How to Write Lyrics

How To Write Lyrics: Tips from an amateur   by Andrew Rightenburg Rightenburg (Also known as: Acronym of Mic Row !efect "#$ A mini%book mini%book on uncommon strategies techni&ues and terms in lyricism' Lets get started' )ll try to be as straightforward and to%the%point as possible' This book is for e*eryone from the e+perienced lyricist looking to e+pand his,her knowledge to the guy that -ust started yesterday and wants to know how to impro*e  before he continues' ) honestly honestly hope you can get get as much out of this as you need to'

Table of .ontents Title

Section

Page

Who am )/

0

1

2eneral

3

4

Terms and techni&ues

5

6

Realism

1

#

7oeticism

4

"

7oetic Realism

6

30

Abstract lyricism

8

33

9ong structure

#

35

Theme



34

Lyrical process

"

38

Rhymes

30

3

Lyrical myths

33

3"

;eep going

35

53

!eli*ery

31

51

.ommon issues

34

56

.onclusion

36

5

9o uh how about them lyrics/ )ll let you know before we begin that ) ha*e little to no idea of what )m talking about  but if youre reading this then you probably belie*e that you dont either'

My name is Andrew Rightenburg )m a self%taught lyricist of  years and a lot of other things on top of that' )*e mostly focused on hip hop throughout my <.areer< ()f you can call something you*e made a grand total of =ero dollars from a career$ but )m a lyricist of both hip hop and rock' )*e independently studied and analy=ed lyrics of many many genres'  >ow enough of the introduction' Lets get started'

3 2eneral )ntroduction ?h lyrics' That sub-ect we all know and lo*e' Many rappers and singers will attempt to mystify the creation of lyrics and their lyrical  process' This is all bullshit' Theres no on%refle+i*e @ Mi+ed person But we wont talk much about the
5 Terms (And techni&ues$ TERM: BARS, BLOCKS

?ne bar is one measure of lyrics' ?ne line per se' ?ne block is a group of lyrics' Typically blocks are groups of 4 lyrics at a time depending on the structure of the beat' )f youre not sure what it is for your beat a safe assumption is 4 bars per block' TERM: PAUSE

This really shouldnt ha*e to be said but it is needed' A pause is literally a pause' As in not holding a syllable on a note or otherwise' But a literal blank space in the *ocal track' TECHNIQUE: PUNCHLINE PLACEMENT (Usall! Hi" Ho", #t col$ #e a""lie$ ot%e&'ise

?ne of the main benefactors for me (when ) started that is$ is WHCRC to set the  punchline' >ow the magic number in most hip hop and e*en most music is 4' Remember that' 4,4 time signature *erses in multiples of 4 (4 bars  bars 38 bars 54  bars 15 bars etc$' 9o naturally for the best possible impact on the listener you will want to structure your punchlines around the number 4' .onsider these lyrics: (dont -udge me these were written on the spot'$


)f you notice the more powerful hard%hitting lines go on the e*en numbers' The first line is a lead%in for the second setting up for the entire block of bars as well' The third line isnt *ery powerful sounds like some generic acebook status shit but it does keep a consistent tone as the fourth line comes inwhich is much more powerful' Basically what )m saying is set up your punchlines using the odd numbered lines then when you ha*e something which you belie*e to be more powerful put it on an e*en line' 7sychologically people are more likely to take notice of an e*en numbered line' () dont know if any psychologist has backed that up ) -ust know from e+perience that people tend to react less to lines on bars 3 and 1 of each block than on 5 and 4' TECHNIQUE: )RITIN* BACK)AR+S

) know it sounds like some cra=y satanic shit but it seriously helps' 2i*en that people are more likely to react on the e*en numbered lines and we all know the number 3 isnt e*en it -ust makes sense to write the e*en numbered lines )R9T and then a lead%in for them' ) find that it is really easy when you ha*e a punchline to write that first' H?WCDCR after writing it you should definitely write a lead%in or setup for it that goes before it' To take it to the e+treme you could write say a 38 bar *erse with the 38th bar first then the lead%in to that and mo*e backwards' ) only recommend this if necessary though  because writing backwards to that e+treme would typically remo*e the natural feeling and flow of the lyrics' But it )9 good to know where youre going' TERM: LINE CONNECTIIT-.SEPARATION Line connecti*ity refers to how connected or separated the lines feel' ) f you ha*e one sentence split up in two lines with a pause in%between the lines ar e poorly connected' Howe*er if you split up a sentence within one line with no pause those sentences are  poorly separated' This is a balancing act to say the least' TERM AN+ TECHNIQUE: STABILIT- IN L-RICS (C&e$it to Pat Pattison 9table lyrics say e+actly what they mean' )f you wanted to say that you appreciated your significant other and meant it then you would write in a typical fashion (C*en number of lines per #loc/  symmetrical rhyme schemes such as AABB or ABAB etc etc etc$' )f you mean that you do >?T appreciate him,her but saying in a literal sense the opposite then you would want to write in a more odd style' Maybe an odd number of lines or a strange rhyme scheme such as ABBA'

1 Realism An e+planation Beginning with the most common of the styles Realism is a *ery con*ersational form of lyricism' This means that when you write in this style it should sound like somewhat of a con*ersation' )n this style you wouldnt say things that you wouldnt say when talking to someone else' ) call it realism because its a *ery realistic portrayal of e*ery day wording e*en when its about obscure things or e*ents' .onsider these lyrics: (.redit to AELyrics and Cminem' The song is called Marshall Mathers'$

ow what hes depicting is absolutely absurd obscure whate*er you want to call it' Howe*er its done in such a way where he earns a sort of <.redibility< regarding them' These arent things you wouldnt hear from an a*erage man who grew up in !etroit' Lets break this down a little bit'
 bar: ow of course the first line was a setup for the ne+t 1 lines' He somewhat lightens the mood with the first line to ma+imi=e the shock *alue of the following *erse' Because the listener has ad-usted to the e*eryday sound of the first bars depiction the lines that follow ha*e much more of a shock than they would by themsel*es'  >ow an incorrect interpretation of these lyrics leads me to another thing: Line connecti*ity and separation'

The second block of the lyrics CDCR continue your sentences after a long pause unless it feels  NATURAL. To say ot really' But you get my point'

4 7oeticism Another e+planation 7oeticism is a less con*ersational form of lyricism than Realism although not &uite as
CDCR say any of that in an actual con*ersation' This genre of lyricism cuts away the wording we go through naturally and adds in a much more comple+ adult phrasing that sounds almost unnatural' By no means am ) saying any genre of lyricism is superior howe*er' )n lyrics its the &uality not the category'

6 7oetic Realism What is it/ 7oetic Realism is as far as ) can tell a fairly new genre of lyricism' The best e+planation of this genre that ) can offer is this: 7oetic Realism uses real%life situations phrases and con*ersational sentences to e+press much deeper meaning' The implications of the line are sent *ia the tone of *oice deli*ery or flow rather than the line itself' A lot of the time e*en a specific moment in the instrumental is used'  Pat Pattison talks consistently about stable and unstable lyrics' Hopefully he wont mind ) would like to recite this information for your benefit' ) refer you to the 2eneral Techni&ues And Terms section where ) describe his ideas' 9table lyrics arent typically used in poetic realism put simply' Although new this genre of lyricism is becoming *ery common and *ery popular' C*en  Drake has dabbled in it e*ery now and then' ) actually lo*e this style and ) personally cannot get enough of it'

8 Abstract lyricism A *ery brief e+planation To be honest this is such a minor concept that )m unsure as to why )m including it' To be brief its nonsensical lyricism that focuses more on the emotion sent than any consistent *erbal message' Fou could throw in unconnected incidents or random  phrases,names of ob-ects that pro*ide a connotation of an emotion that you want to send' )*e always lo*ed the idea of this but )*e ne*er seen it e+ecuted well and ) dont think ) could e+ecute it *ery well myself' ) honestly wish there was more of this kind of lyricism'

# 9ong 9tructure Basic formulas to aid your creati*ity' (!? >?T RCLF 9?LCLF ?> ?RMILA). TH)>;)>2$

9ong structure to me is a *ery interesting concept for about 6 minutes' Then it gets  boring because )*e figured out by then whate*er ) want to do with my life for the moment' Lets di*ide this by genre' Hip Hop

Rock

)ntro: 4% bars

)ntros of multiple lengths are more common' 9o )ntro: howe*er long you feel suits the song

Hook: 4 bars repeat once (making  bars'$

7op  >o intro Derse: 4 bars Hook:  bars

Derse: 38 bars

Derse:  bars Derse: 4 bars

Repeat hook 

Hook: 4 bars Repeat hook 

Derse: 38 bars

Derse:  bars Bridge: 4% bars

Repeat hook 

Repeat hook  Repeat hook 

ade,?utro: 4% bars

Derse:  bars Repeat hook  Repeat hook  ade,?utro ade,?utro

?f course you dont absolutely HADC to follow these formulas its -ust a proportional guideline'  >ow a &uestion ) get *ery often is
Well )ll tell you' A hook is meant to sum up the entire song in a short period of time and is also meant (as the title implies$ to 9)9TC>T' 9TAF .?>9)9TC>T' 9TAF .?>9)9TC>T' ) cant stress this enough' There are too many songs where the lyricist writes 4 bars about the education system 4 bars about family troubles and the hook is about Fo 2abba 2abba' C*en if your song isnt consistent stay consistent in that its all unrelated and inconsistent at the *ery least' !ont try to string together a concept at the last minute' )f your song has multiple topics make the hook about something new' A new topic' Howe*er if your song has a consistent topic then think to yourself: ow ) ha*e a tip for hook writing that is specific to H)7 H?7 LFR).)9T9' When you rap a *erse usually you will rap at a faster pace than on the hook' Fou will usually rap somewhat lengthy lines at a somewhat fast pace' When you write a hook 9L?W !?W>' C*en if its -ust a little make the lines shorter and say them a little slower' This isnt a cure%all but it should help a lot'  >ow you rock people are thinking )*e left you out arent you/ Well my tip specifically for rock singers is to .HA>2C THC MCL?!F' Whate*er melody clicks with you the most use it for the hook'

 Theme .reating maintaining and e+pressing it A ma-or problem that beginner to mediocre lyricists ha*e lies in the themes of their music' Lets define o but all -oking aside the best way to e+press a theme will depend on what youre going for' 9ay for e+ample youre going for an entire album all based around this theme' )n this case you would want to break the theme down to as many points as  possible and spread those among each song' Lets take this as a hypothetical theme: The music industry is dying. How would you e+press that in an entire album/ )n a single song/ ) hate to make this comparison but if you*e e*er written a paper for high school with a minimum word count then you know e+actly how to spread out the album' Claborate' Claborate' Claborate' () once read a book from the sociological functionalist point of *iew' The entire 160 pages were -ust talking about the same thing: Things are better now than e*er before in the world' THRCC HI>!RC! A>! )TF 7A2C9' )f he can do that you can do a single album'$

9o for a single song we -ust take all kinds of e+amples of the music industry dying and

we e+plain them in whate*er way you see fit' .orrect/ Then what for an album/ Fou see most people dont ha*e trouble with -ust one song' But %% for an entire album?! Thats where people ha*e trouble' What you may ha*e noticed is that )*e been doing e+actly what you should do' This entire section has been elaborated and bloated to the point where you want to keep reading but youre also trying to figure out what )m trying to or going to say' 7ut in a more simple wording you should take each indi*idual e+ample and gi*e them their own songs' )n this case our topic is
" Lyrical process An e+ample and how to find yours )ll start this section off by describing my personal lyrical process and writing a &uick *erse to further illustrate it' The *ery first thing ) do is determine what ) want to write about %% actually this is done  before ) e*en know that ) want to write' )m inspired to write by the topic basically' rom there ) think of a few things ) want to say specifically and how ) want to say them' 9o lets use the topic of the future' 7ossibilities for a coming personal future in my life' What do ) want to say/ What are some specific lines/ ) ha*e my beat on replay lets go' Well )ll want to introduce the concept in a slightly nudging way' ) could start by saying ) was looking in the mirror in the morning' 9uddenly )m getting the idea to elude the fact that its speculation of the future by saying what )
2reat' We ha*e  bars so far  written in the order that theyre performed %% which is usually good for intros' >ow what are some specific lines ) want to use at this point/ Well ) want to get the listener lost in the speculation before ) bring them back abruptly' An abrupt shift done correctly will usually cause a ot that those are all too great though'$

30 Rhymes Resources to get you started 9o a common issue among many beginner lyricists is rhyming' Maybe its your  problem too' )n my humble opinion the best way to find better rhyming words is to begin to associate words in your mind by rhyme' Train yourself so whene*er you think of a ow a good way to start this mental process is with rhyming dictionaries' or perfect rhyme ) recommend Rhyme=one (2oogle is your friend here$' or slant rhyme ) recommend B%Rhymes' >either of them are paying me and )m not associated with either one %% ) -ust used Rhyme=one when ) first started this mental training' ) didnt use it on any songs mind you and you shouldnt either' )ts -ust a good way to begin to see these words differently and associate them by rhyme' Also ) found B%Rhyme recently and ) think that would be a nice shortcut for a lot of people that ) didnt ha*e' A good mental e+ercise for this is to think of a list of random words' (Random word generators are a good resource here$ 9tart with 5%syllable words 6 of them' .ome up with 30 rhymes for each (mentally$ and repeat with a new list' After you repeat mo*e on to 1 or 4 syllable words %% do the same thing' ;eep building up until you get to %or%"%syllable phrases (!oesnt ha*e to be all one word could be like CDCR succeed< but thats always bullshit' Kust do it as much as you feel like you want to' After all you only want to e+ercise as much as you take lyrics seriously %% so your choices will naturally reflect that and thats ?;'

33 Lyrical myths And busting them C*eryone has a fa*orite myth lyrically that they hold dear' ) ha*e a few you ha*e a few e*eryone has a few' Hopefully )ll let go of some of mine during the writing of this when ) reali=e how stupid they are' Myth 3: 6T%e onl! goo$ l!&ics a&e in in$ie 3sic56 alse false false false false' ) hate it when people say this confidently' The fact of the matter is whether or not theyre your 9 of  bad lyrics in indie music' Hell anyone with a headset and a computer can be considered <)ndie'< Myth 1: 6I1 !o can2t '&ite goo$ l!&ics, !o s%ol$ sto" '&iting56 This has to be the worst attitude e*er' ?f all time' Lets take this statements format to other topics' 6I1 !o can2t get "&egnant no', !o s%ol$ sto" t&!ing56 6I1 !o sc/ at #as/et#all no', !o s%ol$ sto" "la!ing56 6I1 !o a&en2t %ng&! no', !o s%ol$ sto" eating 1o&e7e&56 ALL of those statements are as e&ually stupid as the myth that theyre based on' )f you think or are told that youre bad at writing lyrics then keep trying' ;eep getting feedback and keep listening to it' Fou W)LL impro*e as much as you want to' Myth 4: 6I1 I $on2t li/e t%e3, t%e! sc/56 This attitude will only make you look like an idiot' Theres tons of lyricists that ) dont like e*en though theres nothing wrong with their lyrics' )ts usually something like their *oice topic the beat their flow their face or whate*er else that throws me off'

Myth 6: 6All good  l!&ics %a7e to %a7e a good  3essage56  >ope' Lyrics dont ha*e to ha*e actually A>F message to be good' )t doesnt matter %hat  you say only ho% you say it' ) dont care if your song is about the issues in Africa conspiracy theories ha*ing se+ all day money drugs or whate*er else %% if its poorly written thats all there is to it' )f its written well then so be it' 2ood lyrics are good lyrics regardless of the topic they surround' Myth 8: 6L!&ics se$ to #e #ette& an$ 3o&e 3eaning1l t%an t%e! a&e to$a!56 Really/ 7lease enlighten me' Was it when Madonna wrote in 3"4
35 ;eep going A few words of encouragement 7eople will tell you all the time that you should stop'  &s"ecially in the more competiti*e genres like Hip Hop' )f youre a rapper and you get told to stop rapping take it as an inspiration' Words of encouragement' Take it as a sign that theres still somewhere to go with music a place you ha*ent reached yet' Being ot only that but by putting your songs on websites like FouTube on a personal channel or on your personal acebook Myspace or whate*er else youre being  presented in a way that makes you a""ear  as if youre amateur' CDC> ) F?IRC  >?TJ This is e+actly why ) stopped using social media as my main outlet for my music' The e+act same people that were gi*ing me unwarranted criticisms on FouTube now cant get enough of my music because its on Bandcamp' 9eriously thats ALL it takes' 9o dont be discouraged by the negati*e comments and messages listen to them' or many years FouTube was my main outlet for music because ) actually WA>TC! criticism from strangers' Fou should too' The people on FouTube will always be  brutally honest in a way thats completely necessary for impro*ement in the beginning'

My only mistake was not -oining FouTube soon enoughJ But once you reach a certain point the only people offering you ad*ice will be  pretentious people with no idea of what theyre talking about' Fou ha*e to keep in mind most of the
31 !eli*ery And how it will aid your lyrics A lot of the time )ll hear a killer lyricist with *ery poor deli*ery' )ts *ery aggra*ating to me that he or she ne*er had the proper guidance in this aspect of Hip Hop' !eli*ery is AB9?LITCLF ;CF to making your lyrics hard%hitting powerful and whate*er the hell else you want them to be' Four lyrics can only do so much' )f you want to be good enough to appeal to the a*erage listener you need good deli*ery as well' 9o what is deli*ery/ Right there' That sentence' How did you read it/  >ow compare how you read those sentences to this: 9o whats delivery? Right there. That sentence'  How did you read it/ What you*e -ust done is changing your deli*ery' !eli*ery is ho% you say the words that you say' The most important part of any songs deli*ery is emphasis' How do ) describe emphasis/ Like that'  >ow the one place you will ALWAF9 emphasi=e in ALM?9T CDCRF 9?>2 is at the end of each line' Why/ Because thats where the rhymes go' Fou always always ALWAF9 emphasi=e the rhyming words a little more than the rest of the line' Fou could ha*e the greatest rhyme schemes in the uni*erse but no one will gi*e a shit if you dont emphasi=e them' )f you say the entire *erse in a monotone *oice people will seriously ask themsel*es if it een rhymed at all. 9o logically you should put emphasis on the rhyming words' >ot too strong but not the same as the rest of the *erse' ?; what else/ Another key part of deli*ery is the emotion displayed in your *oice'

The emotion should typically match the line' This is especially key in writing in the style of 7oetic Realism as the tone of your *oice will entirely change the meaning of the *erse' )ll gi*e you some e+amples' Read these out loud: 6FUCK YU  8OR !"!#YTH$%&  THAT -OU2E +ONE96
Fou probably put emotion into each one' Feah do that in a song and youre golden' Theres also tons of *ideos on FouTube that will e+plain this in a way that is impossible to do with a book' Looking up those *ideos will probably help you a lot more since you can actually hear  how the person is talking'

34 .ommon )ssues And uncommon solutions A friend of mine has asked me $s there such a thing as (eing overly descri)tive? The short answer is yes'  >ow let me e+plain a better answer' .ommonly especially in rock and pop music youll want to lea*e some description to the imagination of the listener' This allows your content to be easier to relate to' )ll co*er that in a second but the main thing ) want to co*er in this answer is how to be  "ro"erly descripti*e' Lets gi*e some e+amples' Heres a bad few lines describing an e*ent with a girl: #er bro%n hair$ green eyes  er soft oice$ yet keen smile (mooth clothing$ the seams find  each im"erfection and make a clean shine  &ach "assing second %ith her cries  )right and beautiful$ she says 'ere comes the night$ and * %on't settle for dee" breaths'#   >ow the RCA9?> those lyrics are bad lies purely in the fact that the description lasted either too long or too short' A shift in topic no matter how slight should always begin on an ?!! >IMBCRC! line' )n the 5 blocks the first one in its entirety only describes the girl' The second one partly describes her but on the second line in the block shifts topic to a depiction of her speaking'

We all know that <5< is an e*en number so a shift of topic on line 5 of any gi*en block is >?T good' )ts uncomfortable when sung in rhythm and e*en if its only slight it has a negati*e impact on the impression of the song'  >ow it doesnt take much to fi+ a problem like that' Kust a little rewriting and restructuring of the lyrics' 9o in short its not so much being ?DCRLF descripti*e as being descripti*e for too long or too short of a time'

Another common &uestion: *hat is 'slant rhyme'? *hat's the difference (etween slant rhyme and )erfect rhyme? Really good &uestion' Two &uick definitions: 7erfect rhyme is when you rhyme both *owels A>! consonants' 9lant rhyme only rhymes *owels and in multi%syllablic rhyme it doesnt ha*e to  perfectly rhyme the middle *owels and certain minor *owel sounds at the end arent necessary' (Minor *owel sounds as in %ed %an %en etc$ )ll gi*e you an e+ample' 7erfect rhyme: G3.at Bat' G5!ark 9park' G1Train 7ain' etc 9lant rhyme: G32low in the dark hold it apart' G59elfishly reasoned hell in its peak' G1.at bag  >ote: in slant rhyme G5 the ending syllable of reasoned (%ed$ isnt rhymed' This is  because it is a minor *owel sound primarily consonant and is at the end of the phrase' Therefore its not necessary to rhyme it -ust for the sake of rhyming it'  >otice how perfect rhyme produces a sort of elementary feeling to the lines in which it is used' This is perfect for creating a giddy happy or generally stable feeling' 9lant rhyme howe*er sounds more human and with it it is easier to produce a generally unstable feeling such as depression or o*erall sadness anger etc' 9lant rhyme is much more commonly used in Hip Hop than any other genre of music'

Another common &uestion ) get is How $ do fi+ writer's (loc,? $ have no )ro(lems right now- what do $ write a(out? Well whats to stop you from writing about being rela+ed/ ?r e*en happy/ Although )m going to ha*e to ask you to >CDCR CDCR ?R.C LFR).9' 7eople can tell when theyre forced and it sounds *ery uncomfortable and disorienting to the listener' The best answer ) can offer is: Li*e' Kust continue life until you find your inspiration and take ad*antage of it then' How do you ,ee) your lyrics vague enough to (e easy to relate to- (ut s)ecific enough to (e e+)ressive?

Well lets see' This goes back to being o*erly descripti*e so ) m going to finish that thought' )f your goal isnt KI9T to e+press yourself but also to remain a sort of relation to the listener then theres e*en more of an opportunity to be T?? descripti*e' Lets say your e+ girlfriend is the topic' The theme is: shes a bitch' Right/ Right' Theres millions of people in the world who can relate to that already'  >ow dont go into enough detail to describe her skin pigmentation eye color hair color name birthday birth year general scent social security number etc etc etc' Try to keep it at a le*el that describes the situation well but doesnt go o*erboard' This does not mean to ne*er use specific e*ents' Kust limit yourself is all' ?ne or two specific e*ents should be sufficient after all these listeners arent your therapist and they dont care about F?IR problems %% they want something they can use to compare to theirs right/ Right' $ feel li,e $'ve written a(out everything already$'ve rhymed every word $ canThere's nothing more to say. *hat should $ do?

Fou*e ne*er said CDCRFTH)>2' )ts impossible' Kust keep li*ing and youll find inspiration soon enough' or the rhyming part ) refer you back to the R%!3es (9ection 6$ part of this book' Fou can always look up rhyming dictionaries to help you get better rhymes stored in mind for future reference but ne*er use rhyming dictionaries to help you write %% it kills creati*ity' /o you have any idea of what you're tal,ing a(out?

Thats a great &uestion'

36 .onclusion Thank you

Thanks for reading this ) hope it helps you in some way or another' ?f course )m no scholar' )m -ust a kid who has studied lyrics for a *ery long time' 7lease pass this on to as many people as you think is necessary' This is (or should be$ a completely RCC publication' This book should not be charged for and if you paid for it you*e been ripped off' )m sorry but ) cant return any money to you because ) didnt get any' (Like ) said ) dont charge for this %% e*en if other people do so illegally$ Thanks again

%Andrew Rightenburg