If you are wondering what it takes to write a catchy song, we are going to stop you right there because, in fact, there is no universal answer to this question. For some artists, music can be the hardest part, while others are struggling with drafting catchy lyrics that deliver a strong message to the audience. Songwriters face a whole lot of various obstacles, so by no means, the process of creating a hit is simple.
Are there any ways to make it simpler? While there is no universal formula for success, as songwriting is quite a personal endeavor, there are still some handy tips that can help you get started and make your songs work, and that’s what we are going to talk about in this article!
Songwriter’s Hacks
If you look up “tips for songwriting” on the Internet, you will probably get millions of results in no time. Indeed, there are plenty of recommendations for aspiring songwriters out there, but how effective are those? In a matter of fact, there is a pretty good chance that most of them don’t work!
In this article, we have gathered some of the best pro tips and tricks that put your ideas and creativity first and help unleash your creative potential. Let’s dive in!
- Use available tools for extra help
Similarly to services like EssayPro that exist to help students write academic papers, there are quite many tools that provide assistance to songwriters. What are these tools? Well, first of all, there are plenty of writing applications that synchronize across all devices and platforms like Evernote. We are not going to focus much on them, just keep in mind that they are available, and they be a lot of help during this creative process. In addition, there are quite many rhyming tools for songwriting help. For example, Doppelreim and RhymeZone can really help to get you on track with some great rhymes, so be sure to use such tools! Finally, all songwriters shouldn’t neglect the benefits of using voice recording apps! Although writing down the lyrics is good, recording them humming the melody is a brilliant idea that will help you to remember the right tune.
- Create a powerful title
Well, it is not a secret that every piece should have a title, and it is vital not to underestimate its role in the popularity of a song. First of all, the title is the first thing that the audience learns about your song – it creates the first impression and gives a hint on what the main point the author is delivering through his song. Thus, it should be powerful, catchy, and intriguing. At the same time, it shouldn’t be too complicated or long, as it will be too hard to memorize.
- The right positioning of a title in the song
When you already have a powerful title, one more thing to take care of is its position in the lyrics. Probably all of you know that most songwriters use this trick – they locate the title of a song somewhere across verses to make audience memorize it unconsciously. This is a great hack. However, the position is the key!
The best idea is to place the title in one of the power positions in a song. Defining such a position, consider the overall structure – for example, the Beatles’ song “Yesterday” is a vivid example of the right positioning. If we dig deeper, we can see that this song uses a verse/bridge type of structure, which makes the first and last lines of the verse the most powerful position, and that’s where we can hear the word yesterday being repeated.
Alternatively, if you can’t find this power position or it just doesn’t feel right to put your title there, make sure to compensate for weak positioning by a strong melodic emphasis.
- Think of the right form
One of the first steps should be defining the right form for your piece. There are quite many song forms that you could use, so be sure to learn more about the specifics of each and pick what works the most for you!
- Empowering the words with the right music
Apart from powerful and catchy lyrics, songwriters insist that every hit should come with a memorable melody. It should be catchy and easy to recall. In this case, it will remain in the person’s memory after only a few times he hears the song. Thus, think of something unique that highlights your style and genre, and don’t forget about keeping it simple and catchy.
There are a few other tips concerning the melody. It is a good tip to create a contrast between the music that plays along with the verse and chorus. A good example of unique but extremely memorable and contrasting melody is another Beatles’ song “Hey Jude.” It is simple enough and, at the same time, it greatly stands out from the crowd. That’s something all songwriters should be striving for!
Final Words
Creating something really valuable and powerful, be it a book, artwork, or song, requires lots of creativity, inspiration, and patience. As a rule, it will take you a while to write and re-write your song until it will be flawless. By no means, this process can be called simple. However, with the tips given above, each of you should be able to create a hit that will be climbing the Billboard charts!
