They say you attract who you need in your life at specific times and it’s so true. I want give a big shout out of thanks to some of my mentors along the way; David Massey, Michelle De Vries and Suzan Koc @Hit & Run, Annette Barrett @Warner Chappell UK, Michael Eames at PEN Music Group, ASCAP’s Ralph Murphy and Loretta Munoz and my husband Nigel Rush, my first publisher and all round champion. Last but not least, UK multi-platinum producer/songwriter Chris Neil who gave me my very first break and cut with Sheena Easton. I am eternally grateful to them all for their support and guidance.
Mentors come in different ways and means, so if someone pops up and shows an interest in your career, don’t take it lightly, having a champion is like finding gold! ~ Pam Sheyne