NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Digital platform 'Songlorious' emerged during the coronavirus pandemic as a way for musicians and songwriters to freelance, bringing personalized songs to customers for special occasions like Valentine's Day.
"I was like, ‘This sounds way too good to be true, but I just like get to work from my house and I get to like hear all these stories from people and do what I love to do and get paid for it.’ And she was like, ‘Yeah, that's exactly it,'" recounted Nashville songwriter and musician Abigail Osborn.
She joined the platform as one of the artists during the height of the pandemic.
Osborn had signed with an artists' agency at the start of 2020 and as soon as the pandemic started canceling all her gigs like all other musicians, she started searching for other ways to make a living.
Songlorious has been dubbed the 'Uber for musicians', allowing them to pick up songs to produce when they have time.
"There's one-minute songs, two-minute songs and three-minute songs. You can request which artists you want, which is really awesome," said Osborn. "It usually takes me about an hour to an hour and a half from start to finish."
Customers can also choose what mood and genre of music they want for their song and must share a story of what they want the song to be about.
"One time I wrote a song for someone's dog's birthday, like a corgi which is really like those are the unique moments where I'm like ‘Oh, interesting,'" Osborn said. "But there was one where a guy had me write like a proposal song. And that's how he proposed to his wife, which was a lot of pressure. I was like, 'How in the world am I supposed to–like this is a huge moment, you know?'"
She said she also has written several first dance songs through the platform.
"[Those are] some of my favorites just because that's like really special that they would play something like that at their wedding," she said.
However, the one that takes the cake in Osborn's book is a returning customer.
"[He] comes back and requests me on Songlorious and we are like I'm writing an album for him and his wife. It's like a storyline of their like, love story. And so we're going through like I wrote when they met—that was like a song. And we're going through like all these different stages of their life and I feel like I have like a very personal connection to him now."
Although performing gigs have opened back up for Osborn, she continues on the platform.
"[It is] definitely something I didn't really ever, like, envision as something I would love to do. But I've definitely grown to just really love it," she said. "I noticed a huge difference in my like, creative work with the artists I write for and writing for myself and in sessions like my speed is a lot just like sharper because I'm just getting so much practice at it."
As far as a gift for Valentine's Day, Songlorious is offering a sale for the occasion.
"I think buying this for girlfriend, husband, boyfriend is just like the best, most thoughtful way you could tell someone you love them in essentially your own words," Osborn said. "We're just doing our job to bring that to life. And it's just a really special, special thing."
Click here to request your song on Songlorious.
