How to Convert Song Lyrics to a Song

Think of the tempo of your song. Is it slow? Fast? You have to consider this, or else you will not know how to continue. You also have to consider whether the lyrics make sense with the speed that you want the song to be.

Consider what style of music the song should be. You do not want to have a loving ballad backed up by death metal, because it will not make any sense. On the opposite end of that, you do not want your death metal song to be played on the ukulele, because it also would not make sense. Use your lyrics to think of how the song should sound.

Experiment with similar music. Listen to music which you feel has a similar style, and analyze how they build up the song, how the verses bridge to one another, and how powerful the chorus sounds. I would recommend using well known bands for this, since if they are well known as good musicians, they will generally have some knowledge of this process. Just thoroughly analyze every aspect of the song.

Keep in mind that music can still be simple. Although most of the music you've listened to is probably intricately made and thought out by brilliant musical minds (especially if you've listened to bands such as Led Zeppelin or the Rolling Stones), some of the best music is made up of simple segments arranged in the right way (think more of the Ramones or Nirvana). The KISS (Keep it simple, stupid) method is sometimes the best method, and it can be applied directly to arranging music. Don't try to go over the top right off the bat. Make sure that you have all of your bases covered and that everything that you are doing makes sense.

Start thinking about the music you can put to your own lyrics. Do you have the necessary instrumental abilities? Will you need other people to help you? Some songs will only sound good when the bass and guitar are played together, and some songs sound good with no bass. You have to consider all of the mixes of instruments and how you want your song to come off to others.

Think about testing the music that you picked. Get out your guitar, bass, drums, whatever you play, and put it along with your lyrics. Have somebody that you know help you with this, to tell you whether it sounds good together from another perspective, now that you finally can try your ideas in real time.

Improve. Now you have your lyrics, and you should now have music, or at least an idea of the music that you want the lyrics to be backed to. Always continue to improve on your idea, and never second guess what you do. If you believe that the song flows properly and that you know that your idea will stick, then keep it.

Bring the song together. You should have a majority of the song compiled by now, and you must bring it all together. Get your final changes to the tiny details that remain, and make sure that the song flows properly, and do not have any pauses where they should not be. Basically, finish up all of the minor touches. Make sure that you have other people hear it since they will be better for critiquing your work than you will. They will be able to point out any minor flaws or tell you what needs to be emphasized more with the good parts.