Anyone Can Write a Song!

     In the first place, anyone who can speak English can write lyrics, that are the easy part. Even if you can't speak English, you can still write lyrics in some other language. If you can't write at all, you can still speak them, and hopefully you will be able to memorize them. (You will then be working in the oral tradition.) If your country has electricity, or even batteries, you can probably record them and you won't have to memorize them forever, freeing your mind up for other things, like the music. But let's start with a lyric - just think up a good line. I've already thought of one, so I'll go first. "So, there was a little bunny and he hopped, hopped, hopped!" That seems a little syncopated, so let's think about two things; timing and high notes. You know, before I became a song writer last year, I didn’t know what I was going to do with my life - now look at me! Anyway, the music is really the pain-in-the-ass part of writing music. You have to remember to put in pauses; you can't just keep going until you run out of breath. Pauses are what make a stream of noise sound musical. Don't forget to add in a few high notes so your listeners won't get bored. If you forget to add in high notes but you did achieve a fairly regular cadence, you've written a rap song! To avoid this, try to pick out a few notes on a small Casio keyboard you got at a yard sale for one dollar. See if you can find the ones you heard in your head when you first got this genius idea for a song. If that's too frustrating, ask a friend to help you, preferably one who majored in music. Perhaps this friend will write the song for you! Anyway, don't forget to relax and have fun with it, we're not trying to be Marilyn Manson here.  Remember, we're just in it for the money!