Troubleshooting your latest song

Pulling Your New Song Apart as a Troubleshooting Process

The perfect combination: “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting 10-eBook Bundle” and a Study Guide! Dig into the songwriting manuals that thousands of songwriters are using to polish their technique, complete with a study guide to show you how to progress through the materials. Every song is a partnership of various elements. Practically every song you […]

songwriter - lyricist

Songwriting and Formulas: What’s Good, and What’s Not?

When songwriters and other musicians use the term “formula” as it pertains to pop music, they’re usually talking about certain noticeable features of songs that keep appearing over and over. In most cases, it’s a situation where the writer thinks, “Because I’ve done this thing in my song, the next step is to do that thing…” […]

Songwriting - List

Being Creative With Word Lists, For Better Lyrics

Most songwriters know the benefits that come with creating a word list when writing song lyrics. And though there are several ways this can be done, most lyricists will create a simple list of words that pertain to the song’s topic. The benefit of doing this is that you establish a vocabulary that makes searching […]

Guitar, Pencil & Paper

Would a Bridge Add Something Important to Your Song?

A bridge section, in a verse-chorus song, is the section that happens usually after the second chorus: Verse 1 – Chorus – Verse 2 – Chorus – Bridge… You also get bridge sections in songs that use one of the designs that don’t use a chorus, or perhaps use a short refrain instead of a […]

Headphones and Synth

What Makes a Song Boring?

It’s hard to talk about songs as being “good” or “bad”, since those terms refer so much to the taste and experience of the listener. What’s good for one listener might sound pretty bad to someone else. And that’s to be expected in the world of songwriting, or, frankly, anything in the creative arts. On track […]

Audience at a rock concert

Today’s Top Songs: What Am I Missing?

I always avoid doing the “old man rant” on this blog, but this may stray into that category… forgive me! One of the biggest problems I have with top-rated Billboard Hot 100 songs these days is that the chords are usually pretty simple and, frankly, uninspiring. Don’t get me wrong, a simple progression that works […]