10 Ridiculous Songwriting Tips That Actually Work

Songwriting methods, such as recording cover songs, collaborating with other songwriters or hiring professional songwriters always work for songwriting. But what we are going to deal with here are special ones – those which prioritise you and your ideas, those that give you more time to fully concentrate, experiment, and compose your music.

Songwriting methods, such as recording cover songs, collaborating with other songwriters or hiring professional songwriters always work for songwriting. But what we are going to deal with here are special ones – those which prioritise you and your ideas, those that give you more time to fully concentrate, experiment, and compose your music.

Songwriting is an individual endeavor. To create masterpieces, you must first look within. In this blog, I present some songwriting tips, which may seem ridiculous but I ensure these are great ways of bringing forth your own creativity.

Most ridiculous songwriting tips that work

Play five radios simultaneously

This one might be best done while no one else is home. Alternately, keep the volume down. Your pals would undoubtedly inquire if everything is well.

But it actually does! This method is one that Tom Waits famously employs while writing songs. He switches on a few radios and then scans the airwaves for noteworthy overlaps.

There are intriguing melodies and progressions. Imagine it as ear sampling.

This kind of ludicrous music is an example of aleatory music, a kind of music in which some elements are left up to chance. The conditions are ideal for songwriting inspiration.

If Tom Waits had success with it, it's probably worth a try. So switch on each of those channels, take a chance, and look for any fascinating overlaps.

The hidden gloss method

This Spanish poetry genre invites authors to include four lines fr om an old poem into an altogether new composition, effectively employing them as fill-ins.

Take four lines at random from Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire," for instance, and use them as the opening, second, or closing lines of your verse.

The remaining task is to complete the gaps between the lines of the remaining verses.

Naturally, you must "hide" the lines sufficiently to make them your own—you cannot imitate the poet or lyricist from whom you are deriving ideas (unless the work is in the public domain).

As a result, you'll need to alter the music and use obscure lyrics.

Don't talk. Just listen for a whole day

Take a momentary silence oath. You'll be grateful for your songwriting.

A full day might be a little excessive. In addition, you NEED to communicate in order to record that jaw-dropping vocal of absolute genius.

But it's well known that stillness is beneficial.

Whether you realize it or not, talking requires your brain to do a significant and difficult activity. You'll be in a better position to write if you set it away for a short while.

All of those intense memories and emotions will have a direct route to the forefront of your mind during all that quiet time. You know, all those ideas that inspire great music.

So stop talking for a bit and try being silent. Let your mind speak for itself to find all the motivation you require.

Set an absurd deadline

What's this? Sia wrote Rihanna's song Diamonds in just 14 minutes. The lines just poured after she put the beat on. In the US alone, it achieved platinum status five times.

A difficult scale to balance is time. If you worry too much, you start to doubt everything. If you do not do enough, nothing gets done.

The answer? Decide on a deadline. Set a time restriction that is significantly less than what you typically write in. This is preferable.

You'll be able to concentrate on producing more songs and streamlining your workflow by establishing small restrictions.

Try it out and see if it doesn't make your tunes glow bright like a gem.

Activate the piano roll. Pick up the pen tool and MIDI doodle

It is not surprising, doing something absurd sometimes generates something valuable, just like grabbing a handful of crayons and scribbling all at once may give sometimes amazing patterns.

Similar to this, if you're having trouble creating a beat, open your piano roll, load an instrument, sel ect the pen tool, and begin jotting down notes.

You replay it when you are done and listen for the happy accidents.

90% of the time it is utter rubbish. But that 10% of interest is incredibly helpful for inspiration. So take your DAW and start with it.

Jot down as few lyrics as you can

Here's a great hint if you're having trouble: ARRIVE AT THE POINT.

In terms of songwriting, simplicity is usually the best. But it's challenging to execute. You must adopt a harsh strategy.

There are exactly 19 distinct words in "Love Me Do," by the Beatles. But it continues to be among the most well-known tunes of all time.

Every writer should be able to write simply. Writing simply keeps your songs interesting, catchy, and relatable. Anyone can enjoy a good sing-along.

Add a lead to it

Infinity is real. You only need a DAW that is empty as evidence. There are an endless number of VST plugins, effects, and processing options.

However, infinity isn't always advantageous. Setting a gear lim it is sometimes the best approach to improving your songwriting.

Start by making a strict list of the items you plan to utilize. Consider only the things on your equipment list. If you don't constantly have to choose between a plethora of options, ideas will come to you a lot faster.

Although it seems strange, having fewer options might really boost your creativity. Because you have to make the most of your resources and shape them to your voice.

The layover approach

The layover technique is another intriguing notion for creating more intimate song lyrics.

In essence, imagine you've just returned fr om a protracted vacation abroad and have had some time during your layover to send a postcard message to a special someone.

What would you say following such a long absence?

It's up to you to come up with the story; perhaps you miss your partner or are upset because your job keeps you from the things you enjoy.

You must be succinct and to the point, because this message will be written on a miniature postcard, just like many excellent lyrics.

Make a million cuts in your lyrics

The cut-up method was developed by author William S. Burroughs to aid in his own writing. But he wasn't producing music. He was penning novels.

But his idea is also really good for writing songs. It's fairly easy. Simply jot down as many words as you can think of, then cut them out and rearrange them into ideas.

It's not even necessary to use words. It can be anything that works for you, including chords, notes, melodies, photos, etc.

Coping a song from memory helps

What would Bohemian Rhapsody sound like if you attempted to record it right now without first listening to it to refresh your memory?

Most likely not the same as the original! Therefore, creating an incomplete imitation might be a great creative technique.

Dave Longstreth of Dirty Projector attested to its effectiveness. Black Flag's renowned 1981 album Damaged is a full-length cover of the group's great 2007 album Rise Above.

Conclusion

To make things work, you may need to take extreme steps.

Therefore, think creatively and connect with your best source for songwriting yourself.

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