Writing Lyrics
The word ‘lyric’ comes from the Middle French word ‘lyrique’ meaning ‘a short poem expressing emotion’. It is derived from the Latin ‘lyricus’ and the Greek ‘lyrikos’, both meaning ‘of or singing to the lyre’. — Macmillan dictonary blog
I have been suggested to write lyrics for my instrumental tracks. I have tried doing that in the past, but somehow the lines did not land well, or they’d just sound like prose. Recently, however, I managed to come up with better, more lyrical lines. A continuous process will help me extend it to the length of a typical 3-minutes song, which I can then share with the world!
Lyrics, as I discovered recently, should feel mildly conversational yet extremely authentic. The lyricist needs to live the words they are penning down. Lyrical lines trigger emotions easily, they should not make you think too much in the first listen. Then there’s the other aspect — lyrics should be written for listening, then for reading.
For me, song lyrics should be truly simple. While there are songs out there that have complicated lyrics, I really believe that the simplest of words, if put together with a lot of thought and authenticity, can easily induce the flow of emotions in the listener’s mind.
Some lyricists say that they love it when their lyrics are perceived in more than one way; it makes the experience of their songs multi-faceted and hence much more enriching for a larger audience set. Most lyricists believe against the abstraction of lyrics. They aim for direct messaging so that it’s easier to connect with their listeners.
The monetisation aspect of released music also dictates how lyrics are written these days. If you want your songs to be featured in a certain type of playlist (playlists are usually defined in terms of moods, or genres, or activity type — workout, sleep, commute etc), it’s easier if your song lyrics are easy for the playlist editors and curators to understand. Algorithms designed to auto-add songs to playlists also rely on historical data points, limiting the scope of abstraction in the words of the lyrics.
Ultimately, a seasoned lyricist maintains a decent balance between the commercialisation of their songs and the unrestricted expression of their creativity.
