Top 3 things you need for a new cover song.

We made a brand new version of an old classic rock song called “I was made for loving you”, from the legendary band kiss for our “From the Sofa Podcast”.

We will let you know how Lenny has a friend that promotes “Kiss” in Dubai, therefore in this episode you will find out about Kiss’ history: how they were banned in the beginning here in Germany, how they were labeled as a demonic band in many countries, how they overcame all those obstacles and judgements, and how they continued touring in Dubai through Pandemic times in 2020.

Never the less, I thought it would be a good idea to let you know how I made this cover song, and the 3 main things you need to cover your own version of a song:

First: Get an awesome and famous song.

It may seem funny to you that I say this, but as simple as it sounds, there are many musicians that love covering B-sides songs or unheard songs of their favorite artists, and sometimes even artists that no one had ever heard of except for them. That’s a problem in my opinion, because if you are going to cover a song, it should be a very well known one. If you want to publish an unknown song, you might as well publish your original work, who knows it might be your first number one hit.

Second: Find someone creative to play with you.

After you chose a song, it’s hard to think outside the box when it comes to changing the original one. It’s not easy, but the most important thing is finding somebody as creative as you, willing to play with you different instruments in the song. For example, if you are a man you can try and perform a female song, or if there’s Electronic beats change it for a cajon, or like we did in this case turn a disco song into an acoustic guitar and Cello song.

Third: Have the guts to release it.

Most of the musicians I know that play covers, they want to play them exactly the same, which is not bad, especially if you are a tribute band, because people expect to hear the songs exactly the same as the original ones. But when it comes to making your own version, you can’t think like that. You have to break the rules, play other chords, use another tempo, use your own tone, even edit the lyrics if you want. Many musicians have told me: “I wouldn’t play my own version, if I thought the original was better”. That’s the reason you have to have guts, to play your song no matter what. It’s not about being better, it’s about putting a little bit of “you” inside the song and sharing it with your audience.

I welcome you to listen to our podcast episode on the link below, check out the podcast and our cover song at the end. In every episode you may find a song at the end.

CLICK ON THE IMAGES BELOW