Songwriting Camp
Songwriting Camp at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum offers a fun and unforgettable experience where budding songwriters (ages 11 to 18) can hone their craft, learn from professionals, and make new friends. Discounts are available for members.

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2024 Songwriting Camp Dates
(Ages 11 to 18)
June 10-15, 2024: Beginner-to-Intermediate
July 8-13, 2023: Intermediate-to-Advanced
9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Monday – Friday and 8:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. Saturday (each camp)
July 15 or 16, 2024: *Demo Day
9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. (each day)
*Demo Day is an optional extension of (Intermediate-to Advanced) Camp
Registration opens February 2, 2024
Camp Fees
$460 for current Museum members (family level membership and up). Member rates can be accessed by logging into the member portal prior to registration.
$545 for non-members
*Financial assistance: We offer a limited number of needs-based financial assistance packages that reduce the camp fee to $25 or $275 for qualifying families. The application for financial assistance becomes available February 2, 2024.
Financial aid applications must be submitted prior to registering for camp. See more information below.
Please email camp@countrymusichalloffame.org with any questions.
Demo Day Fee
$440 (financial assistance available)
Activities in both camps will include:
- Songwriting lessons
- Creative writing exercises
- Individual and small-group mentoring
- Instrument instruction
- Voice and performance coaching
- Tour of Hatch Show Print
- Tour of Historic RCA Studio B, located on Music Row
- Tour of the Museum galleries
- Workshops led by a special guests
- Digital recording tutorial
- Visual art
- A culminating Camp Showcase in Ford Theater featuring campers and the songs created during the week (free and open to the public)
July (Intermediate-to-Advanced) Camp activities will also include:
- Exploration of the co-writing process
- Introduction to recording and production techniques
- Alternatives in songwriting exercises and approaches
- Introduction to the business of songwriting and music publishing
- The Nashville number system
Demo Day (optional extension of July Camp) will include:
- Recording a professional-quality demo of the original song written in July Camp
- Collaborating with professional studio musicians and audio engineers during a live recording session
- Learning the basics of mixing recordings using Pro Tools and Logic Pro
- Receiving insights from music business professionals on how to market and distribute your music
Applying to Songwriting Camp
Registration opens February 2, 2024
* Previous Songwriting Camp and Songwriting Tune-Up participants may register without submitting application materials.
- Please provide lyrics and a recording of one song you have written or co-written, and which you feel demonstrates your solid understanding of the basics of lyric writing: title, theme, verse, chorus, bridge (optional) and rhyme-scheme. We will not judge the quality of your performance or of the recording, and you may submit a simple phone memo. If you do not play an instrument, please feel free to sing a cappella or to enlist the help of guest musicians. Similarly, if you prefer not to sing, you may enlist the help of guest vocalists. Do your best and remember that this application needs only show your songwriting know-how, and not any performance or recording skills.
- In a brief personal statement (500 words or fewer), please tell us about yourself. We’d like to know about the song you submitted – how, when, and why you wrote it. What have you learned about songwriting, how, and from whom? Have you had experience co-writing songs, recording music, or with music production? What apps or software have you used, if any? Also, please tell us why you think you would do well in our intermediate-to-advanced camp (as opposed to the beginner to intermediate camp), and what you hope to gain from your camp experience.
- Please email all supporting materials (song lyrics, recording, and personal statement) to camp@countrymusichalloffame.org WITHIN ONE WEEK of registering for camp. Songwriters unable to submit their materials WITHIN ONE WEEK of registering – or whose materials do not demonstrate an understanding of songwriting appropriate for the intermediate-to-advanced camp session – will receive a refund or may choose to enroll in the beginner-to-intermediate camp session, space permitting. We will evaluate and respond to supporting materials within one week of submission.
The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum is dedicated to equal opportunity education and provides financial assistance options to allow greater access to Summer Songwriting Camp. Financial assistance plans reduce registration fees for qualifying families. Applications for assistance are reviewed according to families’ financial need, household income, household size, and circumstances. We evaluate applications on a first-come, first-served basis. We encourage applicants to apply as early as possible. A limited number of assistance spots are available for each camp. Families interested in financial assistance should email to request an application. Camp staff will review and respond to all applications within two weeks. Qualifying families will receive a unique registration link and should complete registration upon receiving it.
June (Beginner-to-Intermediate) Camp
- Level one: 50% cost coverage: $275.00 camp registration. Lunch included.
- Level two: 95% cost coverage: $25.00 camp registration. Lunch included.
July (Intermediate-to-Advanced) Camp
- Level one: 50% cost coverage: $275.00 camp registration. Lunch included.
- Level two: 95% cost coverage: $25.00 camp registration. Lunch included.
July (Intermediate-to-Advanced) Camp + Demo Day recording
- Level one: 50% cost coverage: $495.00 registration for both camps. Lunch included.
- Level two: 95% cost coverage: $25.00 registration for both camps. Lunch included.
*Financial assistance applications are accepted on a first-come, first-served basis beginning on February 2, 2024.
Applications must be submitted by April 1, 2024 to be considered for the June Camp.
Applications must be submitted by May 6, 2024 to be considered for the July Camp.
The financial aid status of all campers, as well as your personal and financial information, will remain secure and completely confidential.
To receive the Museum member discounted rate, your membership must be active at the time of registration and remain active throughout the entire selected camp session.
Membership rate is available for family level memberships or higher. Access the membership discount rate by logging into the membership portal before registering for camp.
Acknowledging the composition of the song (the lyrics) are creators’ intellectual property, for songs generated in July (Intermediate-to-Advanced) Camp sessions, the Museum has the responsibility and non-exclusive right to administer songs as a benefit to campers and professional songwriters. Should a song’s lyrics/composition generate income, the Museum will collect income on behalf of songwriters and distribute payment according to industry standards (i.e. if a song is cut by a recording artist and one student and one professional songwriter created the lyric, the ownership of the song’s composition would be a 50/50 split between the professional writer and the student.)
Meet Past Instructors
Demo Day
Following July Camp, campers will have the opportunity to record a demo of their new song with a full band on Music Row, the historic center of Nashville’s music industry. Demo Day is an optional extension of July Camp, teaching campers the fundamentals of recording and music business with guidance from industry professionals and Museum camp staff at SAE Institute Nashville, an accredited music production and recording school.
- Recording a professional-quality demo of the original song written in July Camp ($675 value)
- Collaborating with professional studio musicians and audio engineers during a live recording session
- Learning the basics of mixing recordings using GarageBand, Logic, or Pro Tools ($250 value)
- Receiving insights from music business professionals on how to market and distribute your music ($250 value)
- Lunch ($10 value)
Monday, July 15, 2024 * Priority given to families who do not reside in Middle Tennessee
Tuesday, July 16, 2024
9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Location
SAE Institute Nashville
7 Music Circle North
Nashville, Tennessee 37203
$440 (Total estimated value $1,185)
*Financial assistance: We offer a limited number of needs-based financial assistance packages that reduce the Demo Day fee to $0 or $220 for qualifying families. The application period opens February 2, 2024.
Please email camp@countrymusichalloffame.org with any questions.
Demo Day recordings are demonstration recordings. The purpose of demonstration recordings, or “demos,” is to professionally present songs with limited audiences for pitching purposes. Professional musicians, producers, and/or engineers who are part of the Museum’s Demo Day sessions have agreed to contribute their services to the Museum for students’ educational purposes and personal use exclusively. Demo Day recordings are not created for commercial exploitation on platforms that monetize music (i.e., Spotify, Apple Music). Demo Day recordings may be used for non-commercial purposes, such as pitching songs to music professionals or sharing on social media.
Frequently Asked Questions
Looking for an Opportunity After Camp?
2023 Camp Funders
Songwriting Camp and Demo Day are made possible by the Country Music Association Endowment for Words & Music and is funded in part by CMA; CMA Foundation; the Dinah and Fred Gretsch Family; Metropolitan Nashville Arts Commission; the Nail Family Foundation; Nashville Predators Foundation; National Endowment for the Arts; and Tennessee Arts Commission.