How Do You Write a Song? The 3 Ms Method
My song "Colorin Colorado" came to me in my sleep. I literally sprang from bed onto my laptop to record a melody I woke up humming as if by magic. 'De nuevo otra vez', another song from my latest album 'Posdata' practically wrote itself: lyrics and music came together in a few hours and suddenly there it was - a full song ready to go. There's a reason why I remember how I wrote those songs. Those were rare, extraordinary circumstances. Let's face it: while sometimes inspiration takes you by surprise, unfortunately that's not usually the case. Most times you have to do a lot of soul-searching to come up with a song. And even if you're feeling inspired, what comes after that brief conversation with the muses is much more methodical. You really have to put in the hours to mold a song into its final shape. That's why I developed The 3 Ms Method, which I have found to be useful when I'm having a bit of a writer's block. It might also come in handy when hiring a freelance songwriter and you need to give them direction as to what kind of song you're looking for. This method will help you narrow down the possibilities and be much more specific in your quest to find your Holy Music Grail. The Three Ms Method: Message- Music- Mood Message What do you want to say in your song? Inspiration for writing lyrics can sometimes come from personal experience, but it can also stem from fiction. Personal Experience You might want to say something to someone or might want to reflect on something taht happened to you. Yoo can also write about what happened to someone else or about something you wish would happen to you, Or maybe there's a pressing issue you feel strongly about? It can be political, environmental, philosophical...The sky's the limit, really. Fiction A film you saw, a story you read, a painting that moved you... Fiction is a great source of inspiration. I actually wrote "Eveline", another song from my latest album, based on a story written by James Joyce (I came up with an alternative ending for the story!). Of course there's also dreams: Paul McCartney wrote "Let it Be" based on a dream he'd had about his mother, so next time you go to bed, keep your fingers crossed! Music You can always create a chord progression and start building your melody from there. Creating a beat as a starting point or having a specific genre in mind can also prove to be useful. That being said, here are a few more ideas you could try when writing your next song. Fauvorite artists You can think of an artist you like and creat a song using their style as inspiration. Alternatively, you can choose an actual song you like and come up with your own version of it ( it goes without saying that you're only using other artists' materials as inspiration and the result should be 100 % original). Your dream concert You can also start by imagining your perfect show and create a playlist with your favourite songs of all time. You just need to ask yourself: what would my ideal concert sound like? Once your list is complete, you'll have a much clearer idea as to where you're headed and what kind of experience you want to give your fans. Mood Another question you can ask yourself is what kind of vibe you're going for. What mood do you want to achieve? Here you're focusing on how you want to feel when performing your song or what you want your audience to experience. Would you like them to feel inspired, adventurous, nostalgic, electrified, emotional? This might seem a little more abstract at first but it can actually help a lot. It's just a matter of translating a certain feeling into actual words and music. I know that's easier said than done, but here's a list of moods you can use to get you started: https://www.allmusic.com/moods. I'll be expanding on this topic in future articles, so stay tuned! I hope you've found this article useful. Get back to me if you've tried any of these approaches and best of luck creating your next hit song! Also, don't forget to subscribe to my newsletter if you're interested in receiving songwriting-related content delivered straight to your mailbox.