Does Your Music Have The ‘X Factor’ For Sync Placements?

First, let me start by saying that I really hate buzzwords like X Factor. I find them to be a form of language that 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, intoxicating charisma that makes a piece of music special. So, while I am forced to use a buzzword here, I will try to define it with some good examples.

I think of X Factor elements as what drive a song to trigger a strong emotional reaction. They create a feeling that is powerful enough to influence your state of mind 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 specific production or performance technique 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 is powerful. It will secure your song for a sync placement above all of the other options available to the filmmakers. It will be the variable that makes a director or music supervisor say “this is the song – this is it!” In fact, when you learn to execute this skill in your music, directors and producers will actually feel 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 lyric, an infectious musical hook that emphasizes the story, 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 just some broad stroke examples, but X Factor can also be disguised into very subtle nuance elements as well. The key is to tap into your creativity in order 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 potent? 
• 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?

There if often more than one X Factor element in a powerful song, 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 popular songs that you’ve probably heard many times, and try to pick out the single or multiple layers of X Factor that drive each one:

Perfect by Ed Sheeran

Hey Look Ma, I Made It by Panic! At The Disco 

Uptown Funk by Bruno Mars

Exit Music (For A Film) by Radiohead

Feel It Still by Portugal The Man

No Church In The Wild by Jay Z & Kanye West (ft. Frank Ocean)

Blinding Lights by The Weeknd

Happier by Marshmello

Believer by Imagine Dragons

Someone Like You by Adele

So today, I challenge you to listen through your own songs and ask yourself:

What is the X Factor element in my song, and how does it make the listener feel?

The answer to this question is the key to pitching that song for licensing. That X Factor element will define how your music will elevate the feeling of a specific character, storyline, historical event, sports theme, reality show personality, film trailer, or ad campaign.