Recently I was asked, how do you find the inspiration to write so many songs in a short amount of time. I wanted to answer that question and hopefully share some inspiration. Songwriting has its ebbs and flows and isn’t always fluid. Writer’s block is more common that you think and can be triggered by anything at anytime. It can last minutes, hours, days months or even years.
I have fallen victim many times and even as recent as the beginning of this year. It’s tough. Not only do songwriters need to keep finding new creative ways to tell very common stories, they have to find ways to stay fresh and engaging. Now more than ever, the competition for song space in the streaming music ether is brutal, anyone can write and release music; good, great or bad.
Here are a few ideas that have helped me get over the hump when lack of inspiration hits.
1. Start a song by writing to piano or guitar loops
90% of the songs I write, are initially written to piano or guitar loops. When you write to a bare minimum, you have a freedom to create beautiful melody combinations. Your song is exposed, its vulnerable. It provides an opportunity for you to focus on lyrics, storytelling and build strong melodies that can truly be heard through the noise of a full production. Remember, it starts with a great song!!! Production and what genre you end up recording it in, comes later. One of my favorite tools is www.splice.com. There you will find great royalty free loops to spark some inspiration. With a few drag and drops into your favorite DAW, you can extend to a full song where you can write to your heart’s content.
2. Use Word Resources
Use word resources like a dictionary and a thesaurus. One of the biggest challenges a songwriter faces today is finding ways to say something differently then its been said before. Challenge yourself to find synonyms that express the same sentiment as your original lyric or find words in the dictionary that are barely used in songs, trust me there are more words out there then you can imagine. I use the software tool MasterWriter.com which has been around for ages. In this software you will find everything in one place including a useful rhyming dictionary that will spark some ideas around your phrasing and rhyming.
3. Study the Hits
I make a habit of dissect and analyze hits songs of yesterday and today. Look for the things that make those songs great. Is it the infectious hook or word play on the verses, is it the repetition in that catchy melody? They are hits for a reason. I’m not talking about those songs that are here today and gone tomorrow but those great songs that cross generations and last a lifetime. Find ways to replicate in your own way, understand song structure, repetition, hook formulas that pull you in. There is such much learn right at your fingertips
4. Keep writing.
You would think this is obvious but it’s probably the hardest to do out of all the tips we have already discussed. How can you find inspiration in the one thing your having a hard time doing, right? Don’t give up! Keep writing. Here’s the funny thing. I probably have hundreds of unfinished songs in my catalog, a hook idea there, a gibberish melody here, but you know what those hundred finish songs are? They are ideas! Perhaps that hook you wrote two years ago sitting on page 89 in your notebook, serves as a great bridge for this new song you are writing. Moral of the story, keep writing cause you never know where it will land.
Remember that song little song entitled “Despacito” by Luis Fonsi? It was sitting in stack of unfinished songs for over 2 years before it was recorded and released and the rest is history.
If you are interested in working with our team, please connect with us at www.LuisMarteMusic.com or djmerk.one #M2Productions
