Song writing for beginners

Music Video Unit

By the end of this lesson…
You should be able to:
• Identify elements in pop songs such as
rhythm and rhyme.
• Identify similes and metaphors in pop
songs.
Put the following elements in order of
importance

Rhythm
Rhyme
Meaningful lyrics
Catchy chorus
A strong beat
Catchy melody
Sing-a-long-ability
Lyrics

How far do you agree with the following statements?

3. It doesn’t matter what they sing about, so long as it’s

catchy.
4. The lyrics need to make sense to me.

6. I like lyrics that are relevant to what’s happening in

my life at that time.
7. I don’t really listen to the lyrics.
8. The chorus is the most important.
Keywords for this lesson

• Rhythm –
• Rhyme –
• Simile –
• Metaphor –
Listen to the song – is there a structure?

On your lyrics – write the following next

to the correct space:
Intro
Chorus
Verse 1
Verse 2
Verse 3
Listen to the song. Were you right? How did you know?

1. How did you identify the chorus?

2. How did you identify the verses?
3. How did you identify the intro?

Which element of the song, do you think is most

important?
Song themes

What themes are often apparent in successful pop

songs?

Love Money and riches

nonsense
Liking
Break ups someone

Fighting for a
cause e.g. What is your song
against guns. going to be about?
In your groups, you are going to write the chorus of your own
song!
1. What is your song going to be about?
2. Who is the target audience for your song?
How will this affect the lyrics for your song?
3. Once you have decided upon a theme and a
target audience for the song you will need to
consider, is it going to be a first person (me,
I) narrative, a third person (she, he) or a
second person (you)
Drafting your chorus

Now, you are ready to write a first draft of your chorus…