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Step 4 - Your Hook Rules The Chorus!
The " hook" is the catchy line or musical part that repeats throughout the song catching the listener's attention and making the song memorable. Any song can have more than one "hooky" part (sometimes called "motifs") but almost always have a main hook in the chorus that sets itself apart from the others as the BIG ONE.
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Regardless of the song form you choose, the easiest way to start writing a song is to write the main hook first in the chorus. This is because you want to base your whole song on the centralized theme of the song which is the main hook.
The hook will form the chorus of our song. As a matter of fact, some industry pros refer to the hook as being the chorus of the song even though that's technically incorrect. Regardless, this will be the part of the song the listener will remember most, so we want to really capture them here.
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To create the hook, use this step-by-step guide:
1. Start by repeating the song title several times in your normal voice. Don't sing just yet.
2. Now pay attention to the words, what they mean, and what type of mood you want to create with the song. When you have a clear picture of this, move to the next step.
3. Put step 1 and step 2 together and don't sing, just speak the words the way you would in normal conversation. Notice there is a natural movement either up or down in the pitch of your voice while you repeat the title. Let this guide you in moving notes up or down and developing the note sequencefor the hook.
Example: In our example song title, "Ive Never Been So High" the first two letters of "Never", the word "Been", and the word "High", all naturally went up in pitch as I spoke them. You may have had a slightly different result because we're all unique in how we speak, but it's probably basically the same.
4. Now take those natural pitch movements you found while speaking the title, start singing, and accentuate those pitch movements by singing them on higher notes. Go as high as you want on these notes until you find what you think are the right high notes. You might have to play with this for a while but soon you'll have the perfect hook in the chorus for your song.
5. At this point you may have already come up with a line before or after the main hook line. Usually these come naturally because the main hook will help guide you in developing the other lines. These lines will also support the theme of the title and almost always will become a part of your main hook.
However, if you're stuck, simply repeat the above process until you find the right notes for them. too.
6. Now figure out a rhyming scheme for your chorus by using the mini-guide in Step 3/Rhymezone.
7. Write down your hook/chorus in the middle of a sheet of paper to leave room for the verse you're about to create. You should now have two pieces of paper-your worksheet, and your song sheet.
This is what our example song looks like so far in the
chorus:
I've never been so high
Your love is like a drug
One shot of you ain't enough
I've never been so high
Your love is like a drug
C'mon and fill me up
Notice I've used repetition in using the line "your love is like a drug." Repetition can be used anywhere in the song but is usually used in the chorus to create memorability. Also remember, the chorus should be the same throughout the song although sometimes you can vary certain words in the chorus for your own effect.
Now we have a great hook-contained chorus!