Music Publishing & Songwriting

“You’d think that people would have had enough of silly love songs…”

Paul McCartney wrote that– back in 1975. And guess what? Now they have. Okay, sure– there are still some that breakthrough every now and then. But Ne-Yo’s big breakthrough hit last year was “I’m so sick of love songs…” It’s a different world out there.

I know we’re coming up on Valentine’s Day and all. But romance in songwriting is over-rated. If you want a hint to drastically improve your chances for writing a hit song, here’s one:

No More Love Songs.

Have you ever thought about how many hit songs are not about romantic love? From “Who Let The Dogs Out?” to “I Believe I Can Fly”, there are countless classic songs that are not centered on romantic relationships. Despite all that history, I’m always amazed at the number of writers who focus almost exclusively on love and romance as lyrical subject matter.

The rest of the listening audience has noticed this as well. When we hear a song for the first time, the unspoken assumption is that it will have a romantic storyline. By turning instead to an unexpected subject, especially a controversial or provocative one, the writer can instantly add a twist that will make the song stand out. Songs about child abuse (“Luka”), poverty (“Inner City Blues (Make Me Wanna Holler)”), abortion (“Papa Don’t Preach”) or politics (“Sunday Bloody Sunday”) show that pop music can effectively address almost any social issue. Songs about baseball (“Centerfield”), cars (“Little Deuce Coupe”), and fashion (“Chains Hang Low”) work as well. Any subject is a welcome relief from the expectation of another break-up or make-up song.

Now You Try It: Take a finished lyric, or a title idea that has yet to be developed. Leaving the title or catch phrase as it is, can you put a twist on the lyric, by constructing something that isn’t a straightforward love song? Think about the topics that concern you, whether it’s politics or partying. Nothing is off limits. The only thing you can’t do is write one more song about that mean boyfriend and what he did to you– or the mysterious beautiful girl down the hall who doesn’t know you’re alive.

My point is that in a business in which a song must stand out in order to be successful– writing about the same thing as everyone else is not an advantage. A change of subject is always healthy.

Of course, I’m not really advocating a ban on love songs. My wife would kill me. But by varying your topics a bit, you may stumble on a way to address the L word from a different, more interesting angle. And that’s the key.

Have no fear– there will always be a place for a unique, and original love song. As the lyric says, “on this you can rely… the world will always welcome lovers, as time goes by…”. But a little change would do us all good. When it comes to lyric-writing, love is not all you need.

Happy Valentines Day!