1st Place
Lucy LeBlanc, “Cradle Of the Moon”
Read her winning lyrics here.
What compelled you to enter this song in the lyric contest?
I don’t usually enter song contests, but I kept seeing your magazine whenever I was on a writing trip down in Nashville. I recognized a songwriter that I know in L.A. (yay Nitanee Paris) that had placed in your lyric contest, so I decided to give it a try.
How did this particular song come about?
That’s hard to say. I don’t always know where the lyric comes from, unless I have a specific idea in mind. In this case, the title “Cradle Of The Moon” came to me out of the blue. I sat down to explore that idea and started writing it. It seemed to automatically go to two lovers lying in bed, who have been together for a long time. But the distance has been growing between them, and neither one of them brings their feelings out into the open. The lyric flowed out quickly.
Have you written music for this song? If so, how would you describe it?
I sent the lyric to Cori Brewster (a songwriter and artist from Alberta), who composed a folk/pop feel with a beautiful melodic atmospheric cadence. I always thought this would be a good sync song for film/TV.
How long does it typically take you to write a song?
I used to write lyrics by myself (like I did with “Cradle Of The Moon”). Now I co-write all the time with other songwriters, and the complete song usually takes two to three hours to write. (Sometimes it takes longer — over several sessions). It varies.
Have you been inspired by any new artists lately?
Yes … Rachel Wammack, Tenille Townes, Riley Green. I’m also inspired by the artists that I’ve written with … Joanne Stacey, The Heels, Kadooh, Christen Cooper, Ajaye Jardine, Levi Moore, Arlene Quinn, Molly Brown, Chris Ising, Barry Muir, Ray Weaver, Michael Skotte, Ivan Boudreau, Arvid Nielsen, Dave Daoust, Mark Dolin, Taryn Laronge, John Pippus, Alisa Balogh, John Condrone, Khiana Meyer, Renee Jonas, Susan Giacona, Elias Edlund, Karen Kiley, Colin Axxxwell, Megan Barker, Cynthia Ford, Jan Edwards. Doug Folkins, Salina Solomon, Joyce Grennan , Carrie Cunningham, Roger Gabriel, Ben Klick, Smudge Swann, John Bowman, Brian Sutherland, Cori Brewster, Tara Shannon, Robert Campbell, Cailin Green, Mikalyn Hay, North Easton, Heather Meori, Shylo Sharity, Dan Demay, Henrik Jacobsson, Colleen Francis, Madison Olds, Jimmy Thow, Chrystal Leigh, Nick Howe, Bobby Bazini, Andi Renfree, Marilyn Christensen and Maddy Rodriguez.
You mention you do a lot of co-writing. Is that your preferred method of writing, and how do you go about choosing your collaborators?
These days I prefer to co-write. I’m on track for 200 co-written songs this year (as I did last year). I like bringing people together, so choosing collaborators to write with is a joy for me. I set up three-way co-writes. I like to have a strong melody person in the mix, and we all write the lyrics together. A track person is a bonus, and writing with an artist is always great.
What is your idea of a perfect song?
One that makes me feel something … the emotional highs and lows, whether it’s joy or sadness or the various moods in-between. Songs that I want to hear over and over again, to savour the words, to lose myself in; or to sing along with, or the groove is so infectious that my head bobs, my hands start to drum on the table top, and my feet beats out rhythm on the floor.
Finally, what are the goals for your songwriting?
To get a staff writer deal.
