Toni Childs is the powerhouse behind hits like "Don't Walk Away" and "Stop Your Fussin',". She isn't just a singer-songwriter; she's a force of nature. Listen to Toni's inspiring journey from open mic kid to international sensation. This episode is a testament to the transformative power of music.

Thanks to the 2023 Whitsundays Songwriter Festival for bringing us this episode today.

Timestamp:
2:42 - Exploitation is ok
6:32 - The Open Mic Moment
10:03 - The Evolution of Creativity
13:20 - The London Interlude
20:12 - A Meeting of Minds
22:26 - Shamanic Sonic Journeys
26:58 - The Publishing Puzzle
29:26 - Defiance and Destiny

About Toni Childs:
Toni Childs is an Emmy Winner and three-time Grammy nominated American recording artist. The celebrated singer-songwriter is known for her powerful voice, inspiring independent spirit and crafted storytelling. With fans in over 50 countries around the world, Toni has produced a list of international hits such as: Don’t Walk Away, Stop Your Fussin’, Walk and Talk Like Angels, Many Rivers to Cross, to name a few. Over Toni’s illustrious career she has opened for Bob Dylan and performed duets with greats such as Al Green and Peter Gabriel. She has toured the world over gaining a much loved fan base.

In 1997, Toni was diagnosed with Graves Disease, a hyper-thyroid condition that pulled her away from touring and music making. It was 19 years in between albums and by then the industry and the world had changed. Living on Kauai in Hawaii, it became crystal clear to Toni that she wanted to create innovative new works with more engagement and play that supports life and shines a light on environmental solutions in ways that inspire action.

Adding environmental activist, artistic director and installation artist to her bow, Toni has been bringing together the disciplines of music, film, 3D mapping, animation, lighting, set design and interactive components to three new works including an underwater concert, Reef 360.

Contact Toni: Website / Facebook / Instagram

Find out more and contact us at I Heart Songwriting Club & Francesca de Valence.

Get your creativity, confidence, and songwriting output flowing. Join The Club and receive the support and structure to write 10 songs in 10 weeks and get feedback from a private peer community.

Just getting started on your songwriting journey and need more hands-on support? Establish a firm foundation and develop your musical and lyric skills with our Beginner Songwriting Courses.

Don’t struggle to write your next album - write an album a year with ease! Watch our Free Songwriting Masterclass.

Get songwriting insights from I Heart Songwriting Club: Instagram / Facebook / YouTube

Be inspired by Francesca on socials: YouTube / Facebook / Instagram

Theme song: “Put One Foot In Front Of The Other One” music and lyrics by Francesca de Valence

If you love this episode, please subscribe, leave a review and tell everyone you know about The Magic of Songwriting.

We chat with Vika & Linda at the 2023 Whitsundays Songwriter Festival, to shine a light on their journey as artists and songwriters - from singing with The Black Sorrows, to discovering their artistic sound as a duo, finding the songs to record for their first album, and how they started writing songs as established artists.

Timestamp:
2:27 - Exploring Song Selection for Albums
4:47 - The Evolution of Choosing Songs
6:59 - Diverse Sounds and Genre Experimentation
9:08 - The Gospel Album Journey
12:07 - Refining Song Choices Over the Decades
12:40 - Entering the World of Songwriting
15:27 - The Rolodex and Collaborations
15:54 - Listening to Demos and Musical Intuition
18:05 - Authenticity Over Spit and Polish

About Vika & Linda: Vika & Linda have enjoyed a remarkable musical journey over the past 3 decades. After three classic albums with The Black Sorrows, Melbourne’s Bull sisters, Vika & Linda released eight studio albums, two live albums and a chart-topping anthology. They have also sung on number one albums by Paul Kelly, Kasey Chambers and John Farnham, done gigs for the Dalai Lama, Nelson Mandela and the King of Tonga, and been nominated for six ARIA Awards. Contact Vika & Linda: Website / Facebook / Instagram

This episode was recorded at the Whitsundays Songwriter Festival.

Find out more and contact us at I Heart Songwriting Club & Francesca de Valence.

Get your creativity, confidence, and songwriting output flowing. Join The Club and receive the support and structure to write 10 songs in 10 weeks and get feedback from a private peer community.

Just getting started on your songwriting journey and need more hands-on support? Establish a firm foundation and develop your musical and lyric skills with our Beginner Songwriting Courses.

Don’t struggle to write your next album - write an album a year with ease! Watch our Free Songwriting Masterclass.

Get songwriting insights from I Heart Songwriting Club: Instagram / Facebook / YouTube

Be inspired by Francesca on socials: YouTube / Facebook / Instagram

Theme song: “Put One Foot In Front Of The Other One” music and lyrics by Francesca de Valence

If you love this episode, please subscribe, leave a review and tell everyone you know about The Magic of Songwriting.

Not every songwriter will get a publishing deal, so we pose some questions to Mark Sholtez that may help songwriters understand how they can succeed as a songwriter without a music publishing deal. Having had success both as a published and self-published songwriter, Mark offers invaluable insights to this question.

Timestamp:
3:00 - What is an essential element of being a songwriter?
5:25 - Tips for getting in a room with other artists
8:06 - What does having a publisher mean for a songwriter and is it still necessary to have a publisher?
10:40 - How can you make the most of your publishing deal if you’re not an artist?
12:25 - What quality of demos do you need for pitching your songs to artists?
13:39 - Mark shares the key steps that enabled him to get his publishing deal

About Mark Sholtez:

Mark Sholtez is an ARIA nominated and APRA award-winning songwriter and recording artist currently signed to EMI Music Publishing Australia. He was the first Australian artist to record for the legendary Verve record label in New York, and his career to date has included collaborations with music industry icons including Tommy LiPuma (Barbra Streisand, George Benson, Miles Davis), Grammy Lifetime Achievement recipient and noted veteran engineer Al Schmitt (Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, Michael Jackson), multiple Grammy winning producer Larry Klein (Joni Mitchell, Herbie Hancock, Tracy Chapman), as well as internationally renowned artists and songwriters including Don Walker (Cold Chisel), The Veronicas, Iain Archer (Snow Patrol), Troy Cassar-Daley, and Wendy Mathews. Contact Mark Sholtez: Website / Facebook / Instagram

This episode was recorded at the Whitsundays Songwriter Festival.

Find out more and contact us at I Heart Songwriting Club & Francesca de Valence.

Get your creativity, confidence, and songwriting output flowing. Join The Club and receive the support and structure to write 10 songs in 10 weeks and get feedback from a private peer community.

Just getting started on your songwriting journey and need more hands-on support? Establish a firm foundation and develop your musical and lyric skills with our Beginner Songwriting Courses.

Don’t struggle to write your next album - write an album a year with ease! Watch our Free Songwriting Masterclass.

Get songwriting insights from I Heart Songwriting Club: Instagram / Facebook / YouTube

Be inspired by Francesca on socials: YouTube / Facebook / Instagram

Theme song: “Put One Foot In Front Of The Other One” music and lyrics by Francesca de Valence

If you love this episode, please subscribe, leave a review and tell everyone you know about The Magic of Songwriting.