Musician’s Notebook

So last time we mentioned the fact that we have rhyme schemes and toggling last time. Well the reason why it’s so important to know the rhyme scheme and placement of our internal and external lines is because the structure of the song is very important. It has to be told in a story mode and in a style as if you were having a conversation with someone. Thats another great way to have your audience drawn to your music in terms of understanding the lyrics.

So here I’ll map out the information for you as how to structure your lyrics in your song.

So first thing’s first, we have the verses.

VERSES

On your verse you want to make sure you’re using the external lines to describe the character’s 5 senses and explain the place and time. You want to be kind of vague at first but not too abstract. You’ll have your verse describing the beginning of the story and end it with an internal line.

CHORUSES

Now you’re chorus is important in fact you’re hook is there to be repetitive with a strong power point. The power point a lot of times will determine the name of the song. It’s also the main idea of the song, the big picture. This is where you want to be completely to the point and you also want to use all internals! Make sure the last time you do your chorus in the song you repeat it twice. It’s also recommended that even though you have done a destination writing for your song, make sure you do a separate one thats all internal to make your chorus even stronger.

BRIDGES

Bridge is just another verse, but different slightly different. In a way it’s just another verse that’s not supposed to sound like the other verses. The point here is that you don’t want to bore your listeners by hearing the same verse after they heard it twice. If you think about it, the verse isn’t even the catchy part anyways, the chorus is, right? Right. So the bridge is supposed to traditionally be right after the second chorus. In a bridge you can finish your story here and just repeat the chorus twice after it, or you can do the chorus twice and just add a final verse and finish the song there. Just be cautious, you don’t want to bore your listener. In this case, experiment with both suggests I just gave you and also listen to your favorite songs and get an idea.

Now here’s the deal, there’s an easy way to do all this once you’ve got your DW done and you have at least one of your verses and your chorus.

What we do here is called Plotting.

PLOT PROGRESSION OUTLINE

Plotting is kinda like planning something briefly. Think of it as a short timeline you are constructing for like a history project or a book or something. Except the only way you can obtain this information is by getting it from your DW. So lets say you have your DW done, this would be how to make it headache free on how to plot it.

Verse 1

Introduction to the story. Describe 5 senses of the character of time and whereabouts and hint a little on the internal line. Don’t give too much information away because you want your listener to want more. Keep them slighty in suspense. Use 4-6 lines that you choose from your internal and external columns.

Chorus

The main idea of the song with the power point (the title) is there. All internal lines and the big picture of your story.

Verse 2

Get further into the story but don’t end it here. Get a later section from your DW and internal and external columns and in 4-6 lines and do it the same way you did toggling in verse one.

Chorus

The main idea of the song with the power point (the title) is there. All internal lines and the big picture of your story.

Bridge

You can conclude the story here if you want or you give an important part of the story here. If you choose to conclude the story here. Repeat the chorus twice after this to jam it into your listener’s head. If not, just give an important part of the story here as if it were about to conclude, repeat the chorus twice, and end it with the third verse.

Chorus

The main idea of the song with the power point (the title) is there. All internal lines and the big picture of your story. Repeat this last chorus twice.

Verse 3

Depending if you decided to end the story at the bridge will determine if this third chorus will even exist. If you didn’t end it at the bridge, you should end it here with the conclusion.

Here I will show you an example of a Plot Progression Outline I did for class.

“Stolen Car”

Verse 1: The character describes getting into the car and his surroundings.

Chorus: The main point which is the fact that he needs to get away and he’s stating his desperation of having to leave.

Verse 2: The character describes the scene around him even further along with the frustration that the car won’t start. Why is unknown because its a brand new car and he continues to blame security of new cars and etc.

Chorus: The main point which is the fact that he needs to get away and hes stating his desperation of having to leave. (I would repeat this chorus twice)

Bridge: He describes his failure of trying to get away because the cop just caught him and so he explains his failures and once again the crowd reaction at the end.

There you have it! Give it a try experiment with different song forms and see what you can come up with the following information.