After updating my composer and ghostwriter discography with a few of my recent songs and projects earlier today, I felt it was time to bring this blog kicking and screaming into 2021 as well… especially given that it’s already July!
Work as a Ghostwriter
2020 was the first year where I earned more money writing songs and lyrics, than I did from giving guitar lessons online. Having been a professional musician since 2004, this felt like a significant transition to make, and something I’d been aiming for since around 2014 when I made the decision to move to France and concentrate on being a composer (and later a lyricist) and move away from full time guitar tuition. Thankfully 2021 has been even busier for me as I’ve made the move into renting a full time studio space at Studio Du Cerisier in Toulouse (more of that in my next blog post) and orders for songs have been coming in thick and fast. This blog is a summary of a few of these projects.
Kessy Mac Queen’s Lyricist
Since late 2018 I’ve been writing an album with French pop/soul artist Kessy Mac Queen and his talented production team. The album (entitled ‘Dream The Dream’) is scheduled for release later this year but the most recent single – Live It Tonight – is available from Spotify, Deezer and all other platforms. You can listen now by clicking the player above! It’s been an amazing project to be involved with; I love how summery this song is and I’m very proud of the lyrics.
Good Dog – Hopeless Man
A real highlight for me this year was seeing my old friend and regular collaborator Jack Hardman (who now works under the guise of Good Dog) deservedly entering the UK charts for the very first time with his poignant and powerful song ‘Hopeless Man’. Not only did he reach number 31 in the main chart, but he also topped the iTunes singer songwriter chart, beating some incredibly famous names in the process. In my opinion the song features one of Jack’s best ever lyrics (it’s related to our initial fears around the Covid virus – well worth a listen below) and although not a ghostwriter in this song, I was very proud to contribute some atmospheric electric slide guitar. Hopeless Man was also my first ever entry into the UK Top 40 so a landmark moment for both of us!
Ghostwriter for DJ Kenzo x Izis
I first worked with talented French vocalist Izis in 2020 when she came down from Paris to sing backing vocals on a Kessy Mac Queen single at Elixir Studios. We stayed in touch and earlier this year when she needed some English lyrics writing for a collaboration with Nice-based DJ Kenzo she dropped me a line. A fun, stress-free process resulted in this cool House song (check it out on the video below!) and I’m sure I’ll work with them both again in the future. This song was brilliantly mixed by my good friend DJ S. Lee whose page is well worth checking out as well.
Beryce – Shine The Light Alone
Beryce is another French artist with whom I’ve written several songs during the last 12 months. He’s a talented folk-rock singer and also a very proficient guitarist. His EP is scheduled for release in 2021 and contains some great songs, which I’ve been proud to have co-written with him. Below is a video of him performing ‘Shine The Light Alone’ – a lyric which I wrote about climate change and our battles with the environment; a subject very dear to my heart.
Thanks for reading. Please feel free to share or comment below and if you’re looking for a co-writer (a composer, lyricist or producer) for your project then please drop me a line via the CONTACT page of this website. In the mean time you can stay up-to-date with my Instagram page or subscribe to my YOUTUBE channel.
Take it easy & stay safe…
Arron