Hey everyone. There have been a few questions about this over the last few weeks so I figured I’d answer succinctly and then dig into it a little bit.
Short answer
Ask them what they want, how they want it, and figure out what’s going on in their lives. After you’ve done this, get to work.
Long answer
Make sure to ask important questions like:
- What genre are you looking for this to sit in?
- What do you want the lyrics to be about?
- Do you want the lyrics to match the music, or would you rather it be a bit of a play where it’s a happy song set to a sad tune or a sad song set to a happy tune?
- What has been going on in your life that is important to you?
- Do you have anything you’ve been struggling with or that you have overcome that has impacted you that you’d like to talk about?
The nice thing about asking questions like this – and of course you can ask more – is that you get to learn a lot more about your friend(s) and can get closer to both an idea about what they want for a song as well as get to know them better and connect with them on a personal level that exceeds basic small talk.
When you feel you’ve gotten enough information to begin your pursuit/request, start to see what you can put together that matches the theme.
The song I’m presenting today is based on what a dear friend of mine has gone/is going through and is kind of my way of saying, “I’m here for you and I hear you” while also creating material for us to use together or separately as musicians and individuals in our daily lives and own personal struggles.
How I constructed this song
After spending time with my friend and asking some questions from the above list and more, I had a good idea of from where I could approach this track.
My goal was to create a song with a feeling of reflection that gradually builds to realize and pay heavier attention to introspection and reflection of our actions and lives.
This lent itself to, more than less, a simple chord progression pulling heavily on minor harmony and elongated melodic phrases. Thinking of how much time it takes to reflect on our actions and lives generally takes a fair amount of time, so extending words and phrases helps to represent this in a musical way.
Of course, without getting further into any deep explanation of what the writing process was, I wanted to make a song they liked and I know them well, asked the right questions, and produced something that hit the marks.
Let’s take a look at the form I used, the lyrics I wrote, and the demo I produced to get going on this project.
Form
Intro – Am E Dm
Verse – same chords
Chorus – Dm Am E Am | Dm Am E
Intro again with drums, bass, and strings added
Verse – same as before but with the band
Chorus – same as before but with the band
Bridge – Am F E
Solo – same chords as chorus with very simple melody/solo on guitar
Chorus out – repeat chorus and end on Am
Lyrics
Verse
When there is silence
I get stuck in my mind
Why can’t we go back
To a place, safe back in time
Chorus
All that I need
Is stuck in a world left behind
All of my life
I’m working to bring back your light
Verse
I know you’re hurting
All from what I’ve done
I had no idea
You saw me as the sun
Chorus
All that I need
Is stuck in a world left behind
All of my life
I’m working to bring back your light
Bridge
Maybe we can find a way
To reignite
All the smoking ashes
Chorus
All that I need
Is stuck in a world left behind
All of my life
I’m working to bring back your light
All that I need
Is stuck in a world left behind
All of my life
I’m working to bring back your light
Listen here:
Parting thoughts
Sometimes we succeed when we take on a project and it can help us and others with that feeling of accomplishment and improvement in our abilities. Sometimes, even if we have done everything we can with what we have and have made leaps and bounds in our own personal progress, it isn’t enough for some people.
The important thing is to try your best at what you do and attempt to find where you fall short and improve that aspect of yourself so you can help others and yourself further along the way. If nobody gives you the information on where you fell short, but find a way to hold that against you, then that isn’t anything you did or do wrong. You can’t fault yourself if somebody else won’t tell you where you went wrong when you’re trying to work on and improve yourself to become a better person.
Try to find what matters to you and whomever you’re writing for and connect the dots. If you need help then take a lesson. It’s as simple as that. There are endless hours of youtube videos and people telling you that you “just need to do these things to become the best insert profession/skill here ever!” but they will only give you part of the answer all of the time. Cut out the garbage and take a lesson from somebody who knows what they’re talking about and that have an interest in helping you pursue your dreams and goals. It’s as simple as that. If you want to get better at something, then find somebody that’s better than you at it – or could help you improve – and take lessons from them *hint hint*.
With that said, if you feel I have something to offer you in music from which you would benefit, contact me or email me to book a lesson to help you along your path. It’s what I’m here for and is one of the things I do best.
As always, thank you for your valuable time and I hope you keep working hard at your dreams and aspirations. Life is supposed to be about growing and living, so find those that help you grow and improve your quality of life.
All the best,
– Matt