Want to take your rap game to the next level? Start by writing hot, professional rap lyrics. Use these tips to boost your rap skills and write lyrics like the pros.
What Your Rapping About
The Subject matter, or what you decide to rap about is called content. Content is the big picture - the message of your lyrics. It can be something from your own life experience, something you heard someone say, or maybe just a story you made up. There are no right or wrong choices so if you want to write about politics AND expensive cars AND what you ate for dinner last night, go for it.
No matter what you end up writing about, make sure that you know it well. Writing about something you don't know, just because that's what other rappers are doing will make the whole process a lot more difficult. And, it could come back to haunt you down the road. The last thing you want to do is become known for something you never did or didn't believe in in the first place.
The Words
Once you've settled on a subject, the next step is to choose the right words to describe it. The words you end up using and the way that you put those words together to form a lyric is called flow.
At it's best, flow is poetry. Think of it as painting a picture, except instead of oil or watercolor you're using words. Choosing the right words can take a little bit of practice depending on your writing experience and how familiar you are with your subect matter. But, they should come naturally.
As an exercise, spend the next few days paying close attention to how you talk to other people, and how you talk to yourself. How do you communicate differently than your friends or family? Which parts of a story do you find more interesting or important than everyone else? Take notes and incorporate them into your writing.
More Than Just Words On A Page
By this point you've decided what you're going to rap about, put some words together, and come up with a basic structure for your song. Now it's time to perform. The way in which you take lyrics from a page and perform them, either on record or in front of an audience is called Delivery. You are literally delivering the words to your listeners.
Delivering a lyric is an art-form unto itself. From the energy you bring, to the way you emphasize and accentuate words, to the tone of your voice, a delivery is, at it's core, a performance. A number of stylistic choices go into crafting a delivery. Do you slur your words together or do you articulate each syllable? Does it sound more interesting if you do it sarcastically, or totally relaxed? Just how you perform your lyrics is up to you.
Final Assembly
By now you can probably see that all of these skills are related. What you decide to rap about influences what words you choose. And, the words you choose suggest a style of delivery. The type of rap beats or hip hop instrumentals you use can also influence your writing.
While your writing, it's important to keep these relationships in mind. But, know that there isn't one right or wrong way to go about it. You can start with a certain kind of delivery in mind and work your way backwards if it works better for you. Rap, like any other art is about expression, so above all be yourself.
What Your Rapping About
The Subject matter, or what you decide to rap about is called content. Content is the big picture - the message of your lyrics. It can be something from your own life experience, something you heard someone say, or maybe just a story you made up. There are no right or wrong choices so if you want to write about politics AND expensive cars AND what you ate for dinner last night, go for it.
No matter what you end up writing about, make sure that you know it well. Writing about something you don't know, just because that's what other rappers are doing will make the whole process a lot more difficult. And, it could come back to haunt you down the road. The last thing you want to do is become known for something you never did or didn't believe in in the first place.
The Words
Once you've settled on a subject, the next step is to choose the right words to describe it. The words you end up using and the way that you put those words together to form a lyric is called flow.
At it's best, flow is poetry. Think of it as painting a picture, except instead of oil or watercolor you're using words. Choosing the right words can take a little bit of practice depending on your writing experience and how familiar you are with your subect matter. But, they should come naturally.
As an exercise, spend the next few days paying close attention to how you talk to other people, and how you talk to yourself. How do you communicate differently than your friends or family? Which parts of a story do you find more interesting or important than everyone else? Take notes and incorporate them into your writing.
More Than Just Words On A Page
By this point you've decided what you're going to rap about, put some words together, and come up with a basic structure for your song. Now it's time to perform. The way in which you take lyrics from a page and perform them, either on record or in front of an audience is called Delivery. You are literally delivering the words to your listeners.
Delivering a lyric is an art-form unto itself. From the energy you bring, to the way you emphasize and accentuate words, to the tone of your voice, a delivery is, at it's core, a performance. A number of stylistic choices go into crafting a delivery. Do you slur your words together or do you articulate each syllable? Does it sound more interesting if you do it sarcastically, or totally relaxed? Just how you perform your lyrics is up to you.
Final Assembly
By now you can probably see that all of these skills are related. What you decide to rap about influences what words you choose. And, the words you choose suggest a style of delivery. The type of rap beats or hip hop instrumentals you use can also influence your writing.
While your writing, it's important to keep these relationships in mind. But, know that there isn't one right or wrong way to go about it. You can start with a certain kind of delivery in mind and work your way backwards if it works better for you. Rap, like any other art is about expression, so above all be yourself.
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