Recording - April 2013 - 25

Billboard #1 for 5 weeks in 2005);
“Truth is I never got over you”
(“Truth Is” recorded by Fantasia, #1
for 14 weeks on Billboard Adult R&B
Airplay chart), “You’re gonna miss
this” (“You’re Gonna Miss This”
recorded by Trace Adkins, #1 on Hot
Country Songs).
Once you have a short phrase, imagine what your listener will want to
know when they hear that hook, what
questions will they be wondering
about? What kind of a bad day and
why? Gonna miss what? This tells you
what the rest of the lyrics should be
about—filling in the rest of the story
that the hook hints at. Think of your
hook as a mini-version of your song.

pace of your chorus. Hold out the
notes a little longer, give the melody a
more fluid feel. If your verse is in a
low note range, try putting the chorus
in a higher note range. A sudden
jump upwards of even a few notes
will catch attention and raise the
emotional intensity of the song.
In fact, you’ve probably noticed
that hit song choruses are often in a
higher note range than the verse.
That’s because when we get emotional, our voices tend to rise. By putting
the chorus in a higher note range, you
make use of a natural response.
Listeners automatically hear more
emotion in a chorus that’s in a higher
note range.

Q: I have trouble making my verses
and choruses different enough, they all
sound the same.
A: For a radio hit, your chorus has to
grab attention, to shout from the
rooftop “Here I am!” No more explaining, no more background information—this is the heart and soul of your
song. To make sure listeners notice the
chorus, use one of the most effective
song craft techniques—contrast.
Contrast gets attention!
If your verse is fast-paced and
wordy, consider smoothing out the

Q: I can’t seem to come up with a good
melody that doesn’t already sound like
a lot of existing songs.
A: You’re not alone; this happens to
all songwriters! A melody that sounds
like a lot of others, one that’s generic
or clichéd, is often just the first
melody you came up with. But successful songwriters don’t stop there.
They treat it as raw material, a place
to start, not the final melody of the
song. In fact, you can rewrite a
melody, just like you rewrite a lyric.
First, take a look at the individual

lines of your melody. Are they all
starting on the same beat? Try varying the start times of your phrases.
Starting a line on the 3rd beat of the
bar or an upbeat is a great way to add
a fresh sound. (The “and” in “oneand-two-and-three-and-four-and” is an
upbeat.)
Are all your lines a similar length?
If so, here’s a quick fix that really
works and will give you melody a contemporary edge: Add a couple of
notes and words to the end of one line
and run it into the next, creating a
single long line. Or you can start a
line earlier, eliminating the pause at
the end of the line before.Varying the
line lengths will add interest to your
melody. Eliminating pauses will add
momentum.
Rewriting is both fun and creative.
Enjoy yourself and try new things.
Remember, if you don’t like the direction your song is going, there’s an
“Undo” button. Just push it and get
back to where you started. Then try
something else. There are endless
possibilities!
For more about Robin Frederick, visit
her website at www.robinfrederick.com.
Her books are published by TAXI Music
Books at www.songwritingbooks.com.

http://www.robinfrederick.com http://www.songwritingbooks.com http://www.trunorthmusicandsound.com http://www.lewitt-audio.com http://www.lewitt-audio.com

Recording - April 2013

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