Estimated reading time 4 minutes
Table of Contents
Introduction
Are you stuck in a rut like the guy in the picture above? Do you want to know how to come up with vivid and memorable titles? Most of the songwriting experts agree that you should first write your hook, which often ends up being paired with your title. This means you need your title at the beginning of the songwriting process. Read more to learn how to go about brainstorming your song titles.
A hook is a memorable piece of music that “hooks” in your audience and makes them want to continue listening.
- Your title, though, acts as the central theme of your lyrics.
- Your hook melody usually has the title line and is placed at either the beginning or end of the chorus.
- Or at the beginning or end of the verse in an AABA song structure.
- Everything else in the song should be written to support your title/hook.
- Here are some examples of title placement in songs. Click the links to listen to the full songs:
- Yesterday: the title at the beginning and end of the verse in an AABA song
- Carry on My Wayward Son: the title at the beginning of the chorus
- Let It Be: the title at the end of the chorus
The topic of writing a good hook will need to wait for another post. Today we’ll talk about coming up with great titles. How do you do it? Brainstorm words and images and keep a list of the ideas you’ve created.
This article uses technical musical terms. For definitions, see the Glossary at the end of the post.
The Process of Brainstorming Your Song Titles
You can brainstorm your song titles anywhere you go. If you have a free moment, let words and images wash over you. Whether driving in your car, sitting in the mall, or walking through the grocery store keep your eyes open for title ideas.
Look at your surroundings and see if anything strikes you, or you can randomly couple words together and see what happens. Be creative.
For more brainstorming ideas:
The Tools for Brainstorming Your Song Titles
First, you’ll need pencil and paper (or a phone). I used to ignore this necessity until I realized that all my songwriting ideas ended up on paper napkins – usually from coffee shops.
- Always have something to write with and something to write on nearby (or a device with a text editor). Many famous songwriters from past decades carried notebooks with them everywhere they went. If possible, have a recording app or a recording device with you to sing ideas into. Alternately, if you know how to write music, keep manuscript paper handy. (I have a notepad in my car so that when I get an idea, I can jot it down while it’s fresh.)
- Much of what you come up with will be dull and cliché. I’ll give you examples of a few of my less-than-inspired lyric titles:
- Turn Right at My Heart
- It’s Heaven in Holliston
- You’re the Putty in the Armpit of the World
- Red Fire Hydrant
- Exits to My Heart the Next Three Miles (Notice the recurrent driving theme.)
- A photographer will take a lot of shots just to get a handful of good pictures. Likewise, you’ll come up with lots of song titles in order to find a few vivid and memorable ones.
If you constantly brainstorm song titles, some will turn out to be keepers. (Sorry, no examples of the good ones, I’m saving those for myself.)
Brainstorming Your Song Titles: Selecting the Keepers
When you’ve let your song titles sit for a few days, sort through them for the best ones.
- Giving your ideas time to percolate lets you come back to them with a fresh perspective.
- You may want a separate folder (real or virtual) for keeper ideas.
- At this point, it should be obvious which ones will be worth developing – they’ll jump off the page at you.
- They’ll inspire you by giving you visual images of places, people, or events.
- They may catch your attention with a turn of phrase or may have a mystifying emotional impact. Sometimes, they’ll make you laugh or cry.
- Whatever the case, if a title just lays there on the page, maybe you should think twice about funneling creative energy into it.
Even when you start writing your songs, you should still take time to brainstorm song titles, because you can never have enough good title ideas.
Concluding Thoughts About Brainstorming Your Song Titles
Now that you’ve got a few tips for brainstorming your song titles, you can start collecting ideas. Once you’ve got some keepers you can apply the song development techniques described in other Craft of Songwriting posts:
- How to Extract a Melody from Your Lyrics
- Songwriting – Let Her Scream
- The Plot Thickens: Focusing Your Songwriting Story Ideas
- Rhyme and Reason in Songwriting
- Understanding Prosody in Your Songwriting
- The Music of Words in Your Songwriting
- Writing Well Crafted Songs
Pro songwriters start with the title and pair it with a hooky melody.
- Then, they write the rest of the chorus.
- Next, they write the verses and finish with the bridge.
- Writing this way makes sure that everything points back to your title, which functions as the subject of your lyrics.
However, it all starts with the title and hook. Have fun writing.
© 2021 Geoffrey Keith
Join me for in-person or online lessons today!
Glossary
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