Innovative Music

Songwriting

Step by step Songwriting

There are many fabulous instrumentalists out there in this planet. They can play their musical instrument as well as Van Gogh could paint,but when it comes down to songwriting, that picture isn’t as lovely as it should, or could be.

Many musicians shy away from songwriting because they feel that it is too intimidating or simply to difficult. Although songwriting isn’t the easiest thing to do, it also isn’t the hardest thing to do. There are various ways to write a song, but  most musicians prefer to start with the instruments first. They will just play whatever feels right to them. Once they are comfortable with the tune, they will put lyrics in and turn out a song. This is usually the process that most musicians opt for when writing music, however, this is not written in stone, and it certainly does not have to apply to you.

Songwriting, like most things in life, is a process. If you know what the process is, the job becomes easier. With time, the experience automatically takes over and makes the process of songwriting just that: a process.

You, as the potential songwriting genius should focus on these songwriting tips.

1. You should recognize who your audience is and write your lyrics to target that audience. If you want to sing to seniors, for example, you don’t want to write lyrics that are inappropriate for that age group, or vice-versa, you don’t want to write adult or explicit lyrics to children. Common sense on this first and very important step in your songwriting process.

2. Write down the subject of the song. The subject could be about an isolated kid who’s having a hard time at school, for example. This should be your first verse.

3. Write down the message that you want your song to convey. For example, that isolated kid might feel and believe that they are the only ones going through the ridicule and hardship while at school. Write two verses that conveys this message.

4. Write down the conclusion to your song. For instance, at the end, the aforementioned kid realizes by watching who he/she thought were the coolest kid in school, also having a hard time, and somehow this realization made her/him feel less alone.  This will be your last verse.

Keep in mind that you don’t have to put this in verse form just yet. Just write it down in sentence or point form.

5. Make sure that you come up with a catchy chorus for your song. The chorus is a bridge from one verse to the next. It usually repeats itself a few times during a song, but not always. This depends on you and your music style.

6. Once you have written down your story and chorus, read over what you have written and change it to lines. Try to rhyme the last word of every line that you write down, this includes the chorus, and don’t forget to keep each line relatively the same length.  You can have a rhyming sequence of aa, bb, or ab ab.

aa, bb sequence would look something like this:

he went to the zoo

with one blue shoe

then he saw a horse

well, but of course

ab, ab sequence would look like this:

the man was lonely

that he went for a walk

but he looked so homely

because he liked to eat chalk

A little bit of humor, but you get the idea.

Last step is to apply your lyrics to the music that you have created.

There you have the basics to songwriting, without all the fear that many musicians have when it comes to putting lyrics to their music.