Today we’d like to introduce you to Chad Shank
Chad, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I was born and raised in Mitchell, SD. I grew up in a town of about 15,000 people. It was a larger town for South Dakota, but not very big in the rest of the world. As a kid I was always drawn to wanting to make music like I heard on the radio. My parents would buy me cassettes and I would wear them out. I was a big Pointer Sisters fan back in the day. I graduated to Prince, Debbie Gibson, and Janet Jackson. The neighbor kids and my sister and I would put on little concerts in our basement with flashlights dancing and singing to the songs. I always knew I wanted to somehow make music like that. I eventually discovered electronic keyboards and got hooked right away. I begged my parents for a keyboard and I got one in around 3rd grade. I started to teach myself how to play by ear. I went to one piano lesson, but she did not want to teach me Janet Jackson, so I was like, “No.” I knew the kind of music that I wanted to make was not classical, it was not traditional. It was what I heard coming out of my boombox.
In middle school I got my first job and I started to make my own money. I was reading album covers and reading magazines about music production. I saved up enough money to buy an 8-track Multitrack Cassette recorder. This now opened my world to not just playing the keys, I could record and start writing my own songs. I never wanted to play other people’s songs. I wanted to write my own like my idols were doing. I would see Debbie Gibson and Prince doing all of their own recording and writing. I wanted one byline on my works.
In high school I started to write and record for other local music acts and singers. I started my production company, C-Sharp Productions. That morphed into my own indie record label where I signed and produced local South Dakota singers and Songwriters. I would book performances and sell music around South Dakota. The internet was not a thing back then. It was just starting.
From 1997 to 2004 I worked in commercial radio and operated C-Sharp Productions on the side. In 2005 I release a CD under the name, Chad Sharp. It was called “Personal.” I did a 20 date mini tour around the Midwest in South Dakota, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. I lost money, but learned so much.
Then in 2006 I decided I wanted to move to Minneapolis to be closer to the music I loved…like Prince, and Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. I kept writing and producing my own music as a few other people. I was not as successful in the bigger city, so I kind of put it away for awhile.
Then in 2010, I attended Berklee Online and got a certificate in Songwriting. I discovered that I truly love the craft of writing songs. Berklee changed my approach and taught me so much about craft. I became a forever student of writing songs. I also started to teach local community education classes around the Twin Cities. I continued to write and Release over 200 songs online in this time.
I joined the MInnesota Association of Songwriters and I became the VP and Education Director for a few years. I honed my teaching and workshop skills. In 2021 I decided to start my own YouTube Channel called, “At-Home Songwriting.” I also started an online MeetUp Group as well. I still do monthly Free workshops, and I release videos about the craft of Songwriting.
In 2023, I had the opportunity to start teaching Lyric Writing Online for Berklee. I now teach Lyric Tools and Strategies. I am so thrilled to be teaching the curriculum of Pat Pattison who has been such a teacher and influence on my writing. I love sharing the craft.
I have also built up my online business. I now offer online courses, 1:1 coaching and a premium Songwriting community. I want to keep growing this business and helping Songwriters write songs like pros, even if it is at home.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
The music industry is very hard to make any money. You really can’t get into it for the money. When I was younger I think I was naive to how everything works. I thought it was much easier to stand out. Man, I have been wrong! Music is a get-rich-very-slow scheme. You don’t “get a job” in music, you have to create your own opportunities and reputation. I have struggled with self-doubt, financial struggles, industry changes, shady people, the list is long. I remember a saying that I heard many years ago that says, “If you don’t stop, you can’t be stopped.” I live by that saying. I also don’t like to follow other people’s rules or speed limit on making things happen. I feel like when I push things too hard, they don’t work out as well. Everything happens when it is supposed to.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I consider myself to be a Songwriter, Songwriting Instructor, and Songwriting Coach. I specialize in teaching the craft of Songwriting online. I lead monthly Free online workshops and run an online community of Songwriters. I also have premium offerings of 1:1 Songwriting coaching, online courses, and a new membership. We meet weekly for educational meetings, and writing assignments. We provider feedback and support for each other. I also continue to teach Lyric Writing Online for Berklee College of Music. I am most proud of the fact that I have kept my focus on my love for music and Songwriting. It has been a long road, but I am proud that music has provided me with so much enjoyment, friends, and money. I think what sets me apart from other teachers is that I am a Songwriter. I know the doubts and struggles, and many things I teach come from my own growth and experience. I have also had great mentors long the way like Andrea Stolpe, Pat Pattison, Shane Adams, Neil Diercks, Jaee Logan, and many others.
If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
I was not a popular kid. I was pretty much a music nerd, but not in school. I did not like the music that the school bands or chorus were doing. I taught myself by listening to Top 40 pop and R&B music. I would lock myself in my bedroom for hours and hours and listen and make music. My mom always said I constantly made noise. I still do!
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.athomesongwritingcourses.com
- Instagram: @northloopsongwriter
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@athomesongwriting
- Other: https://www.meetup.com/at-home-songwriting-workshops/
