4 Different Approaches to Songwriting

Songwriting is an art form with no strict rules or methods. If someone tells you that you “have to do it this way or that way”, then they’re full of crap. Don’t listen to them. 

Everybody has their unique method of crafting music, and exploring these different approaches can help find what works best for you. Here are four different ways that I approach writing a song:

1. Writing with an Instrument

This is probably the most “traditional” way of writing a song. For a lot of us who started playing an instrument first and becoming a songwriter second, this looks like sitting down with a guitar or a piano while you come up with ideas..

When I first started writing songs, I always had a guitar in my hand. It was my first instrument, and it influenced every musical decision I made. I would find a chord progression, feel, and tone that I liked on the guitar, and then start writing a vocal to match.

This method often resulted in a specific type of music because the way I played the guitar influenced my singing, writing, and performing. The songs typically ended up being folky or light alternative pop, with my vocals strongly guided by the guitar parts.

Sometimes this is a great method because; what you are playing on the instrument will inform your toplining (vocal melody and lyrics). This can also be a bad thing. Honestly, it just comes down to what kind of music you are wanting to create. Sometimes a nice lush chord progression is perfect, and sometimes it’s cluttered. Sometimes a strong riff will be the bedrock for a great vocal, and sometimes it will be overpowering and be an obstacle. It’s all about what you want to do.

2. Writing Lyrics First

Another method is to focus on the lyrics before the melody and music. This approach involves using word and lyric exercises to shape the foundation of the story.

I enjoy writing lyrics first and prefer to use a pen and paper. I keep a small notebook for lyrics, and sometimes I start with a concept in my head. I write it down as a header, then brainstorm lyric ideas. I might write the song chronologically, starting with verses, then pre-chorus, and chorus, or I might write the chorus first and retrofit the verses. This would become my first draft, which would probably get edited as I put music and melody to the concept.

Lyric exercises, like word ladders, can also help. I'll come up with several words related to the core idea, which might spark lyrics or ideas. These could just be key words, or they could be specific types of words like nouns, verbs, adverbs, etc. to create a kind of metaphorical picture. 

For example.. Let’s take “Thunder” as our core idea of the song. This doesn’t have to be literally about a thunderstorm.

What can Thunder represent in life? What picture does it paint for you and what does it relate to? 

We can take that core idea, and come up with a range of complimentary words like; 

Storm, lightning, energy, electricity, fear, uncertainty, strike, rumble, crack, blinding, deafening. 

Very quickly, we begin to paint a picture of how this can be used to tell a vivid story.

3. Voice Notes and Memos

Capturing ideas audibly is another method I really like using. I do it often, and find it’s really effective for me. This involves recording voice notes or memos, typically on my phone, and revisiting them later.

I have hundreds of notes and memos.

Sometimes, a melody or lyric phrase comes to mind out of nowhere (or has been in my head for a few days and I finally just have to capture it or forget it), and I record it as a voice memo on my phone. It could be a fully formed idea, a half idea like a couple of lines or rhyming couplet, or just a single word. It could also be purely a melodic idea that I really like with no words. This is the stuff that keeps creatives up at night. 

Once I have a memo, I go back to it and revisit the idea. First, I just qualify it - do I still like it? Or is it trash? Maybe it’s not as good as I thought in the moment. That’s cool.

If I do like it, I begin working on the concept, and figure out the key and chords which might accompany it. This method allows me to capture spontaneous ideas and develop them into full songs later.

4. Using a Backing Track or Instrumental

Creating a backing track or instrumental first and writing lyrics and melody over it is another popular approach. This is actually how a lot of topliners and vocal writers write or co-write alongside a producer. The producer is typically mostly responsible for the track, and the vocal writer mostly responsible for the topline. 

I often start with a piece of music as a blank slate for writing vocals. I might mumble syllables and phrases to get a melody idea, then fit lyrics to it later. Sometimes, I have a concept or theme in mind and decide to write a song about that. 

What's cool about this method (and how it’s the polar opposite to method 2) is that the rhythm and constraints of the music are already there. There is a structure in place, there is a musical key, a chord progression or riff, a tempo, and an energy or feel which dictates what the flow of the melody might be. 

So, writing in this way is inherently different. There are a range of things beyond just lyrics or guitar chords which are informing how and what we write. We rise or fall to meet and match the energy of the instrumental. 

Also, when writing with this method, what can happen is: melody is king, and lyrics are secondary. So it’s more about how the words sound, rather than what story you’re starting with. Often, the story evolves and turns into something unexpected due to the restraints that you’re writing with, which is super cool.

Wrapping Up

Each of these methods offers a unique way to approach songwriting. Writing with an instrument often results in music influenced by the instrument's sound. Writing lyrics first focuses on the song's message and allows for detailed lyrical development. Voice notes capture spontaneous ideas, and using a backing track creates a structured foundation for the song. There's no right or wrong way to write a song—it depends on what you're comfortable with and what works best for your creative process.

Experiment with these methods and discover what really works for you. Also, it couldn’t hurt to get out of your routine or comfort zones every now and then.