Paramount Group (business, costs , contract)

[northcountrygirl]

Can anyone give me any personal knowledge or opinions about the Paramount Group in Nashville. Do you know if they are legitimate? I have the opportunity to do business with them, they have offered me a contract and I would appreciate any information you have. This is concerning song writing.

[alleycat]

I did a quick online check. I'd suggest you exercise extreme caution in dealing with this company.

I'll send you a PM.

[akm4]

S- This is what's referred to as a shark. Go to NSAI or SGA and they'll be happy to warn you about these things and how to spot them.

Don't feel badly- it's a common mistake. I'm glad you found out before signing anything....like a big fat check! Just remember your publisher should pay YOU, not the other way around.

Good luck!!

[northcountrygirl]

Thanks guys! I appreciate your help. I had a feeling and I neve sign anything I'm not sure about. Thanks for your feedback and advise.

[MichaelBaldwin]

Originally Posted by northcountrygirl

Can anyone give me any personal knowledge or opinions about the Paramount Group in Nashville. Do you know if they are legitimate? I have the opportunity to do business with them, they have offered me a contract and I would appreciate any information you have. This is concerning song writing.

Hi!

I'm beginning to wonder about this crowd. I write lyrics and I submitted my first song to them. I was offered a contract, but declined thinking that probably everyone gets offered that.

However, for a Christmas song, I wrote a load of garbage to see what happened. I never heard from them again about that so I thought, "Well, maybe they are ok after all".

I wrote my next song and again was offered a contract, which I accepted this time. The demo turned out really well. I was offered a contract for my next song as well. Again I accepted. The melody, this time, was really bad and did nothing for the lyrics. The singers had good voices and did the best they could with a poor melody. I felt the music had been hurried through with no thought to the words at all. I feel I could have just written numbers, instead of words, and got the same melody.

The other thing I'm not happy about is that every letter you get from them says exactly the same thing. Does this ring any bells? :-

"Our warmest congratulations! Your entry 'blah, blah, in the Nashville International Song and Lyric Contest for (date), has already won the Directors Award and is still in line for etc. etc". They are all standard letters and there is nothing personal about them.

Another thing that gives me concern is the name of the company ... "The Paramount Group". It suggests that they are Paramount as in Paramount Records and Paramount Films. They are nothing to do with THAT Paramount organisation.

I think, in future, I will find a callaborator to write the melodies, and then have demos made from another source. The collaborator and I will jointly pay for the demo and then split any royalties 50/50.

Be careful before parting with your cash.

Best of luck,

Mike.

[northcountrygirl]

I saw this thread ressurected and beings I started it I thought I would chime in once again. I went to the website that alleycat originally suggested to me and the reviews there and in other places were not good. This company is nothing more than a group who charges you money to make demos. I also received a contract from them and after doing the research I threw it in the trash. All you are doing is giving them money. I have learned from actual published writers that you should never be paying for your lyrics...they should be paying you. I would avoid sending them anymore money. The bad thing is that companies like this can prey on hopefuls who don't know how to get their writings considered for lyrics because they don't know any better. I was fortunate to learn this lesson before it cost me any money. I am very appreciative to alleycat for helping me avoid a painful and costly lesson.

[SmokyMtnGal]

Originally Posted by northcountrygirl

Can anyone give me any personal knowledge or opinions about the Paramount Group in Nashville. Do you know if they are legitimate? I have the opportunity to do business with them, they have offered me a contract and I would appreciate any information you have. This is concerning song writing.

Hi NCGirl, I owe you some rep points. Let me go do that now!!

[northcountrygirl]

Hi SmokyMtnGal!!!!! It's good to see you again. Thanks for the rep.

[Belle5876]

I've sent lyrics for a couple songs to Paramount Group and I've been pleased with the results.
As for the person who wrote the post about not having to pay for your lyrics, you're not paying them for the lyrics, you're paying them to make the demo. They're offering HELP to get your music published. They give pointers for how to make that happen. They make demos. That's their business.
I don't write music, so this was a good way for me to bring my songs to life.
It costs money to make albums. Every artist has to pay for studio time to make their music!!!!!

[Belle5876]

Also in response to Mike's post;
As for 'every letter says the same thing', Every company has form letters and standard contracts that say the same thing. This is not an unusual thing. And it doesn't mean they're not a legitimate business.