Tim Ely’s “Someone” Named June “Best Song Of The Month”

Tim Ely
Tim Ely

Tim Ely, a songwriter & musician based in Peacham, Vermont, has won the SongwriterUniverse “Best Song Of The Month” Contest for June, for his song, “Someone.” Ely is a songwriter who has developed a passion of songwriting at an older age, and he’s now creating and recording many new songs.

“Someone” is a well-crafted country-pop ballad, that has a heartfelt, romantic lyric theme. The song has an appealing melody, particularly in the chorus where the melody lifts higher. This recording is a duet version, that features strong lead vocal performances by both Kailiann Lowe and Ron Wallace, and they both contribute rich harmonies. “Someone” was expertly produced by Ely at the Baird Music Group Studios in Nashville.

Ely grew up in Northwest Pennsylvania, near Lake Erie. He learned to play piano, and he started writing songs when he was 16, He was inspired by listening to the Beatles, country-rock artists like the Eagles and JD Souther, and Paul Simon.

After high school, Ely attended college and subsequently graduated with a marketing degree. He kept up his music interest by writing songs and playing live, but his main career focus became working at an advertising agency. Ely eventually got married and raised a family with his wife, while continuing to write songs.

Years later, Ely joined a NSAI (Nashville Songwriters Association International) workship, which motivated him to seriously develop his songwriting. It was around this time that he also learned about recording, and he set up a home studio where he recorded rough demos of his songs.

Tim Ely at his home studio
Tim Ely at his home studio.

Another key moment was when Ely joined BMI, and he read in their newsletter about the popular music site, Broadjam, which provides placement and networking opportunities for songwriters & artists. He then joined Broadjam and began to enter the song contests that were listed on the site. Ely explains, “When I started entering the song contests, I got good traction. I had six songs that did well in the song contests, and publishers became interested in my songs. I’ve also been able to place two of my songs in movies, including the film The Comeback Trail which stars Robert DeNiro and Tommy Lee Jones.”

For his song “Someone,” Ely wrote the song and recorded a rough demo at his home studio. He then went to Nashville to produce the song at the Baird Music Group Studios. The creative team at Baird Music Group introduced him to the singers Kailiann Lowe and Ron Wallace, who sang on “Sometime.”

Currently, Ely has been busy writing and recording many new songs. He says, “There’s no taking a break; I’m writing a bunch of new songs. My goal is to keep writing songs and try to get more placements. I like pitching my songs via Broadjam and I’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback.

Top Five Songs Of The Month
Here are the Top Five Songs which were submitted for this month's contest, with the songwriter credits, plus their e-mail and website links. You can listen to the winning songs by clicking the music players below.
"Best Song Of The Month" Winner

Song Title:

"Someone"

Written by:

Tim Ely of Peacham, Vermont. Performed by Kailiann Lowe & Ron Wallace.
More Best Songs Of The Month

Song Title:

"Just Call Me" (country)

Written by:

Damien Hosken (of Melbourne, Australia) & Stacy Hogan (Nashville). Performed by Deb Thomas.
Damien Hosken

Song Title:

"Shadows in the Garden" (pop)

Written by:

Jesse Daily of Glendale, Wisconsin. Performed by Mitch Cooper.
Jesse Daily

Song Title:

"You'll Be The Third To Know" (country)

Written by:

Bobby Caputo of Lake Oswego, Oregon. Performed by Bobby Caputo.
Bobby Caputo

Song Title:

"I Can't Read Minds" (pop)

Written by:

Stefanie Johnson of Allentown, Pennsylvania. Performed by Stefanie Johnson.
Stefanie Johnson
To enter the next "Best Song Of The Month" Contest (the deadline is the last day of each month), please Click Here
Dale Kawashima is the Head of SongwriterUniverse and a music journalist. He’s also a music publishing exec who has represented the song catalogs of Michael Jackson, Prince, Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan and Motown Records.
Dale Kawashima