Song writing makes up a huge aspect of the music industry which is key in delivering good music.
Many people that want to get into song writing usually wonder whether it is hard or not to get into this industry.
The truth is this, Getting into song writing is not difficult at all, anybody can get into it, but if you wish to become successful and at-least notable in this field; You have to be highly driven, hardworking, connected, knowledgeable and genuinely passionate about songwriting. You’ll have to work at constantly improving and perfecting your skills in order for you to stand out from the rest because this field is quite competitive.
Some Key Skills Needed to Become a Songwriter
Lyric Writing
This is the most valuable skill that a songwriter can have because it is basically their job description.
You’ll have to develop this skill and be quite unique because it will determine your success as a songwriter.
This field is competitive and you’ll be met with highly qualified people all competing for the same spot, which means you have to bring something unique and compelling to the table.
Therefore invest time and other resources into actually gaining good knowledge of lyric writing. There are lot of online courses that can help with that.
Music composition
A song is basically made up of two parts which are the instrumental and the performed lyrics. When combined they make up a song.
As a songwriter you need good knowledge of song composition.
If you intend to write music for a particular genre then you need to have a basic understanding of the compositions of music associated with that genre.
This is very important because it will determine how well you can develop your skills within that genre.
You can’t get into songwriting without having prior knowledge of what consists of a full musical composition.
Music theory
Music theory is a very important tool in song creation and even more important in songwriting.
You’ll essentially be writing lyrics that have to be sang. Therefore you need to understand and have a good knowledge of music.
Composing lyrics is usually done in a melodic fashion with the writer either writing to an instrumental or writing a song in a melodic fashion of which an instrumental has to be built around.
Songwriting will be impossible to do if what you write only reads good. It also has to be able to sound good which means having some knowledge of theory.
Its not the case that you need to be a music theory expert, you just have to have a good basic understanding of it and how it can help you in your writing.
Arranging
As a songwriter you have to learn how to arrange music and be able to make a complete song.
Song lyric elements are basically the intro, chorus, verses and bridges.
You have to know how these elements fit together and how they can be arranged in order to deliver the message accordingly.
This can be pretty easy to learn once you understand how songs are supposed to be written, arranged and performed.
Creativity
Songwriting is a highly creative job that will call upon all your creative juices.
As a songwriter you need to be able to have a process that ensures good creative delivery.
Creativity really can’t be taught, but you can learn various things that can spark it.
If you’re passionate about it, you’ll have less trouble finding your creative points. For others, inspiration and motivation can be the key to delivering good written songs. For others its different things, therefore creativity will be something that you have to cultivate on your own.
Discipline
In any field where one wishes to prosper and succeed to their fullest potential, they need discipline.
The extent to which you succeed will be determined by how accountable and disciplined you are about your craft.
You need to work hard to be a notable songwriter, and the price of hard work is always discipline.
If you wish to succeed and learn how to write songs you’ll have to do the work, there’s no two ways about it, you just have to put in the work and keep doing it until you fulfill your ultimate goal.
Therefore having a mentor and peers that are songwriters can be a good way to keep yourself in check because they can help push you and hold you accountable.
Good communication skills
Music is mode of communication, it is between the artist and the listener.
As a songwriter it is your job to write music that people can connect and relate to.
This is very vital to your success because music is meant to strike emotion within people.
As a song writer the way you do this is through your lyrics. The lyrics tell the story and give the listener the narrative from which the song is based.
Being a songwriter that can communicate effectively will require creativity and your ability to connect with the listener.
Another key thing here is that, if you’ll be writing for musicians, they’ll be the first people to whom your message is delivered within the song.
Which means they’ll have to relate to the song you present to them. therefore you need to have very good writing skills that command attention.
Knowledge of music composition software
This is not really as important but it can help you. Having some knowledge of music composition software can help you in your writing and composing process.
Some experience with an instrument
Having some sort of experience with an instrument can certainly help your abilities to write music because you can easily compose music around your lyrics which can be easier for your song writing process.
But essentially, you don’t really need to know how to play an instrument in order for you to be a songwriter.
An instrument can be helpful in your process but you can do without it.
