Why Analyzing Your Favorite Music Will Make You a Better Writer
Think about your favorite song. What about it makes it your favorite? Is it the musician’s voice? A catchy chorus? Maybe it’s a killer instrumental. Maybe you’re not sure why you like it at all. Whatever it is, it’s likely to hold information on how you can become a better writer. This is a step-by-step guide to get you conceptualizing the music you listen to as a literary tool.
Breaking down the construction of a song is a great way to start. By analyzing each element, you earn a deeper understanding of why it might be likable, or even why it’s disliked by many. For our example, let’s put our focus on lyric analysis.
Pick a song you like that contains verses, choruses, and a bridge (we’ll look at each of those sections separately). How does the artist capture you from the first line? Where do they take that verse? The first verse is important for establishing a story or a feeling. Think about the emotions you get, or identify the start of the story.
Next, move to the chorus. This section of the song will solidify the main idea (or ideas) the artist is trying to get across. What do you think the message is in your chosen song? How does the artist convey that? Try to determine why it works with the previous verse.
Once you’re into the second verse, you should have a good understanding of what the song is about. Generally, an artist will keep consistency here. In some cases, though, your artist might have started changing their mind on their previous thoughts. Do you have that in your song?
The second chorus usually doesn’t differ much from the first. Maybe there’s a change in the beat, or in the artist’s delivery. But more often than not, it stays the same as it previously was. Even then, it’s not there without a purpose—it brings the song back to a common theme. It also develops the song further, adding a deeper perspective.
The bridge is often the high point of a song. It can hold lots of emotion showing a breaking point, or really double-down on their statements. Is your bridge angry? Repetitive? What does the artist make you feel here?
Finally, how does the song end? Sometimes, the ending is abrupt. Other times, the ending will be eased into. How did your song end? Do you like or dislike the ending? I’ve given you a lot of questions to answer, I know. However, there is a method to the madness that these questions have created. All of them allow you to dig deeper and translate ideas into your own writing. If you're able to dissect the pieces that speak to you, you can recreate them. Music analysis is just one of many ways that you can encourage yourself to learn in a different way.