Writing song lyrics – structuring your story into song sections

In his previous article, guest blogger and songwriting teacher Lex Hakker explained how to get your first ideas for lyrics down on paper. Now it’s time to give the text more structure. We’ll be working on the build-up of your ‘story’. We’ll cover perspective, verse, chorus, prep/pre-chorus and contrast/bridge.

Perspective

Perspective can be described as: is the person singing about themselves (I/we/our), is the singer observing, or are they passing on a message to someone else or others (him/her/they or them/you)? A personal perspective, for example, is: “I wanna be a billionaire, so freaking bad!” (Travie McCoy/Bruno Mars). A message meant for someone, or a personal observation about someone, could be the lyrics of Gershwin’s Summertime (“So hush little baby, don’t you cry”) or Firework by Katy Perry (“Cause baby, you’re a firework”).

Change of perspective?

In general, the perspective doesn’t just change randomly in a set of lyrics. This mistake is made fairly often, especially in Dutch-language lyrics. The perspective can change, however, in the part of the song that’s called the Contrast. In this section, the main theme or a situation from the lyrics is described from a different point of view. We’ll take a look at that in a moment.

Travie McCoy ft. Bruno Mars – Billionaire (first person)

Narrative

Although there are different types of lyrics, most are narrative. Narrative here means that there’s a build-up. That the verses logically follow on from each other, the Contrast (bridge) presents a different angle on the subject or theme, and that the Chorus reinforces — and keeps reinforcing — the subject.

As mentioned earlier, there are abstract (vague, metaphorical, veiled) and concrete (clear, revealing) lyrics. The songwriter can make that choice themselves, but sometimes the subject itself points out the direction and character of a lyric. In literature, this phenomenon is not unknown. People then say that a text essentially ‘writes itself’. It’s claimed that the second part of Also Sprach Zarathustra, the major work by the philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, came about almost directly, without the involvement of consciousness.

In pop music, examples of an abstract, vague use of language include Lennon’s Strawberry Fields Forever (loose sentences with no clear link between them, seemingly meaningless to an outsider) or Dylan’s All Along The Watchtower. A much more concrete lyric is Billy Joel’s Goodnight Saigon, in which the horrors of war are described very clearly, yet still with a poetic edge.

Bob Dylan – All Along The Watchtower (abstract)

Billy Joel – Goodnight Saigon (concrete)

First person or not

For now, we’ll assume that the singer is also the observer and the narrator of the story. In that case, it makes sense that the verses and the prep (from preparation, preparing the chorus, also called the pre-chorus) will in any case be written in the first person. So using I and me, us and our. Of course, you can absolutely include you and your as well, but even then only as seen from the first-person perspective.

Verse

Especially in more traditional pop songs — from the ’50s through to the ’90s — verses are often narrative in sequence. That means there’s a build-up in the story being told. In that build-up, each verse adds more details or facts to make the subject more intense and to clarify it further. So, in successive verses, you never say the same thing twice. There isn’t much point in spending three or four verses saying ‘she’s a beautiful woman, you’re in love, and she’s unattainable’. That theme would be better developed across a number of verses, a contrast and a chorus.

Richard Marx – Right Here Waiting (building the story)

A good example of a theme like the one above can be heard here, complete with a Contrast at 02:38:

Tony Christie – I Did What I Did For Maria (developing a theme)

A very fine example of a theme like revenge, developed across several verses. This song may sound a bit old-fashioned, but the storyline and the lyrical build-up are of a very high standard. Certain images are painted with the words, making the situation in the song easy to follow.

Prep or pre-chorus

A short (or slightly longer) preparation for the chorus is often called the Prep or the Pre-chorus. The chorus can be seen as a climax in a song (although in many cases it has to compete with an instrumental section). With the Prep the chorus is often — but not always — introduced in an ‘upward-sliding’ way, i.e. with a sense of build-up.

The Human League – Don’t You Want Me (prep)

Listen to the Prep of Don’t You Want Me, from 01:09:

George Ezra – Green Green Grass (a very original prep)

You can hear a very original Prep at 00:26:

Dua Lipa – New Rules (longer prep)

This one has a longer Prep at 00:35:

Modern preps

In many contemporary pop songs, the ‘classic’ Prep isn’t always there anymore. It often feels more like an extra little piece of verse, but with different melodic characteristics. Have a listen to songs by Lewis Capaldi (Wish You The Best) or Rosé (Number One Girl) and try to identify where the verse changes character and when the actual chorus then starts straight away.

Lewis Capaldi – Wish You The Best (modern prep)

Rosé – Number One Girl (modern prep)

Contrast (bridge)

The classic Contrast (the ‘bridge’) isn’t always found in contemporary pop repertoire either. Still, it can be an important expressive tool, and it can also be necessary for the energetic balance of a song (we’ll talk about Balance in detail in a future blog). Generally speaking, a Contrast has a different mood in terms of lyrics, melody/harmony and rhythm than the chorus or the verse. The subject is described from a different, new angle or a different perspective, and this is often accompanied by a new melody, different use of instruments, and it often differs rhythmically from the verse or chorus. In the Contrast, it’s perfectly possible to change perspective in the lyrics or to present a completely new insight into the main theme. All of this helps deepen the character of the song and make it more versatile, keeping the listener’s attention.

Maroon 5 – This Love (contrast)

An example of another song with a strong contrast section is Maroon 5 with This Love at 02:02:

Rosé – Number One Girl (contrast)

Or here at 02:16:

The Sundays – My Finest Hour (contrast)

A really beautiful Contrast can be found in My Finest Hour by The Sundays. Here it’s at the end of the song rather than in the middle (03:15). That’s also an option:

Chorus

The chorus is arguably the most important part of a good pop song. It’s essentially the song’s concentrated message. She Loves You by The Beatles is a clear example, but there are many, many others. The message is usually delivered in a catchy line or a set of lines — also known as a hook — and carried by a catchy, easy-to-remember melody. The hook is formed by words or lines that are not only memorable, but also vivid and evocative. The lines must also flow smoothly, and rhyme is an important tool for that.

Beatles – She Loves You (chorus)

George Ezra – Shotgun (chorus)

In more contemporary repertoire, an example of a chorus that really works can be heard in George Ezra’s Shotgun at 00:40:

Dave Guetta & Bebe Rexha – I’m Good (Blue) (chorus)

Very current is I’m Good (Blue), which kicks off the chorus as early as 00:15, immediately setting the song’s mood and intensity:

A song certainly doesn’t always have to include all of the sections mentioned above. Which ones you use is a matter of form and balance. Form determines the energetic balance. I’d like to cover that next time.

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