This week we are looking at the process of Travis Ryan. Travis leads worship @ Saddleback church and has an album out entitled FEARLESS. You can see the video below.
Travis is an awesome dude and super talented. I love this guy.
Next week we will wrap this little exercise posting our final interview with Jared Anderson.
Don’t forget to Tweet this post or share it on Facebook for your chance to win a set of Beats By Dre…
1. What does your creative process look like?
- Most often it starts with a simple melody line or an idea or topic for a song. Sometimes a melody will come to me will I am driving or just going about life, so I always save it in my voice memo on my phone, so I don’t forget it. From there I pray over the idea and the journey begins. I love to co-write because I really think we are better together. Iron sharpens iron and I absolutely believe this applies to song writing.During a writing session, we again start by praying and then we begin working on one of these ideas. Each session naturally looks different sometimes we start with just working on the melody line, other times we work on the chord structure and sometimes the lyrics are the last thing we write.
2. When you write worship songs do you identify a target audience or focus on theme?
- For me, I really focus on both. I always have in my mind my local church. I think of the people in my church, their stories, and they inspire me to write songs we as a church need to be singing. And at the same time, I also think of themes that we as body need to be singing.
3. Do you have a favorite place to write or create?
- I love to write at the piano in my house, when it’s quiet…haha! We have 2 small boys, so our house isn’t quiet very often, but that would be my favorite spot. And Although, I do love writing in my house, I have found a few spots that bring so much inspiration. For example, last year my brother and I had a chance to write in a cathedral in England on the same kind of piano the queen would use. Being in such an old place where believers had gathered for hundreds of years to worship our Creator, that was so inspiring.
4. What inspires you the most?
- I would say my time with the Lord, people’s stories, my life experiences and really good art whether it be other music, paintings, poetry, films, photography…etc.
5. When you feel you have hit a creative block, how do you overcome that moment?
- Sometimes I just need to take a break, sleep on it and come back to it. Or sometimes I even just start working anything section of the song and come back later.
6. Do you prefer to create in community or on your own?
- I for sure prefer to create in community. I have written songs on my own, but I just find I enjoy co-writing so much more.
7. What is the hardest part of creating worship sets every week?
- I think keeping the worship set fresh, honest, authentic, and real is the hardest part. It can be easy to simply throw some songs together and say it is a set, but God wants and desires our hearts and lives.
8. How do you balance original songs with songs that are leading the global church when you are creating a set?
- I don’t really have a rule of thumb with this. If people connect with a song, then I will use it in a worship set. So, I use original songs along with songs that are used globally.
9. Who is the one writer you have not worked with that you would love to write a song with?
- I would love to write with Paul Baloche because he understands the local church and community. And I would also love to write with Ruben Morgan who is with Hillsong. Both those guys really write for the moment of their local church.
