Tips for songwriting
- Thread starter mvalka
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elvissango
New member
Tips for Songwriting
I think for the theme you can jus pick a situation you are in or were in to make it real maybe how u grew up or ur relationship etc..as for the lyrics its jus puting the theme in rhyme verses or non rhyme depending on what you are good at
I think for the theme you can jus pick a situation you are in or were in to make it real maybe how u grew up or ur relationship etc..as for the lyrics its jus puting the theme in rhyme verses or non rhyme depending on what you are good at
I find that a concept or an view i have or feeling about something inspires me to write and then i start getting stuff down. then once i have the end last few words that rhyme i find other words that rhyme with it and save a few and put them to one side and see if they fit in with the topic and use them as metaphors etc
Milo Burke
New member
Do you guys write the music or the lyrics first?
Do you start with lyrics, or write a melody and find lyrics that match?
Do you start with lyrics, or write a melody and find lyrics that match?
Ezybeatz
New member
I think you would definitely benefit from this guy.. Consider him kinda sort of a mentor. Everyone needs a mentorship at some point in time, so check him out & let me know what you think! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWt-ydcYDSbOwTbzzeLfApw
How I start off sometimes can be different everytime, but I try to go with melody first. A little work around in my head first. Then if I feel I have something, I load up my logic pro x session, grab a grand piano instrument and work it out. After I have the main melody right and down pack. I start looking to harmonize with it. I might use the same instrument. After I find the chords. I do a simple arrangement and structure it as intro, verse, chorus, etc. Then I'll send this to my lyricist/vocalist. She writes all the vocal parts. Then we continue to arrange it together by adding the instruments that fit the style were gonna go with. Cut the vocals. Then after that I go in and start producing and mixing it myself. Hope this helps a bit.
elvissango
New member
On point @ Micro79,melody first and the lyrics usually start to flow,but wouldn't hurt to start on writing the lyrics first as long you are inspired.
My interest in production is very young, so I tend to just listen to beats and write. I often come up with my chorus, and then proceed with the verses. Themes/subjects vary greatly, as I refuse to accept that anything exists that I am incapable of rapping about and/or to. I spend quite a bit of time spitting works in progress and "finished" lyrics to random instrumental playlists to become familiar with the lyrics and iron out exactly how I want to perform it. However, sometimes I'll just pull up a tracc with no music and either revise (and sometimes completely change) lyrics if I don't see any improvements in my work.
Edit: As far as freestyling, I definitely do quite a bit of that as a warm up. I often end up spitting to a beat many, many times, as I generally determine what I would expect to hear as far as subject matter on the beat, and go another direction.
I always try to have some sort of progression throughout the song. It may not always necessarily be a story, sometimes it ends up being different points of view, increased metaphors, or alter egos. Arguing with oneself is an interesting experience lol.
Edit: As far as freestyling, I definitely do quite a bit of that as a warm up. I often end up spitting to a beat many, many times, as I generally determine what I would expect to hear as far as subject matter on the beat, and go another direction.
I always try to have some sort of progression throughout the song. It may not always necessarily be a story, sometimes it ends up being different points of view, increased metaphors, or alter egos. Arguing with oneself is an interesting experience lol.
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HolisticSongwriting
Writing/Producing Coach
Hey everyone,
I have two things I want to say about all the other comments you've gotten, but first, I would like to point you to a blog post I have written for Holistic Songwriting which covers exactly what you're asking for: 9 Great Ways To Start A Song – Holistic Songwriting (Official Blog)
But anyways, here's 2 things I read in the comments that I disagree with:
1) There is no music or lyrics first. This is a common misconception in songwriting. You're not writing music and a poem and then combine them. In my experience, music doesn't work like that. It's a hybrid process where one thing leads to another. I might start with a melody, add lyrics to that and those lyrics take me to a line in the verse, under with I put the music, etc. Most importantly, it needs to sound organic, music and words need to be one.
2) You can start with anything. One of the best things about songwriting is that there's no right and wrong about where to start. I've seen people roll dice and determine their chord progressions this way (that's in the blog post I mentioned as well btw). It's really up to you and it's why all songs sound different. If you're good, a song is just an extension of your personality. So be yourself and do what you like to do anyway. That's the artistic answer. The commercial answer is start with a beat or the melody
(And if you want to start with harmony, on the blog that I mentioned you can find a banner on the right where I give away 143 commercial, easy-to-use chord progressions for free).
Good luck & enjoy the writing!
I have two things I want to say about all the other comments you've gotten, but first, I would like to point you to a blog post I have written for Holistic Songwriting which covers exactly what you're asking for: 9 Great Ways To Start A Song – Holistic Songwriting (Official Blog)
But anyways, here's 2 things I read in the comments that I disagree with:
1) There is no music or lyrics first. This is a common misconception in songwriting. You're not writing music and a poem and then combine them. In my experience, music doesn't work like that. It's a hybrid process where one thing leads to another. I might start with a melody, add lyrics to that and those lyrics take me to a line in the verse, under with I put the music, etc. Most importantly, it needs to sound organic, music and words need to be one.
2) You can start with anything. One of the best things about songwriting is that there's no right and wrong about where to start. I've seen people roll dice and determine their chord progressions this way (that's in the blog post I mentioned as well btw). It's really up to you and it's why all songs sound different. If you're good, a song is just an extension of your personality. So be yourself and do what you like to do anyway. That's the artistic answer. The commercial answer is start with a beat or the melody
(And if you want to start with harmony, on the blog that I mentioned you can find a banner on the right where I give away 143 commercial, easy-to-use chord progressions for free).Good luck & enjoy the writing!
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indoshipyard
indoship
I agree with I think for the theme you can jus pick a situation you are in or were in to make it real maybe how u grew up or ur relationship etc