19 Terms Every Good Songwriter Needs to Know

I could try to teach you how to write a song in a blog post, but it’s not the best way to learn. Everyone has their own method. I tend to start with a melody and build in lyrics afterward. Ben, frontman for Convey and Amber Light producer, is a wordsmith. He tends to start with some little piece of poetry and then use the phrases natural cadence to find a melody. There are literally thousands of ways to write a song. 

My favorite way to teach songwriting is through workshops. Ben and I teach the workshops together. That way we can connect with those who think in melodies and those who think in words. Having a small group get together to write songs can help. Having other students in the room harnesses the notion of collective genius. Which creates a powerful inspiration environment. 

If you play an instrument like guitar/piano, find a great stock beat, or get a custom beat made, you’re only a few steps from a melody. If you have some words in your head, or even just one, you can write lyrics. You can join a workshop, like the one at Amber Light. You can take one on one lessons with a songwriter you admire, (we do that at Amber Light too :) Or you can come up with your own approach to songwriting.

But it’s really hard to write a good song if you don’t know the anatomy of a song… and the vocabulary involved. So I thought the most helpful way to help you become a songwriter was to break down the terms involved.

The Basics: 

Lyrics

These are the words that are sung. Back in the day of CD’s, you’d sometimes find them in the jewel case. If not, you might never know what’s actually being said. These days, you can Google almost any song lyrics. People also like to make lyric videos on YouTube. This is an important thing to remember because people listening to your song will also likely be reading them. 

Bar (aka Measure)

These terms are interchangeable and they’re used to measure the pace of the song. Each bar or measure has the same number of beats in it. On sheet music, you’ll see a time signature that tells you how many beats per bar. 

Melody

This is the tune of the song. It is the sequence of notes and it can be created before or after the lyrics.

Top Line

The vocal melody and lyrics to a song. A “top-line” songwriter will create the melody and lyrics that go along with the beat (that the producer creates). Ben is both a “top-line” songwriter and a music producer. That's part of what makes Amber Light’s production so special.

Hook

This is what makes a song catchy. It’s an often repeated riff, passage, or phrase, that is used in popular music to make a song appealing. A hook isn't a section of a song like the bridge or the chorus, it's within sections of a song. A verse can have a "hook," a pre-chorus can have a "hook," a chorus most definitely should have a "hook" etc.

Phrasing

This is the rhythmic structure associated with melody. The speed and emphasis of the words and syllables (not pitch). This is where a musician can add the stylistic difference in the song, or deviate from the sheet music.

Song Structure:

Most songs follow a similar structure. If you’re starting out with song writing, it’s a good idea to follow the basic structure. There is so much room for creativity within the basic structure. Like with anything, you want to learn the rules inside and out before you break them. 

Intro

The intro comes at the beginning of the song (duh) and sets the pace. You may or may not hear elements of the intro repeated later in the song. The intro lasts about four bars. 

Verse

This generally comes after the intro and sets up the idea of the song. It gives you the main idea of what is to come in the different sections of the song. The verse can be repeated or there can be different verses. 

Bridge / Pre-Chorus

The verse and intro are “independent.” They stand on their own and don’t have to be repeated. The pre-chorus is also known as the bridge. It sits between the verse and the chorus and is considered “semi-independent.” It leads into the chorus and is often times repeated (just like the chorus).

Chorus

It’s repeated after each verse. If the verse moves the song along, the chorus brings it back “home” and helps the song feel cohesive. This is the part of the song that is most likely to include a major hook, get stuck in your head, and drive you crazy after you hear it on the radio over and over.

Lyrical Choices:

When it comes to writing lyrics, you’re essentially writing poetry. The form of the poetry is based on the basic song structure we already talked about. But you’ll use figurative language and rhyme schemes to make that structure come to life. 

Your song doesn’t need to rhyme! But if you do want to make it rhyme, there is good news. There is more than just perfect rhymes like “told” and “bold.” Songwriters use lots of different “tricks” to make sure that the meaning comes first, but it still has the poetic feel of rhyming. 

Here comes the fun part. Literary devices pretty much make a song a piece of poetry rather than just a literal story. Every genre uses them. Whether you’re a rapper writing a dis-track filled with witty metaphors and puns, or a folk singer using symbolism, you’re drawing on literary devices to give deeper meaning to your song.  

Rhyme Scheme

The ordered pattern of rhymes between lines of a song.

Perfect Rhymes

Rhyme in which different consonants are followed by identical vowel and consonant sounds (e.g., boat/coat, moon/june) 

Imperfect Rhymes

Rhyming doesn’t need to be perfect! An imperfect rhyme is when there is only a partial matching of sounds. The vowel or consonant sounds can match. (e.g., strain / game, love / move). 

Repetition

This is a common literary device in songwriting. Repeating words or phrases over and over for emphasis.  

Metaphor / Simile

In English class, the distinction is important, but in songwriting, it’s not so much. Both of these compare two unlike things for the sake of contrast. You can’t take a DNA test to determine how bitchy you are, but Lizzo claimed it and we all knew what she meant and it helped her song go viral. 

Symbolism

Using a symbol to represent some abstract concept. For example, love is a really common concept in songs, so songwriters often use things like “the beating heart” or “the eyes” to convey emotions like love.  

Hyperbole

A hyperbole is an exaggeration. Songs are full of them. For instance, it’s highly unlikely that Charles and Craig Reid of the Proclaimers would actually walk 1,000 miles just to get the girl. But it sounds so much better than saying they’d walk a few blocks. 

Imagery

This paints a picture in the listener’s mind. Physical descriptions that help you make a mental picture, or words that evoke the other four senses fall under this category. In songs and poetry it can be much more interesting and powerful to “show” the listener something rather than “telling.” For instance, in “Emotions” by Mariah Carey, she sings “feel your heartbeat next to mine.” This evokes our sense of touch and describes her feelings towards her lover. 

There you have it! Enough vocabulary to get you started on songwriting. Remember that everyone goes about it a different way. 

Have fun and try writing your own songs. For practice, you can write songs to existing music. You can change the lyrics to a favorite song and make a parody, or pair up with a beat-making buddy. Practice, collaborate and get critique. The more you practice, the sharper your songwriting skills will be!

Sources: 

Basic Song Structure Explained Fender.com 

Top-Line Songwriter Berkelee.edu

Songwriter Glossary Songchops.com

Rhyme Glossary: Types, Schemes, and Usage  Read more about Rhyme Glossary: Types, Schemes, and Usage Poemofquotes.com

The Parts of a Song Songtrust.com

Figurative Language Literarydevices.net