7 Tips To Improve Your Songwriting

Interested in learning how to write hit records like Ryan Tedder, Michael Jackson, or Max Martin? Of course you are, unless you meant to type screenwriting in your browser search bar. In this blog I will be sharing seven conventional techniques for songwriting. Nothing too elaborate or music theory driven. Just tried and true methods that some of our favorite artists/songwriters have employed in their professional careers to write chart-topping music that has earned a permanent spot on some of our favorite playlists.

These techniques will help you get up to speed on writing songs like the pros!!!

We can all learn a lot from “mumble rappers.” One of their greatest contributions to contemporary hip hop is melody. In a genre where the vocalist is usually respected most for their lyrics and flow patterns, melody can be a bit of an after thought. Mumble rap places the importance of melody and flow patterns over lyrics. At times a section of the music might be filled with a series of unintelligible words or something as basic as “panda, panda, panda, panda.” So the takeaway is melody before lyrics — create your melody before you place your focus on lyrics. Lyrics before melody (or creating lyrics and melody simultaneously) might restrict the contour of the melody because it’s easy to get lost in the process of finding the “right” word for a particular phrase. Whether you are a singer or rapper, try mumbling to the track, allowing every thought that comes to mind to flow out naturally. Don’t worry about whether or not the ideas make sense or work together. The focus here is melody. Once that is established, you can go back and fill in the lyrical gaps or rewrite all of the lyrics to ensure that you are covering the subject matter that you intend to cover for that song.

​This method worked for Michael Jackson, the King of Pop. Listen to Michael Jackson’s “Billy Jean (Home Demo from 1981)” on his Thriller 25 Super Deluxe Edition album. On this track, you’ll notice that he mumbles through all of the unwritten sections of his song. Notice how he used a lot of sounds and phrasings that ultimately made the final version. If it worked for the King of Pop, then it can work for you.

This is also the main method that hit songwriter Esther Dean uses. When referring to her method of songwriting she stated: “I just go into the booth and I scream and I sing and I yell, and sometimes it’s words but most time[s] it’s not…and when I get this little chill, right here [she touches her arm, just below the shoulder] I’m like, ‘Yeah, that’s it. That’s the hook.” The Song Machine: Inside the Hit Factory [1]

Remember…”a good melody is timeless.” — John Seabrook

Keeping with the first method, during your writing session, freestyle to the music while looping it straight through. As you’re looping the music, try to picture the whole song. The goal is to work out most of the song structure in a natural manner that places inspiration before analysis. Continue to ignore the overall lyrical details, just focus on melody as you move through the arrangement and interact with it closely. This can be carried out using a Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) or with an instrument. A jam session with musicians could be even better as you will collect a variety of melodies for the vocals and instruments while using this method. Mood is everything when making music and this method allows you to establish an overall vibe for the song. This is your chance to capture lightning in a bottle, which can serve as the foundation of your entire song.

In a BBC interview, superstar songwriter and artist, Ryan Tedder said the following: “I did a session with (Australian singer) Sia recently, who is amazing. In a 45-minute window, she had recorded 45 different approaches to the same track. And this is modern songwriting. You have 20 completely different melodic approaches to the same eight bars of music, then you turn off the creative part of your brain, and turn on the more receptive, objective part. And, with a room full of people, you play back each take and listen to it as a fan.” — BBC Interview [2]

Stargate and Esther Dean tend to write songs in a macro manner. With Dean in the vocal booth, Stargate would record Dean free-styling to a track. Afterwards Stargate would work on putting the vocals into song arrangement form, moving things around to create a full song structure. — The Song Machine: Inside the Hit Factory [1]

Record yourself during the writing process. This process is great for capturing lightning in a bottle. If you are not working with a DAW you can use an app on your phone. The iPhone Voice Memo app is a great app for this task, it’s free and user friendly. This might seem like common sense, but in my experience working with songwriters nine out of ten of them do not have a voice memo running while they are writing. They usually rely on remembering the “cool stuff” that might be useful. Often times, that doesn’t work. It’s very easy to forget new melodies when other melodies come to mind. Not to mention, you may have come up with something that you didn’t think was great, but the producer or someone else may have been really drawn to it. You don’t want to find yourself in the situation where the melody is gone forever because you can’t remember it and you failed to record it. The human mind is incredible, but we are not computers. A lot of times when we’re experiencing a creative flow, ideas pop up fast and in abundance. Stay in the “flow” as long as possible by free styling. Document everything that is happening with your recorder and analyze what you did later. When you start to focus too deeply on a particular idea you run the risk of switching to the analytical side of your brain and halting the “flow” process.

Try this method out if you haven’t already. You’d be surprised how a full song structure could be sitting within a group of ideas that seem random. How many times have you come up with a cool melody only to lose it shortly after, when a new melody pops into your head or you pause to have a conversation with someone? I can recall a ton of moments where I had to ignore someone or excuse myself from a situation to go to a quiet place to write. At times you may find yourself in a location far away from a studio, your instrument, or both. If you are feeling creative and you have a smart phone, your voice recorder will be your best friend. On the Some Nights, (Spotify Track by Track Commentary) album, the lead singer of Fun, Nate Ruess, told a story about coming up with the idea for the title track “Some Nights — Intro.” He came up with some of the lyrics, while he was out in New York. He excused himself from everyone, ran into his band member’s mother’s car and started writing. “The lyrics came out quickly and from experience that usually was a sign of a really great song” — Some Nights — Intro (Commentary Version) [3]

Consider using topics that mean something to you. This will create a deeper emotional connection to the music, thus allowing for a better “flow” experience. The words might pour out faster this way. If something has been bothering you, write a song about it. People love to talk about their problems. Let songwriting be your voice for your problems. Now if you’re thinking that you don’t have problems worth sharing, dig deeper. We all have something interesting to talk about. Real life experiences make for great songs. When songs are written with honesty you have a better chance of connecting with the listener on an emotional level. If you can do that, then you have yourself a fan. If you don’t want the story to be “about you” then create a character and share the story from their point of view.

The personal journal method promotes the process of establishing a topic quickly, which can make the writing process very focused. Back when were writing a persuasive essay you would begin to write with an idea in mind and a point that you would like to make. The body of the persuasive essay would walk the reader through your thought process and provide the points that support the conclusion.

“Car Radio” by Twenty One Pilots is based on a time in college when Tyler Joseph’s car radio was stolen. “I still encourage people to take some time to just sit in silence every once in a while cause a lot of things can come out, a lot of things that need to come out, come out. So…that song reminds me of that time in my life and that lesson that I learned.” — Car Radio (Bonus Commentary) [4]

Jack Johnson draws on life experiences a lot when writing his songs. “I Got You” came from journal entries about his trip through Europe with his wife. — I Got You (Commentary Version) [5]

There are so many songs waiting to be shared with the world. Sometimes we have to look around us to find the inspiration. Gather topics, lines, and simple words from magazines, newspapers, tv shows, random lyrics, phrases, etc. Save them in a document on your phone. While you’re working on your next song, if you need inspiration, you can open up the document and review your list. “Never Fade” by Jack Johnson started with a simple lyric that Johnson had in his archive of lyrics. “Sometimes it’s those simplest statements that become the chorus of the song and then once you give it a context and fill in around it, then it gives those simple lines some kind of weight.” — Never Fade (Commentary Version) [6]

Ester Dean is another successful songwriter that is known for using this method. She gathers random words that she saves in her phone and refers to them while standing in the vocal booth during her songwriting sessions. — The Song Machine: Inside the Hit Factory [1]

Search for a good title and allow your writing to expand from there. For inspiration, you can refer back to your list of random lyrics. See if anything jumps out as a good title. The title can spark a whole train of thinking and quickly create a song. The international hit and grammy-winning song “Un-Break My Heart” by Toni Braxton was written in this manner, by the highly decorated songwriter, Diane Warren. In a Sound on Sound interview Diane Warren revealed that the song started from the title. While discussing this song, Dianne Warren said: “Yeah, the first spark was the title, which I thought was really cool. No, I wasn’t suffering from a broken heart when I wrote it, but of course I know what it feels like. Writing a song like that is method songwriting, like being a method actor. I’m in character when I write the song and I’m playing a part and feeling everything. It was a relatively simple song to write, and it doesn’t have a lot of words, so one challenge is to make sure that every line has significance. That’s the case in every song, of course, but in this case I had to tell a story in very few words, so it was even more important.” — Dianne Warren The Most Successful Songwriter [7]

Hit factories have been known to use collaborative assembly line methods throughout the history of western music. Think Rhianna’s songwriting camps, Barry Gordy’s Motown, or Tin Pan Alley. The track and hook method is a collaborative process that involves multiple songwriters contributing melodies to different parts of a producer’s track. The order of creation is production, melodies, and then words. The best melodies are selected, chopped, revised, and rearranged until a full song is created. The track and hook method was originated by reggae producers in Jamaica and it was revolutionized by Denniz Pop and Max Martin at Cheiron studios in Stockholm, Sweden during the early 2000’s boy band era. — The Song Machine: Inside the Hit Factory [1]

If you don’t have a group of writers to work with, try taking this approach on your own. Focus on creating a large variety of diverse melodies and choosing the best ones for different parts of the song. The goal is to lace the song with a bunch of melodies rather than a melody. “It’s not enough to have one hook anymore… you got to have a hook in the intro, a hook in the pre, a hook in the chorus, and a hook in the bridge too.” — Jay Brown The Song Machine: Inside the Hit Factory [1]​

Songwriting is the essence of music and a good melody will leave an indelible mark on your career and the hearts of listeners. People love to hum or sing their favorite tunes, or that catchy tune that they recently heard. What people tend to remember most are melodies and lyrical phrases, most frequently the hook (chorus). As a songwriter you are charged with the challenging task of combining catchy melodies with relatable and consistent lyrics. This is no small feat, but with a lot of practice, determination, and implementation of these strategies, you can become a chart-topping songwriter. So get started! Turn on a track, grab a guitar, piano, etc. and work on your next song. With these seven techniques I am confident that you will see immediate results.

So what are some of your favorite songwriting techniques? I’d love to hear some of your songwriting tips in the comments below!

Until next time!

References

1. Seabrook, John. The Song Machine: Inside the Hit Factory. Norton & Company, 2015.

2. Mark Savage. “Ryan Tedder: Songwriter shares his rules of pop.” BBC News. (www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-26848897)

3. Fun. “Some Nights — Intro (Bonus Commentary).” Some Nights (Spotify Track by Track Commentary), Fueled By Ramen LLC, 2012,

4. Twenty One Pilots. “Car Radio (Bonus Commentary).” Vessels (Commentary Version), Fueled By Ramen LLC, 2012,

5. Jack Johnson. “I Got You — Commentary Version.” From Here To Now To You (Commentary Version), Jack Johnson, 2013,

6. Jack Johnson. “Never Fade — Commentary Version.” From Here To Now To You (Commentary Version), Jack Johnson, 2013,

7. Paul Tingen. “Dianne Warren The World’s Most Successful Songwriter.” SOS (www.soundonsound.com/people/diane-warren). ​

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