Write a song in your head. Let it live there. Don’t force it to leave. Check in on it every once and again. Let your relationship grow.

“If you’re making music, silence is your canvas” - Keith Richards

Try performing a slow song as a fast song. Or a fast song as a slow song. Or a loud song as a quiet song, and vice versa. Songs and lyrics can take on a new meaning when they’re performed in a fresh context.

Creative euphoria is a thrill at any age. Never stop digging for fresh ideas and inspiration.

If you go deaf, you can’t hear music anymore! Earplugs. Nice ones.

The mood of the recording session entirely influences the temperature and quality of the performances captured. The wind of the session should blow at the back of the artist, not work against them.

When you give a thoughtful compliment to a musician, there’s a chance they’ll carry it with them for the rest of their life and reference to it in difficult moments. Supporting an artist can be as easy as acknowledging their work.

Performing artists should remember and respect that each person in the audience is offering up their time, which is the most irreplaceable resource that any of us have to give.

Appreciate and support the venues and spaces that allow you the opportunity to share your music. No venue lasts forever, so thank them while they’re here.

DIY venues only exist if you do them yourself. Build your own universe.

Never forget that Black Sabbath goes as hard as it does because Bill Ward swings the drums. #BlackSabbath

1. Compose a song for only yourself. 2. Compose a song for the world. How are they different? How are they similar? Should they be different? Should they be similar?

Music can alter your mood. Your attitude. Your thoughts and opinions. Your point of view. Your relationships. Your memories. Your grieving process. Your energy levels. Your blood pressure. Your sleep/wake cycle. Your morning. Your day. Your year. Your life. What an unsuspectingly powerful catalyst!

Music is as essential to a well balanced life as sunlight, love, or medicine.

The same chords or lyrics will inspire you differently at different times. If it doesn’t work today, try it again tomorrow.

Picking any song on Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band and focusing on the bass guitar is a great reminder to never underestimate the versatility of the bass. #TheBeatles #PaulMcCartney

Your brain tells their hands which notes and rhythm to play. As your ears hear this, your heart and head work together to determine what note to play next, and send that new request back to your hands. Take a moment to appreciate how much effort your body puts forth to help you create music.

Each musician’s performance is a single ingredient in the recipe. The end result is determined by balance, chemistry, and quality. Everything matters. One bad egg can spoil it all.

Once you hear a song, you can’t unhear it. You can’t rewind to the moment before you heard the music. Even if you eventually forget the performance, it still altered the timeline of your existence, if only for a moment. Just as every minute of our lives matter, every song we hear does too.

Quickly write a bad song. Then write two bad songs. Heck- write 10 bad songs! Make simple recordings of yourself playing all 10 bad songs, send the recordings to a trusted friend, and ask which song is their favorite. You may be surprised to learn that you, in fact, did not write 10 “bad” songs.

Creativity tends to strike when it’s not under interrogation.

The larger your risk of failure is, the more likely it is that you are creating something particularly special.

A melody is a family of notes strung together on a feeling.

Trust your gut. Often times, your gut realizes what you enjoy and don’t enjoy more quickly and accurately than your head does.

A fuzz pedal is a whole vibe shift.

Live music is entertainment, but live music can also change your life.

Creating something unique will always be polarizing. Don’t let that deter you.

When members of a band are excited to collaborate or perform together, their energy can be felt in the music. Surround yourself with other artists that excite you.

The exact same song written in 50 different states by 50 different artists has the potential to sound like 50 different songs.

Write down or record your ideas as quickly as they come to you. Don’t let them escape, especially the good ones.

Allow yourself to make mistakes. It’s how you recover from the mistake that matters.

Far and away, the most important and impressive contributions to American culture and history have been made by black people.

“There is no best musician… The creative arts are subjective and they reach people at a point in their lives when they need it the most.” -Jon Batiste

“As musicians, and as people who sell material for people to hear and absorb, it's important that we use that voice wisely.” –Roberta Flack

“There's no such thing as a bad tune.” -Louis Armstrong

“In a live performance, it's a collaboration with the audience; you ride the ebb and flow of the crowd's energy.” -Jon Batiste #JonBatiste

When I die, I want people to play my music, go wild and freak out and do anything they want to do.” -Jimi Hendrix

“I always knew I couldn’t sing, but I also knew I had a voice that isn’t heard by many, and that I could learn how to stretch it and make songs sound good.” -Lil Wayne on appreciating the value of uniqueness #LilWayne #Tunechi

“When the ideas are coming, I don't stop until the ideas stop because that train doesn't come along all the time.” -Dr Dre #DrDre

“If you don't feel it, don't play it.” - James Jamerson, bassist of Motown’s Wrecking Crew #Motown

“We can’t plan life. All we can do is be available for it.” -Lauren Hill #LaurenHill

“You make your mistakes to learn how to get to the good stuff". 
-Quincy Jones #QuincyJones

“Whenever success comes it is a stranger. When it knocks, it is something you hope for, but the form it takes on when it comes, and sometimes the moment it comes in, is so odd and so obscure.”
-Donna Summer #DonnaSummer

“I always try to write a song, I never just want to write a record.” -Smokey Robinson #SmokeyRobinson

"The magic in any art is not only in its technique but in its authenticity” -Alicia Keys #AliciaKeys

“Think...it ain't illegal...yet.” -George Clinton #Parliament #funkadelic

“You know, you do need mentors, but in the end, you really just need to believe in yourself.” -Diana Ross #DianaRoss

“Again, trust your ideas, be your biggest cheerleader and be smart about it because fuck em” -Tyler the Creator #TylerTheCreator

“Coming into the music industry, even when I was a kid, one thing I learned is timing is everything. You being prepared is everything.” -Kelly Rowland #DestinysChild

“I did what I felt, and I felt what I did, at all costs.” -Little Richard #LittleRichard