Brian ‘Head’ Welch is perhaps best known as a co-founder and guitarist for the band Korn. But his most recent project, Love and Death, finds Welch taking a unique turn, a more spiritual and cathartic sound, while still retaining the signatures and guitar techniques that make him a legend. We caught up with Welch to ask him about the new record and his career in music.

How did you get your start as a songwriter?
I started writing with Korn in about 1993. I had messed around trying to write when I was a kid, but it seemed to flourish when I started writing with Korn.

Tell us about the new record and the new band. It’s a departure from your past work, but very distinctly you.
Thank you, yeah I think I have a pretty unique sound, but writing with my new band, as well as other writers in Nashville, added a newness to Love and Death’s sound. Our new EP Chemicals came out 4/24. It’s our first project with producer Jason Rauch.

What’s next? Touring?
Yeah, we hit the road with POD in May and we’re out with them for a month. We are pretty booked up until December with touring and finishing up our record that’s coming out in the fall.

Are there any other artists you’d like to work with?
I’m pretty open to working with others, but right now, the team we have is going really good, so we’ll see where we end up!

How did you hear about Lyric Financial?
I heard about Lyric through a former manager. I was going through a dry spell financially and I discovered Lyric just at the right time.

How has Lyric Financial helped you in your professional career?
Well like I said, I hit a dry spell financially and Lyric was really there for me. In 2009, I had just started touring with my new solo band, so the connection with Lyric was very key in helping to kickstart my solo career.

Anything else you’d like to share?
I would recommend Lyric Financial to anyone and everyone!

Name: Dr. Terry A. Steele
Occupation: Singer / Songwriter / Ethnomusicologist
Website: www.TerrySteele.com / www.TheLutherShow.com

How did you get your start as a songwriter?
I began songwriting twenty-five years ago. I borrowed about $500.00 from my father and went into a little 16-track recording studio to demo a very simple song called “Our Love.” And with it being my very first attempt at recording a demo, I didn’t know any other musicians or producers, so I ended up playing all the instruments myself! I sang the lead, and with the help of a friend from my church’s choir also sang all the backgrounds … although it was very difficult and I had so much to learn … still, I absolutely LOVED it and was completely HOOKED on music after that! And from that first day, I KNEW that I had found not only a career, but even greater … my purpose in life!

One of your biggest achievements was “Here and Now” with Luther Vandross. How did you wind up working together?
It was my Godmother, Ms. Dionne Warwick, who first played “Here And Now” for Luther Vandross! I, along with her son (and my little brother) David Elliott, had been working on the song when Dionne heard it and took it to a party at Luther’s home. Being the proud Mom, she played it for him and he loved it and wanted to record it. Working with Luther has been one of the GREATEST blessings of my life, one that I am grateful for to this very day!

Are there any other artists you’d like to work with?
Throughout my career, I have had the great honor to have worked with many of my all-time favorite artists and songwriters. Still there are many more great artists that I would be thrilled to work with. Lately, I’ve been working on some country music tunes and would love to meet and work with some of the brilliant country artists out there today!

What’s next for you? Any new projects you’re working on?
Currently I’m working on completing a book and CD project that should be released sometime in the late spring or early summer of this year! I’ve also very recently received my Doctorate in Ethnomusicology and will hopefully begin teaching later this year.

How did you hear about Lyric Financial?
Fellow songwriter and musician Mr. Preston Glass introduced me to Eli Ball and the Lyric Financial family last year, and it has been a powerful tool in the arsenal of my creative equipment ever since.

You called Lyric Financial “your secret weapon.” We love that! Tell us more about how Lyric has helped you in your professional career.
Since becoming acquainted with Lyric Financial, I have found it to be an essential part of the advancement of my musical endeavors. In an ever-changing industry, Lyric helps me to compete in the same arena as the major labels and publishers, while still being a small, independent boutique company. It affords me the ability to move forward with many of my special projects by financially backing them, providing me with advance access to my own royalty funds and publishing assets. So when friends ask me how did I do it, especially in this uncertain economy, I tell them: by using my secret weapon … Lyric Financial!

Name: Brent and Wes McBride
Company: Copyright Recapture
Company website: www.copyrightrecapture.com
Your all-time favorite song: We’re brothers so it is hard to agree on anything.

Tell us a little about Copyright Recapture and its services.
Copyright Recapture, LLC is the premier intellectual rights termination, protection and management provider for copyright holders in the United States. We offer a wide array of services to support copyright holders and their heirs, always mindful of our responsibility to them and their needs.

How did you get started doing this? What was the catalyst for starting the business?
We are the sons of a songwriter and have seen the highs and lows of his 40 plus year career. Knowing firsthand the life of a songwriter, when we learned about the opportunity they had to reclaim their publishing rights, it sparked an idea. Most songwriters or their heirs were going to need someone to help them navigate this process. We started with that basic premise and have adapted our business to suit the various situations we have encountered over the past 8 years.

Which of your services most benefit Lyric Financial’s songwriters and estates?
Our goal is to offer some form of service or advice for every songwriter or their family. By that we mean everyone’s situation is different. We like to evaluate your current situation and future options. We view it as Estate planning for your copyrights.

How does copyright reversion work?
It is important to note that copyright reversion is part of the United States Copyright Law. To begin claiming your rights, you must submit a Notice of Termination to the current publisher(s) and the United States Copyright Office. There is certain criteria and specific information that must be included in each Notice that cannot be done simply in a template. The creation and submission of these Notices is the core of our business.

What is the process of recapturing a copyright?
Submitting Notice of Termination opens up various options regarding your catalog. You can complete the process and begin publishing the works yourself or through an administrator. The current publisher might offer to pay a non-recoupable bonus to retain the works. You might decide to complete the termination process and sell those rights to a third party. Simply by acting on your rights, you open yourself up to many opportunities.

Any major victories you can tell us about?
We can’t name specific people but we have seen recaptured works re-cut and placed on platinum selling albums, we have negotiated sales of recaptured works and worked with current publishers to retain works for fair compensation. Every time we help someone better their situation in some way, we consider it a victory.

What does the future hold for copyrights and copyright law?
Some things have been corrected or clarified but there are still issues regarding the copyright law. The purpose of the law was to give authors a chance to renegotiate now having the knowledge of what those works are worth after a period of time. Certain situations exist that make it difficult for some people to act on their rights. We, along with many others, are working to get those issues solved so that everyone can benefit from this.

How has the proliferation of new music formats – digital downloads, streaming services, YouTube – changed the landscape for copyright holders?
We don’t buy into the notion that the music industry is dying. In fact, we think there are a lot of people figuring out how to make money in today’s landscape that involves thinking outside of the old business model. We think it is a good time to be a copyright owner if you can adapt to new ways to exploit and market your music.

What would you want every songwriter – past and present – to know about their copyrights?
That legacy and assets are two separate issues. No one can ever take your name off of a song you created. What your song means to an audience can, and will, never be taken away from you. That is your legacy. Your copyrights and royalty streams from those works are your assets. You have to be able to manage and utilize your assets without thinking that it affects your legacy.

Choose one: accordion, bagpipe, or calliope.
You have so many options with a calliope. It’s hard to trick out an accordion or bagpipe.

Learn more about Copyright Recapture by visiting their website at http://www.copyrightrecapture.com

Congratulations to George, Will, and all the other fine entries in our contest. You can view them all below!

I think I smell a tradition starting here….

Remember you can only vote once! (Oh, and don’t forget to hit that big ol’ VOTE button at the bottom, otherwise we won’t get your vote.)

[VOTING IS NOW CLOSED. CLICK HERE TO SEE THE WINNER!]

A huge thank you to everyone who entered. We loved them all!

We sent this graphic out to our email list earlier today promoting our Holiday Jingle Contest, but it was just too good to not share with everyone. Happy holidays!

Put your songwriting chops to the test and write us a holiday jingle… you could win $500!

Media and entertainment deals got just$2.2 million — or less than 2 percent — of the reported $123.5 million that venture capitalists invested in Tennessee companies over two years through mid-2011

The article goes on to discuss how health-care startups – perhaps the most active area of entrepreneurship in Nashville – is still raking in the dough. Nashville is not Silicon Valley, of course, but with such a high concentration of great talent and so much in the way of entertainment, it can be disheartening to see that VCs opt for comfortable options.

Have a read of  the article and let us know what you think in the comments below.