Welcome to SongShare

An Online Sharing Database of Composers & Writers' Works

Music Making By Caribbean And African Christians In Britain

About SongShare

VISION

Building an interactive database of accessible hymns, songs, choruses and compositions from this Diasporic Christian community.

MISSION

Operating SongShare as a system of sharing, distributing and accounting for music created by composers and writers throughout the churches and beyond.

GOAL

A permanent strategic system embarking on a new era of celebrating and marking 75 Years of British Gospel music-making in Britain and Ireland.

Register Your Music

REGISTER AND SUBMIT YOUR SONGS

SONGSHARE is built to support your efforts to making your works known, used, and continuously shared among all types of singing communities, especially churches.

Registering your details in SONGSHARE will give you access to the features that support displaying, distributing, and downloading your work assets. This will include lyrics, chord sheets, stems and any other suitable items that go with your works. See SONGSHARE as part of supporting your social media campaigns

Once you have completed the Registration Form for Writers and Composers, we will contact you to confirm all details and permissions are correct.

Promote Your Music

WE HELP PROMOTE YOUR MUSIC TO CHURCHES & MORE

We are passionate about encouraging the use of songs found on this database. Promotion is a collaborative effort:

While we promote SONGSHARE as a tool for searching and finding songs, that is only one aspect. We believe that a proactive ‘movement of songs’ is essential. Therefore, we need you to work with us as we encourage worship leaders, event organisers, and others to use the variety of songs available. In accordance with our capacity, from time to time, we will ask you for original promotional material. You will be encouraged to keep your account details current.

Learning About Royalties

WE GUIDE ON LOOKING AFTER ROYALTY COLLECTIONS

The use of songwriters’ and composers’ works in royalty collections is often neglected or misunderstood, particularly about churches. SONGSHARE will hold webinars and discussion groups for copyright holders to learn and gain clarity on how this critical part of music administration works.

Be connected to organisations or sources where you can find answers and get help on specialist subjects.

Through online and face-to-face workshops understand how these systems work. Sign up now, and we will notify you about planned sessions.

5 Reasons SONGSHARE is needed

Supporting Caribbean & African Writers & Composers

The works of Caribbean & African Writers and Composers are often overlooked in the existing system. Even amongst BMCs (Black Majority Churches), their works are infrequently shared and often marginalised.

Caribbean & African Representation

Such is the state of affairs—at the 70th National Windrush Celebrations held at Westminster Cathedral, no song written by a British Black Songwriter was known across all churches to mark the occasion.

Songs of Other Groupings

An example: UK & US composers who are familiar with or have administrative support in spreading their songs are systematically advantaged. A pro-active system approach to encouraging the use of songs among British Churches and an outreach to other Churches/ communities around the world would enable and empower choice.

Global and Local Representation

Globally or locally there has never been a British Caribbean or African writer/composer listed in the top 200 used hymns or songs on CCLI.

Research

Research has confirmed there is an equality & equity issue: In three-quarters of a century, SongShare is the first-time approach of practical engagement to reshape the systematic impact of music and race on ecumenical relationship/life. ·There are no systematic methods that give consistent access to songwriting worship leaders among BMCs. As a consequence there are no resource systems available to British-based songwriters which feed into the organised system. This has denied opportunities for financial remunerations and economic growth of Christian Black music creatives and entrepreneurs.

HOW SONGSHARE WORKS FOR CHURCHES ?

Register Your Church

START THE PROCESS

Register your church or anywhere you intend to display and use songs by Caribbean and African songwriters. Do you have a church service, ministry outreach, or other event planned? We are very keen to become familiar with suitable, quality venues. We’re looking to feature opportunities that support sharing music—or even creating customised music for your special occasion.

Get Equipped - For FREE

SONGSHARE SERVICES

SongShare provides information to access resources and display software for all your lyric projection, service sheets, instrumental/vocal arrangements, and service recording requirements.

Once registered with us, we can freely provide a telephone consultation session. We will advise you on content from our database. However we can also conduct research on enquiries. Email for further details.

SongShare Database

A MOVEMENT OF SONGS

SONGSHARE is a Database and a proactive and practical way of circulating songs among and between church denominations, fellowships and other gatherings and events.

This Database is being built from the ground up. Its real success is the ‘movement of songs’ across the nations. ‘For the Earth shall be filled with the The Knowledge of Glory of THE LORD as the waters cover the sea’ HABAKKUK 2:14