Worship Publishing Lead: Songwriting & A&R Strategy

Gateway Church; United States; On-site; USD 52,000 - 72,000; Full time

Job summary

Gateway Church is seeking a Creative Publishing Specialist to lead songwriting and publishing for Gateway Music. You will build a writer pipeline, shepherd songs from idea to release, and manage submissions, metadata, and pitches to keep projects aligned with ministry and brand theology.

The role focuses on cultivating a healthy songwriting culture, coordinating co-writes/camps, and maintaining strong relationships with writers and publishers while collaborating with Marketing and Operations.

Qualifications

• Specialized working knowledge of worship songs, songwriters and publishing systems and administration.
• Familiarity with performing rights organizations, CCLI, and rights administration platforms.
• Exceptional attention to detail with splits, metadata, and ownership records.
• Strong analytical skills to review songs and provide feedback.
• Discretion with writer information and ability to work independently.

Responsibilities

• Builds relationships with songwriters internally and externally.
• Schedules co-writing sessions and pairs writers with artists and producers.
• Sets songwriting goals and deadlines aligned with planning.
• Develops a healthy songwriting culture at Gateway.
• Tracks progress from idea through final approval and pitches.
• Reviews submissions for lyrics, theology, melody, and fit.
• Pitches songs to outside artists and labels for projects or releases.
• Maintains catalog with writer credits, splits, status, and pitch history.
• Plans and manages songwriting camps end-to-end and budgets.
• Manages relationships with outside writers and publishers as main contact.
• Coordinates metadata and publishing details with operations staff.
• Communicates brand theology and ministry vision to writers.
• Follows up on unfinished songs to keep the pipeline moving.
• Oversees song selection for Gateway Music projects.
• Stays current on worship trends to guide themes and sounds.
• Partners with Marketing on release metadata and credits.
• Supports weekend services and churchwide events as needed.
• Performs other duties and supports Serve Teams as required.

Skills

Songwriting development

Relationship building

Music publishing systems

Metadata management

Co-writing coordination

Education

Bachelor's degree in music business or related field

Two or more years of music publishing/rights administration experience

Job description

Gateway Church is seeking a Creative Publishing Specialist to lead songwriting and publishing for Gateway Music. You will build a writer pipeline, shepherd songs from idea to release, and manage submissions, metadata, and pitches to keep projects aligned with ministry and brand theology.

The role focuses on cultivating a healthy songwriting culture, coordinating co-writes/camps, and maintaining strong relationships with writers and publishers while collaborating with Marketing and Operations.