You are one step away from taking part in the most inspiring community of musicians and songwriters.
It won't cost you a single cent.
Click NOW to get instant access!
or
Log In
By Jon Hanover
Doing Time, For 'Forced-Rhymes'
One of the biggest obstacles for the writer of lyrics and other forms of rhyming poetry is the " forced-rhymes " that can happen. Most times when someone is just starting out in writing ( I am included unfortunately ) the " forced-rhymes " are so frequent you don't always recognize them and even make excuses for them. POP music, sometimes almost encourages it or outright ignores it as needed. You can live with them if you want, however, if you want to write quality lyrics that are more memorable for their craft and stand out you should learn to recognize them and lower the frequency of them. I will explain the reasons for them happening, how to recognize them ( if you are in doubt ), and how to remove them or make them less obvious and not as detracting from your work itself.
Why Oh Why Are They Happening?
The answer is two part and so obvious that it makes you say the old saying of " no duh " like I did when I finally realized why and how to stop myself from doing them as frequently. I still find myself doing them but at least I understand why and try to correct them, but I still see others offerings in lyrics that tells me they haven't gotten there yet and that's alright, we'll get there together I hope with this little essay.
The first part of the answer as to why would be the nature of rhyme itself. One word connects to another to create rhythm and lyrics or other forms of rhyming poetry. Sometimes, the most obvious choice is made over alternatives for the sake of " staying true to the form ", that's noble, unfortunately that's also not good. It's never a good thing to settle for the easy, predictable, and less than inspired. The world is overrun with enough soulless solo artists who turned out quick songs for a quick buck, that when examined after repeated air play are not better or worse than what you the amateur lyricist / songwriter are doing now without the connections that they had. Settling for the obvious rhyme is set up well by the second part of that answer, the rhyme scheme. All too many times I see the tried and true and overused A/A/B/B formula where A rhymes with A, B rhymes with B, that may work, but there are alternatives to that formula that I will offer later that can help you strengthen your writing and cut down on the frequency in which the " forced-rhymes " are happening.
I See Them Now
The best way to talk about them and recognize them is through example. " I don't know what to do, I am so blue " and " Don't tear apart, My little heart ", you can almost see them on greeting cards or squeezed out on pancakes or waffles as syrup. Sometimes the " forced-rhymes " have become so prevalent and overused that they are cliché. With access to an entire universe of dictionaries from Urban to standard language ones, one of the most underused seems to be the free rhyming dictionaries. I use the online ones along with at least a few paperback ones when I need to. It offers up all the rhymes, even the obscure and implied ones. When you are using the rhyme scheme of A/A/B/B they are right there for everyone to see.
Let's Start Fixing Them
The first solution is turning the verses into narratives that do not rhyme, and keeping the rhyming in the chorus' themselves. This was a device that Elvis Presley and early pioneers of Rock' N Roll as well as C & W artists used frequently and gave us some memorable classics. Even though the hard work of rhyming, has been limited, it is still hard work to write effective narratives that do not come off as alternatives to rhyme or lack the consistency of a label on a food product. It would be a hard working alternative at best.
Another solution is to change the rhyme scheme. A/B/A/C...or...A/B/C/B...as alternating, there are established forms of rhyme schemes out there from the easy Pantoum A/B/A/B for each stanza, to the complicated English Sonnet A/B/A/B/C/D/C/D/E/F/E/F/G/G. Each poetic form has it's own structure and rules and when you learn more about any of the hundreds of forms out there it will help you as a writer and creative person.
The last solution is two part, first take a deep breath and relax you are not writing the Declaration Of Independence ( unless of course you write the ultimate POP song and it frees you from your day job like a lottery ticket ), and secondly take your time use the resources available to you in rhyming dictionaries free online and sometimes at little cost in thrift bookstores.
Let's not leave the above examples hanging as " forced-rhyme " casualties. Here are some fixes for them. " I don't know what to do, Since you left me, Not just the sky is blue " adding another line and reinforcing a universal truth and turning it into an emotional backup for the line is what I did there. Another remedy would be " I don't know what to do, Since you left me, Changed my reality, Not just the sky is blue " changing the rhyme scheme from A/A to A/B/B/A, we still rhymed do and blue, but came up with better results. " Don't tear apart, Like the colors of a sunset, My little heart " this time we used a very visual aid and took our lines to somewhere special instead of to the obvious as they did when they were first written. We can even add some implied rhyming and change the tense of the actions to change it for the better.
" Don't be tearing it apart, What I am needing, To make you start believing, In my rapidly beating heart ". Although needing and believing rhyme on the end it is the beginning or be-lieving that changes the flow it is still harmonious but changes the pace as a nice alternative to just beat-beat-beat-etc. More like beat-bump beat-bump bump beat-beat.
In Conclusion
It really is up to you the writer. As with all creative disciplines, practice, practice, practice and an open mind are always going to move you forward and make you a better writer and person. Do not be afraid to experiment with form and other forms of poetry, immerse yourself in new ideas and new approaches. Many successful songwriters might not have their practice pieces available for all to see the process, but you can rest assured that sometimes songs that seem effortless in their lyrics were far from that, and what we are hearing is the result of hard work and experimentation.If it takes a million times to make something one in a million, you will reap the rewards of your hard work, and dedication with something that has no price tag " respect ".
Exceptions Worth Noting
Smokey Robinson, made a career out of using them effectively and made many artists well known by the use of them in his songs. Many songwriters have and always will, but they have learned how to manipulate them and use them well. It will take hard work on your end to make them less obvious or to make them more viable. A natural, and one could almost say genius, in lyric writing would be Elvis Costello, although some of his songs might not be my favorites, his overall skill in writing is almost second to none. His career has been one of natural transitions between genres, and themes in his lyrics. From angry, political swipes at established and now historical figures, to standards that one could almost hear classic crooners sing, to everything in between. There is no limit to what he wants to achieve and what he has achieved. Apart from taking clear political sides, one should be inspired to be that accomplished, and it takes hard work, dedication, and an open mind. Good writing to you.
Discuss this article in our Music Forum.
About Jon Hanover
Colorado based songwriter Jon Hanover comes from a strongly musical family. This one time lead singer and front-man for a Hardcore thrash band in the 80's now writes creative lyrics and music for guitar and voice, and he has been known to pick up the ukulele.
His lyrics are influenced by Elvis Costello and other under the radar Pop song writers. For Jon lyrics are a form of visualizing through text and language, and regarding his own songs, another extension of his broadly expressed creativity.
While he himself has no formal training in lyrics writing, Jon does believe that writing songs is a lifetime in the learning and formal training is no barrier to a serious study of the art form. The best way to improve is to approach songwriting openly and honestly with a drive to understand the art of creating a song. It is this joint thirst to understand the songwriter's craft along with an enthusiasm for communicating those ideas and observations to his fellow aspiring songwriters that lead Jon to join the Songstuff Site Crew as one of our article writers.
Jon aims to help other songwriters improve their lyrics writing, simple as that.
Related Articles By This Author
Taste, Not Just In Your Mouth Anymore...
Visualization
Doing Time, For Forced Rhymes
