the THIRD coffee

Whether you are an aspiring superstar, or just a painfully-average musician who enjoys casually singing to the same popular tune while playing your guitar – these tips might (or might not at all) guide you in some direction as to writing/composing your own song . . .

I have to add:

I am in no way assuring any potential success or stardom. This merely serves as a guideline that might lead to the discovery of your own technique.

Here we go…

Step 1: Finding a tune

I usually sit by the piano and start playing different chord progressions (basically the way you move from one chord to another) as a starting point.

Example (basic):

C F G a

(notation: uppercase = major chord; lowercase = minor chord)

Play around with these, using different variations, tempos, positions etc. until you find something interesting.

Now try to hum a melody while playing the sequence of chords over and over – this is where your ‘style’ is introduced and the part that will mostly differ from person to person, unless you copy another song intentionally.

Remember that a basic song contains:

Verses (generally 2); Chorus; Bridge.

The verses usually have the same melodies with different lyrics, whereas the chorus is the part that repeats (usually follows the verse). The bridge is something completely “new” and can even be considered as ‘optional’ – but it does add some ‘spice’ to the piece.

Exercise:

Play around with different chord variations until you find something you like, then ‘picture’ a melody over what you’re playing and start humming it to see if it works.

*RECORD EVERYTHING YOU DO*

Step 2: Lyrics

At this point you should have a structure (the chords that define your different segments) and some melody in your head.

The next part is super fun, as you get to experiment with different lyrics.

I promise you:

You WILL feel super stupid as you start singing random words over the music of your original score – UNTIL you find the exact lyrics that fit the puzzle and you actually can’t comprehend how on earth it happened. And THAT is the feeling that will push you to keep on writing.

Every section should tell a story of its own, yet every story should be weaved together to form the basis of your song.

Step 3: Improve

Once you have the first draft (lyrics plus accompaniment) you can start perfecting it.

I usually record myself singing the entire song and then listen to it over and over again, noting everything that is “below-standard”.

I then rerecord, listen, make notes, repeat.

I continue doing this until I am satisfied with the song!

Step 4: Confidence

If you don’t believe that you have something worth performing, no one will. So now it’s time to pull yourself together, ask someone to listen, and entertain.

It is important to take opinions and critique into account – just note that not everyone’s opinion is a good one. You should be the judge of that.

In conclusion, writing a song is not something that happens overnight. You need to experiment and find your own flare when writing music. Every song is not going to be a ‘hit’, but if it is a song you enjoy listening to – that’s satisfaction enough.