Tips on Songwriting
Step #1 - The Theme
Rhyming Dictionary For Rap
Try and say something in a new or customary way. Instead of saying "I want you back", Toni Braxton said, "Unbreak My Heart". Instead of saying "I love you", Ne-Yo's song "When You're Mad" explains how he loves her even when she's mad.
This is a very uncomplicated dissimilarity but it can be the dissimilarity between a tired branch or a fresh angle on a common theme.
Theme's that regularly work best are those that engage the emotion of the listener, the presuppose "love and relationships" is so popular in music is because most citizen think about those subjects a lot, and understandably like to listen to music that communicates their inner fears/hope/experiences on those subjects.
Step #2 - The Title
A good title should be abruptly memorable, it should put a photo in your mind of an event or situation and it should lend itself to a catchy melody, or one that's convenient for your music style.
A good title will naturally lend itself to a catchy hook, finding that title can be hard, especially when so many songs have been released over the decades ... How can you find a new one?!
One way is to keep your "antenna up". Be aware of what citizen are saying nearby you and if you are writing for a teen market, take a look at teen magazines, if it's urban you want then check out urban mags. Words and phrases are everywhere ... You just need to pick up on them when they come!
Finding a title that paints a photo all on it's own is also very prominent because it will originate a deeper relationship with the listener. The best songs originate images in the listeners mind or evoke an emotion, your title will help achieve this.
Elton John's "Sorry seems to be the hardest word" abruptly evokes an emotion that can be identified by all of us ... A time where we have experienced how hard it can be to say sorry even though we know we should!
Step #3 - The Lyrics
A good lyric paints a picture, it says things in a new and unique way whilst dealing with topics that most of us can recap to.
Country music often has phenomenal lyric writing. One clever technique is to originate a story that suddenly flips and means something fully distinct the moment you hit the chorus. This is just one technique for thoughprovoking the listener, or retention them on their toes.
Another is to word things in a new way, like the song we mentioned earlier "Un-break My Heart". Keep the chorus lyrics the same so as it remains easy to remember. You could also keep the pre chorus, or bridges the same too.
Avoid too many words such as "Love, Baby, Girl etc". If used too often they can sound shallow and cheesy. Keep your rhyme patterns equal and intuitive. Too many rhyming words can be off putting. For example:
"Looking at you, I see the truth, baby it's true, there's only you"
This sentence is smothered in rhymes and sounds clumsy.
The following would work better:
"Looking at you, the truth I see, there's no one else, you're all I need"
If using this rhyme pattern with the second and fourth lines rhyming, you should keep the same pattern in verse 2 so that your song lyric has a continuity throughout.
Another popular rhyme pattern is to match the 2nd and 4th lines, along with the 1st and 3rd lines:
"Read my mind, and you will know, the love inside, will never go"
A good place to start your lyric writing is to scribble down lots of words and phrases that are relevant to your song theme. Use this as a kind of pallet from which you can draw ideas from at a later date.
For example, if my theme was about feeling like a star, I might start by writing all things that comes to mind about being illustrious or rich ...
celebrity, fame, money, limousine, jewelry, car on cruise, back at the pool, diamond, gucci etc etc.
Anything at all to get brainstorming. These can then be mixed up and called upon when you are forming your lyrics, just like you would use colours when painting a picture.
A good tool to use is a rhyming dictionary. There are many good ones on line and can be found via search engines.
Step #4 - The Vocal Melody
The vocal melody is highly prominent as this is regularly what the listener will remember and hum whilst in the shower!
The idea is to originate depth and interest whilst retention the melody uncomplicated adequate that most citizen can sing along to it.
The hook must be 'catchy' or 'memorable'. Take Elton Johns song "Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word". Now if you know this song you will understand that just to read those words is adequate to 'hear' Elton's vocal melody in your mind.
The vocal melody is uncomplicated and catchy adequate to be memorable without needing to hear any music ... Now that's catchy!
Always add colour: By this I mean originate more than what is already there. If there is a D Major chord being played, try singing a note other than those in a D Major chord.
If the music has long chords, sing with a faster rhythm. If the chords are played low, try singing an octave higher to add more colour.
This technique of adding colour can be applied with the melody itself. For example, if the verse has long vocal notes, try switching it in the bridge to short rhythmic notes and change again for the chorus. Apply the principle of adding colour to your music and vocals to originate a richer and more thoughprovoking melody.
Always ask yourself honestly, "do I lose interest at a clear point in this song?". If you do, rework the melody to give the listener something to keep their interest.
Step #5 - The Arrangement
A lot of otherwise good songs are ruined by poor arrangement. In fact it can be the one area that is neglected and determined not important.
A good arrangement is very prominent and is more complex that one may first think.
You may want to have a suitable three and a half diminutive song, and you'd be wise in doing so finding as most hit songs run at this length ( Maybe it's the optimum length for a human brain to absorb information without getting bored?!)
let's assume your going for a three and a half diminutive song, that doesn't give you much time to squeeze all things in, and in what order should you place things? What good ideas should you leave out? These are tough questions and ultimately come under one heading "The Arrangement".
The mean song will have the following arrangement (although this is only a guide):
Up tempo Song
Intro
Verse 1
Bridge
Chorus
Verse 2
Bridge
Chorus
Chorus
Middle 8
Chorus
Chorus
Slow Song
Intro
Verse 1
Bridge
Chorus
Verse 2
Chorus
Middle 8
Chorus
Chorus
Quick Tips:
*Don't make the intro too long, stick to 8 or 16 bars.
*Listen back to your song from the starting and ask yourself if it flows naturally, or if there are sections that lose energy/interest.
*Get to the hook/chorus speedily to 'grab' the listener.
Step #6 - The production
In some R&B and Pop songs the production has in some cases taken over in significance to the vocal melody. This is not surprising if you have been in a night club and experienced clear songs and the power of the production.
Times have changed, especially in R&B and Hip Hop. It is no good to send a demo to a label saying, "please dream this with proper production", because the production is 50% of the song.
That is almost like saying "here's a great piece of music, please dream it with a good chorus"!
The production is more than putting the right effects on the instruments and balancing them out, it is the overall mood of the track and determines how professional it ends up sounding.
Odd sounds that seem irrelevant to many citizen like for example, a vocal breath, can transform a song if used in the right context. A song that would go unnoticed can suddenly inspire interest if the right sound is used correctly ... A named 'super producer' commented that non tonal sounds, like hitting a table or ashtray can add a great deal of interest and power to a song.
Most citizen will hear a song and make a judgment as to whether they like it within seconds based on the overall sound. They may get to love the song but unless the production is thoughprovoking they may never listen to it twice.
The biggest mistake citizen make is to present a song with a list of excuses. The plain truth is that a song is a blend of sounds and the listener will hear them all as one and no excuse will change their first taste of the song or how they emotionally respond. Get the production right!
Tips on Songwriting
