How to collab (really well) in quarantine [Week 21]

Watch: A cappella video filmed 10,000 miles apart.

By Richard SteighnerPublished 4 years ago • 4 min read

Space to Move (feat. Brooke Livingston) by Richard Steighner

This article is not about how to use dropbox or video chat somebody. You know that and already do that. However, if you are trying to collaborate with somebody, here's my story of a recent collab and what worked. Really well.

First off...

For those of you following along, I'm writing a new song (and releasing it every week). The only rules are that it a) must be a cappella (singing/beatboxing/snaps/claps), and b) must be original.

This week, I collaborated with a friend of mine from Florida. Brooke Livingston is a singer and songwriter, and we spent the week sending messages about song ideas. She'd sing something, I'd record something, et voila, a collab is born.

We started with a phone call to say hi and feel out each other's vibe. Neither one of us wanted to write something particularly heavy or sad. You know, everybody's in quarantine or losing jobs--nobody wants to get bogged down in it.

Then she started the ball rolling by sending a little melody. Nothing fancy, just an idea. I took that and ran for a bit by producing out a track that it would work with and playing with a chorus. After a few days, I sent her that to see if she had any more lyrics.

She did and we basically repeated the cycle (now with a beat in-hand). A few more days of producing, and we had a solid demo.

Now came the fun part...the video. How in the hell are you supposed to film a music video with somebody from 10,000 miles apart (I'm in Melbourne, Australia and she's in Florida). Well, 9703.95 miles to be exact.

With some inspiration from Ok Go (a band famous for doing tricks, inspired choreography, and optical illusions in-video), we decided to make a dinner together. I basically played my part on video and sent it to her to match up. There were 5 or 6 different tricks in it that we tried to get just right, all as if we were sitting right next to each other.

With a little help and some careful camera angles (ie texting back and forth about if the camera should be 7' vs 10' back), we could each shoot our own takes. Brooke then sent hers to mine (just like she sent her vocal recordings), and within about an hour, the whole thing was cut together.

For us, it was fun. Yes, a lot of work. But honestly, it was the kind of work I enjoy. If you are a musician, give it a shot. Call up your friend (preferably somebody with a different skillset than you), and make it happen. Yes, we're all in quarantine, but it can be done!

For those of you curious, here are the steps we took in order (showing percentage complete):

0% Communicate in person (or at least the phone). Try to understand each other's musical taste. Vibe is important! Content will come.
5% Woodshed. Send through little bits and pieces. If something sticks, great. If not, no worries!
30% Grow. Using the idea you like best, run with it. Produce out the melody. See if a chorus naturally flows. Or see if you need to change the tempo.
40% Change. We found that some bits of the first idea became less interesting. In the end you can barely hear the bit that inspired the rest of the song. It's a lesson in learning to let go. Don't be precious with an idea.
50% Re-convene. Talk to each other again. See where they're at. This stage can be the scariest part. You might find that you don't like something...or they don't. That's ok. Remember that you're working on this together.
80% Grind. This is always the part where projects stall. It's going to take a big effort to get from 80% to 90%. That means you have to do something big. Finish a mix of the track. Write the bridge that you don't want to write. Tune the vocals on the harmonies. It's the hardest part because it's usually boring and has the least payoff until...
90% Clean. Together and separately. Once you have the pieces in place, you can clean it. Pull back the reverb in your mix. Re-record a part that's sloppy. Cut out half a verse. This part is only easy if you've completed the Grind, because you'll be sick of something to the point that you won't mind deleting it :)
98% Release. PUT. IT. OUT. THERE. Don't you dare go through all this work without sharing it with the world. It's ok to be nervous about it, but that's the fun.
100% Compliment and give credit. Your collaborator trusted you. You trusted them. You both did work. Compliment them (where due, don't lie) and make sure to tell the world how great THEY did. This step is a quick way to determine if people will want to collab with you in the future or not.