Seven Tips to Maximize Your Music Brief

Tips From Touring Musicians Turned Composers

In advertising and film, music plays a pivotal role in shaping an emotional response and elevating ads to pop culture status. Mean Machine’s Clemente Bornacelli, Martin Estrada, and Devin Hoffman have received Grammy nominations, songwriter awards and toured globally, working with artists such as Selena Gomez, Lady Gaga, Billie Eilish, Awolnation and more.

With years of experience in translating complex emotional narratives into sound, Mean Machine has crafted bespoke music for high-profile campaigns like Nike, Grey Goose, Disneyland Resorts, Sonic, and many other name brands. As we dive into the art of maximizing your music brief, we draw upon their collective knowledge to provide you with insider tips that ensure a seamless, effective collaboration between your agency and your music team. Here are seven expert tips to guide you through creating a music brief that delivers results, reduces revisions, and captures the essence of your message.

1. Talk emotions and feelings, not musical terms. Emphasize the emotions, moods, and feelings you want the music to convey rather than using technical musical terms. Using specific terminology and musical verbiage can leave room for misunderstandings, causing extra revisions or delays. For example, if a client asks for a piece to be “more upbeat,” they may actually want a faster tempo or a higher energy level in the music. “Upbeat” could be interpreted by the composer as a request for a more positive or happy mood rather than a specific musical instruction. This could lead to confusion and a mismatch between the client’s expectations and the composer’s understanding. Musicians and composers are pros at evoking emotions through sound. While it’s tempting to try to speak the lingo, you and the composers will be better aligned if you focus on the emotional goals and feelings. You could even emphasize the feelings you want to achieve by referencing cinematic film scenes.
2. Music references are key. If you can test your references beforehand, even better. It’s not uncommon to go through various music styles and genres when you’re unsure of what might fit. Heck, that might be the reason you’re reaching out to Mean Machine Music, or any custom music house for assistance. Specific references help our musicians understand your direction, and if you can convey what you specifically love about those references, it will guide us in keeping elements that you love. Sometimes, we’ll go back and forth with a client on demos that span different genres. To mitigate costs of demo fees, you can try testing out your reference tracks in your video edits. If you’re in love with a few different genres, for example, and still unsure, we’re happy to provide you with various alternatives so that you have plenty of options to choose from in the final edit. Let’s discuss what you love and don’t love about the references or genres, and see if we can create that mashup of your favorite elements. — Clemente
3. List specific aspects that you like about the music references provided. Creatives should mention particular elements, such as the drum sounds or the tempo change, for example. This helps you identify your interpretation of the audio and conveys the goal that the reference should inspire the musician to recreate. For example, is it the driving bassline, or is it the dynamic shifts in the full track? Or maybe you just liked the opening intro, but none of the rest. — Devin Hoffman
4. Ideally, work with more than one composer to get a few interpretations of your ideas. That’s where Mean Machine excels. We work with multiple composers and musicians to give you a range of options. — Clemente Bornacelli
5. Before your kick off call ends, have the composer/musician or account rep that you’re working with repeat your request back to you so that you can be sure you were heard and understood. For example, your favorite parts are x, y, z, and you’re going for x, and want to avoid y. — Clemente Bornacelli
6. Work with experienced musicians who are used to responding to a range of ideas. — Devin Hoffman
7. Be prepared. In addition to taking the time to align internally on reference tracks, take the time to prepare for the music draft calls. The longest delays in music drafts often occur when agencies fail to review the tracks beforehand to hone in on edits. This also gives your team time to provide a new set of references if you realize the vibe might not fit as well as you initially thought. — Clemente Bornacelli

By leveraging these seven tips, you are setting the stage for a creative symphony that can elevate your narrative and resonate deeply with your audience. At Mean Machine, we pride ourselves on turning your vision into auditory reality, ensuring every note and nuance supports your story. Whether you're defining the mood of a groundbreaking campaign or capturing the essence of a brand, remember that the right music can make all the difference. Let's make your next project unforgettable.