Does Your Music Have the “X Factor” for Sync Placements?

First off let me say that I hate buzzwords. I find them to be a language people use when they can’t articulate something in descriptive terms. However, in this rare case, I don’t believe there is a better word than X-Factor to describe the abstract, special quality that makes a piece of music exciting. So, while I am forced to use a buzzword here, I will try to define its abstract meaning with some clear examples.

The X Factor elements are what drive a song to trigger a strong reaction in your gut. They create a feeling of emotional elevation that is powerful enough to change your emotional state in any direction in a matter of just few bars. There is no book on how to create X-Factor, no scale or progression that insures it, and no certain sound or performance that generates it. It is far more abstract than that. What is important is to learn to recognize it in all forms of music, so you can incorporate it into your music.

The impact of X-Factor will lock your song into a sync placement above all of the other options available to the producers. It will be the variable that makes the director or music supervisor say “this is the song – this is it!” In fact, when you learn to nail this skill and connect it to picture, directors and producers will feel actually a sense of loss when your music is not in the scene. They will miss its impact and feel disappointed in the scene without the support of your song. That is X-Factor and that’s the focus of today’s blog.

X Factor can come in countless forms: A brilliantly sincere lyrical idea, an infectious musical hook in the track that emphasizes the lyric, an authentic vocal performance that tears at your heart, a riff that drives up your pulse rate, a surreal soundscape that breaks your equilibrium, a musical flashback to a fashion trend, or a special place and time. Those are some broad stroke examples, but they can be far less obvious and disguised into very subtle nuances as well. The key is to tap into your creativity to write and produce that X Factor element into your music.

These are some of the questions I ask myself when I am producing a song:

What is this song about, and how can I define that message musically so its impact is unique, relatable, and effective?

How can I craft that into a musical arrangement that is special, and separates this song from the millions of other songs about this topic?

What special elements am I creating in this arrangement to substantially heighten the state of mind of the listener?

How am I emphasizing those elements to create a thematic feeling that will maximize its impact on the listener?

In a perfect world there is more than one X Factor element, but one is great start.

Here are some obvious examples of the X-Factor elements that I described earlier. Take a fresh listen to these songs that you’ve heard so many times before, and pick apart the single or multiple layers of X-Factor that drive each one:

So today I challenge you to listen through your own songs and ask yourself: What is the X Factor element, and how does it make the listener feel? The answer to this question is the key to success in pitching your songs for licensing. That X Factor is the direct connection to a character, storyline, film trailer, or ad campaign that will be elevated by your music.