“It’s all about the hook,” you’ll often be told, when it comes to successful pop songwriting. The only problem with that assertion is that it makes it seem as though other song elements aren’t quite as important. A hook grabs attention, to be sure, but doesn’t excuse you from making sure that the overall structure […]
There’s interesting research into the phenomenon we call the “earworm” if you take some time to study it. You might find this article, “Why Do Songs Get Stuck in Our Heads” (written by Chau Tu), to be helpful if you’re the kind of songwriter who is looking for ways to write them. In that article, they […]
For most songs that are written and produced for today’s pop music market, the hook is a very important feature. It’s the part that everyone remembers long after they’ve forgotten everything else about a song. And crucial to the business side, it’s what brings audiences back to a song and makes sales more likely. We […]
One way to make a song stand out and grab attention is to create an instrumental hook, one that may or may not have much to do with the song itself. One of my favourite examples of how this can work is Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition“. The sung part of the song doesn’t really have a […]
There are several different kinds of hooks you might find in the song, but they all do essentially the same thing: they all give the listener something catchy, something singable, and something that will bring them back to the song. So no matter where your main hook appears (chorus, intro, backing accompaniment, etc. ) here […]
Starting a song by focusing on creating a short hook can keep you from feeling daunted by the prospect of writing an entire song. __________ Gary Ewer’s “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” eBook Bundle packages cover every aspect of how to write great music. Includes “From Amateur to Ace: Writing Songs Like a Pro” Read more.. __________ Do you […]
