How to Win a Song Wars

Ever since Plaqueboymax started streaming with the underground, song wars have become one of the most popular underground streaming events. Big or small there's always a song wars being hosted or streamed that allow all types of artists to participate. Although it can be nerve wracking to be faced in front of judges and viewers, it's a great way to put yourself out there and get more well known in other peoples communities. As a host and judge for many song wars myself, I've seen plenty of artists grow and learn a lot from participating. If you've been in a couple already but haven't hit that number one spot or maybe plan on being in your first song wars and want to know what to expect, then look no further as I'll be providing you with tips and tricks to help you do the absolute best you can and hopefully get you a dub.

Be Prepared

If you join a song wars then please actually read and listen to the rules being given as a lot of streamers/hosts tend to run their song wars differently then others. You don't want to end up on stream as the guy who is having everyone wait because you didn't have the track in the right file type or because you don't have a track that fits a certain genre. Being unprepared will just make you look lazy, inexperienced, and will lead viewers to not care because if the artist doesn't care enough to have their track ready then why should the viewer. This will give you a bad look and believe it or not will affect how people listen to the track because you had them waiting when it should've been simple if you had just followed the rules and been prepared.

Study Other Artists/Judges

No one likes to do the extras, I get it, but if you really want to get that W then putting in a little work to get a feel of what the other artists might play or what the judges are into won't hurt. Giving at least 1-2 tracks a listen from every artist participating will give you more of an understanding of what that artist might play during the song wars. I would suggest just listening to their 2 most recently released tracks because that is most likely the sound they are trying to push therefore more likely for them to push that sound on stream. Once you you get an idea of the genre or sound they might play, you can have tracks prepared that you'll think do good at combating theirs. Obviously you won't be able to predict exactly how their track will sound but it's better then being blindsided by a track you weren't expecting from them and know you have a better track but aren't prepared to pull it up yet so you use your current one. This is why when artists choose to go first or second with each other, they usually favor second because that way they will be able to listen to what the first artist plays and while it plays they can look for a track in their vault to best it since they know what their track already sounds like. Tapping into the judges is also a great strategy to use in order to impress them. Most of the time the judges are artist managers or underground creatives, so it's a good idea to check out their socials and see what type of music/artists they're into. This will help you in the end as you can focus more on what the judges will want to hear and appeal to them most. These songs wars can be very strategic like a game of chess.

No Experimental Songs

I've seen this happen time and time again where an artist will put on a song that's not their usual sound and is something more experimental, this will most likely cause you an L. The song may actually be good but because it's out of the norm it's not something people are going to feel right away. Experimental tracks take some time for listeners to get used to, so when something like that is played for people to judge off first listen, you're not going to get the response you're hoping for. I'm sure there's tracks and albums out there that you didn't necessarily like the first listen but after some time it grew on you. Just take that in mind when wanting to show viewers and judges a new track.

Hype Yourself Up

Majority of these song wars require you to show up with your face cam to play your track along with the host and judges. When you're track is playing don't just stand in front of your camera bored because believe it or not that will affect how people listen along. If people see you doing nothing for your track then they're going to listen with that same energy. Bop your head and rap along is the simplest thing you could do to add some more energy to your track, but from my personal experience the ones who act out the most or have their friends with them on cam hyping the track up seem to get the best results.

Be Positive

End of the day, even if you lose first round, you should just be happy to participate and try your best as there's some who still may not have even gotten the chance yet. It's all about putting yourself out there and trying in the first place. Don't worry about who has the most followers or plays cause song wars is all about the music. Having a positive outlook during these events will give you the proper confidence you need to keep pushing and eventually get that W.