Category Archive: Songwriting

April 07, 2011

Thoughts on rhyme in songwriting

Why rhyme?

Rhyme has been a default in songwriting for so long that people don't often consider what it's for. How is it useful, how can it help you? It turns out that rhyme is a powerful tool, for a variety of reasons.

First, a rhyme scheme gives form and shape to your lyrics, helping to knit the song together into a whole, rather than just a collection of lines. This draws listeners deeper into a song, because unconsciously they're following the form.

Used skillfully, rhyme can emphasize important words and images, if you locate them in key rhyming positions. The emphasis comes both from the rhyme itself, and from the listener's anticipation of the rhymed words. Also, words that rhyme are connected to each other, in sound and meaning.

Rhyme highlights the sounds of the words, which brings out the musicality of your lyrics.

And all of these factors can make a song easier to sing and remember — always a good thing. Keep these things in mind as you write, so you can use the power of rhyme to your advantage.

Don't let the rhymes control the song.

Rhyme can be a powerful tool for knitting a song together, but it can also become a distraction from your main goal: saying what you want to say as powerfully as you can. If you let rhyme overshadow your point, it can twist your song in the wrong direction.

- Don't use words whose only purpose is to rhyme, especially if they attract too much attention to themselves
- Don't resort to rhyme cliches ("love/above," "maybe/baby," etc.)
- Don't let rhymes pull the meaning and direction of a line, a section, or a song in the wrong direction
- Don't be afraid of near rhymes, if the result expresses the idea more powerfully than a true rhyme
- Don't forget that you don't have to rhyme — it's a tool, not a requirement

If a rhyming word is forcing you into a dead end, find another word, or another way to say what you mean. Never compromise the meaning and power of your song to force a rhyme.

You don't have to rhyme.

You don't have to use rhyme if you don't want to. In fact, letting go of it might free you up in some exciting ways, especially if you're working in styles and forms that aren't particularly tied to tradition.

It's liberating to no longer have the demands of a rhyme scheme limiting your word choices. You are truly free to use whatever words best express your idea. This can actually be a bit disorienting for some songwriters, because there are fewer formal boundaries to contain and direct their creative flow.

This disorientation can trickle down to the listener, too. Many listeners half expect to hear a rhyme scheme. It's like a cultural default, hard-wired into our psyches. By defying that unconscious expectation and avoiding rhymes, you can create tension, disorientation, and even anxiety for your audience. Depending on your style or intent, you can use this to your advantage.

If you're not using end rhyme, though, do keep your ear attuned to the sounds of the words, so you can use their "music" to your advantage. Be aware of inner rhymes, rhythms, alliteration and assonance, etc., and how they can highlight and strengthen your meaning.

Quick rhyme trick

Sometimes, despite our best efforts, we feel we have to use a rhyme that's a little forced. If you can't get a better rhyme by rewriting — and most of the time you can and should — then here's a quick rhyme trick that might help:

Put the more "questionable" word first, and the other word second. That way, when the rhyme hits on the second word, it feels less awkward and draws less attention to itself.

You can do the same trick when one of the words is just obvious rather than truly awkward. Just reverse the order in which we hear the words so that the least obvious word comes second and the rhyme seems fresher, or at least calls less attention to itself.

Posted by richard at 09:32 PM