Complexity always comes from simple ideas in which you could start to morph it into something truly special. I've always compared the "creative process" to playing with Play-doh. Everyone can attain it, it's simple to play with, and once you understand the concept, you could pretty much make anything you want with it.

The only difference is that there are limitations to what you can do with Play-doh.

(Even so, I've made some pretty cool things with Play-Doh when I was a child.)

It's a great start to tapping into your creative energy, which is something kids are just natural at.

So, what does Play-doh have to do with songwriting?

Writing a song is a creative process. Knowing that creativity is needed for writing a song, the analysis of Play-Doh should reign true for writing songs as well.

What most people fail to realize is that songs do not need structure. There is no "rulebook" for writing a good song. Of course, there are general similarities in the most popular songs you hear on the radio but overall, music is very abstract. Billie Eilish's "Bad Guy" has a completely different structure and tone compared to Taylor Swift's, "You Need To Calm Down". 

I think that's why a lot of people don't try to write songs. They say they would love to, but the fear hits them like a mack truck.

Don't worry, I understand.

Let's face it, there are so many factors that come with writing music, you may not even know where to start. How should you start it, how should you finish it, what instrumental will you use, what emotion do you want to evoke from the listener, and so much more.

Just like I said in the beginning, simplicity is the building block for complex things. I mean, Childish Gambino's song, "This Is America" has so many different theories fans created for it and I'm sure the artist never meant for the song to be taken to such an extreme. 

The song is merely filled with adlibs and it was such a hit. If this song doesn't show you how big songs could be without structure, I'm not sure what will.

Enough of me babbling on though. Songwriting seems difficult but today, I hope that I could give you some solid tips on how you could start writing songs today.

Steal From Your Favorite Artists

I remember in my second semester in college, my English professor told me this quote from Pablo Picasso.

"Good artists borrow. Great artists steal."

Now, to me, I don't think this quote should be taken literally. Imagine if I painted a replica of the Mona Lisa, named it "Lisa Mona" and started selling it.

That'd be insane.

However, the way I perceive this quote is more on the mental of the creative process. You can't teach somebody how to be creative, it just happens. Usually, the creativity would come from an individual who is such a fan of this field of work. he or she is in. Which then makes them capable of taking things they were a fan of and crafting it into a creative piece themselves.

What I'm saying is, utilize the things you love from music, steal it, then manipulate it so it could fit your needs.

For example, the song, "Ms.Jackson" by OutKast has a line in the song where Andre 3000 says, "Forever, forever ever, forever ever?". 

The same line and inflections were used in Kanye West's song, "Diamonds From Sierra Leone". The only difference was that Kanye West used it repeatedly on his hook while Andre 3000 only used it in his second verse.

If you could get comfortable with taking phrases, flows, maybe even vocal tones from your favorite artists, you could potentially allow your own creativity to flow on its own. This could get you to suddenly have more things to talk about rather being blocked by your own thoughts.

Treat It As If You're Writing A Journal Entry

There was always one thing I hated about certain rappers and singers. 

They don't sound like how they speak in real life.

Granted, I understand your vocal tone should change because you, as the musician, is different from you, as yourself. However, I'm not necessarily speaking about "vocal tones" though.

It's the words they use.

To be honest, people can sniff out the ones trying their hardest to evoke emotion with words that don't sound authentic. 

It sounds fake and people will tend to not believe in it.

You don't have to go through pain to write a song about pain, but being able to properly evoke it through your song will help out a lot.

How should one do that? Treat it like a journal entry.

Songwriting at the end of the day is a form of writing. Whether you're writing a blog or writing a story, it follows the same principles. Authenticity will always be loud and present to whoever reads or listens to it.

A good example of that is Drake's, "Marvin's Room". Reading those lyrics just feels like you are reading somebody's journal entry. No special metaphors, no crazy words, just pure emotion. Emotions put into phrases everyone could understand and appreciate because it's authentic.

Great songs won't always have these amazing play on words. Nine times out of ten, you'll find that a lot of artists will just have a very vague concept in their songs. Treating your songs as if you are journaling will help you drive out emotions in your songs without coming off fake or inauthentic. 

No Matter How It May Sound To You, Just Do It

Artists like Ed Sheeran, A$AP Rocky, Kendrick Lamar, and J. Cole have all got on record for saying that they never liked their music when they first started.

The interesting thing about songwriting, or anything in general, is that the more you do it, the better you'll be at it.

Thinking back to when I started writing music, I did not care if what I was writing was bad, I just did it for practice. The good stuff will find its way into your art later once you gain the muscle memory of creating.

If you could turn off your brain and just focus on the positive feeling you get writing, things will always go your way in the end.

Again, songwriting is an art form that has no structure. There is a place for anyone to find people that enjoy the things you write. So even if you think it's horrendous, somebody out there will think it's amazing.

I hope these tips helped anyone interested in writing their very first song, or even somebody that has been writing for a while and got stuck in a rut. At the very least, I hope this made somebody look at creativity in a different way.

Thank you for reading!