Week 03 · From the book
It’s easy as a songwriter to get overly concerned about rhyming.
Don’t get me wrong, I think rhyming is important. But it shouldn’t control the song’s narrative.
Here’s an example of when I let rhyming win instead of the song’s theme. The song is about my family’s first vacation to Disney World.
Verse one goes like this:
When I was nine years old, My parents told me: “We’re gonna take a vacation. We’re going somewhere, A place where people only care, About relaxation.
“Vacation” and “relaxation” is a nice rhyme, sure, but let’s think more about it. Is it intuitive? Does the statement ring completely true? I would argue, not quite. After all, people don’t go to Disney World to relax. They go because it’s the happiest place on earth. “How was your time at Disney World?” “Oh, it was very relaxing, thank you.” Nobody has ever said that. In fact, parents might tell you it’s one of the most stressful places on earth!
Instead, I should have used a slant rhyme and paired “vacation” with “happy” or some other word closer to the essence of Disney World. I also could have moved things around so “vacation” didn’t land at the end of the line, which would free me up to rhyme different words.
It’s not terrible the way it is, but it could be better. My point in all this is to remind you that you have options. Your idea can always beat the rhyme. And when your idea wins, it resonates more with the listener. It’s a truer feeling. Plus, don’t forget that lyrics have the luxury of being sung. Imperfect rhymes that are sung tend to sound more perfect than they look on the page.
When in doubt, choose the idea over the rhyme.
Try This This Week
Pull out the lyrics to your latest song. Go line by line and ask yourself: Did I choose this rhyme because it sounded best, or because it rang truest?
Where those two things conflict, revise in favor of what rings truest.