235: Songwriting as a Pathway to Business Innovation with Cliff Goldmacher

Oct 25 2023 • 44 mins

Cliff Goldmacher is a Grammy-recognized #1 hit songwriter, keynote speaker, and author. A multi-instrumentalist, he has recorded, played on, and produced thousands of recordings and album projects for major and independent music publishers and record labels.

Cliff spent his first ten years in Southeast Asia due to his father’s work. Once they transferred back to the US, they moved to Memphis, Tennessee, a location that Cliff credits for his becoming a musician. He studied classical piano, which provided him with a foundation in music, but it wasn't until Cliff attended Stanford University that his personal connection to music began. He borrowed a guitar from a guy in his dorm and taught himself to play. Next, Cliff started to write songs and began performing with a friend. He graduated with a political science degree, took the LSAT, and applied to law schools.

Rather than go directly to law school, Cliff took an opportunity to do a teaching internship in a small town in France. Once there, he found a little cafe to perform music. The cafe manager asked him to play six nights a week, which Cliff did for the entire year. During that time, Cliff was writing songs, performing, and rethinking his law school plans. He chose to pursue a music career, reasoning that if it did not work out, he could consider law school. Thirty years later, Cliff has written over 1,000 songs, including chart-toppers recorded by Grammy-winning and platinum-selling artists in genres ranging from Americana, country, pop, blues, and jazz to classical crossover.

Cliff’s book, The Reason For The Rhymes: Mastering the Seven Essential Skills of Innovation by Learning to Write Songs, encapsulates the principles of his corporate workshops, where he helps business teams enhance their creativity, solve problems, and innovate by teaching them to write songs.

In this week’s Work From The Inside Out podcast, follow Cliff’s journey and his work today: