The Fatal Mistake That Will Stop Your Song From Making an Impact

The lyrics are too abstract.

Of course, they carry a meaningful message. It sounds great. It's something positive. Something we want to believe in.

But there's no anchor for those words, no foundation, and no story.

We don't have any idea ...

There are so many pieces that do not allow the listener to discover the CONTEXT of what the song is all about.

So how will the listener know to which life situation they can apply those words if they don't have a reference point?

Yes, the lyrics may sound nice.

But impact, there's none.

Because the lyrics are too abstract, too general, ... there's no specificity.

There's nothing vulnerable being shared.

And there's nothing that would allow the listener to relate to the song's main character... because they don't even know WHO those people are.

So, how can the listener build an emotional connection to the song's world when there is none?

And there's no journey the song's main character embarks on to solve the problem they're struggling with.

And when there's no journey, the song doesn't offer an experience for the audience.

So all they are left with are some words that sound good, and they know there's some truth to it... but they can't do anything with what's being said.

There's no story that helps the meaning of the words to "bypass the audience's critical minds."

So there's no value.

It's just bleh, bleh, bleh.

So how can you improve a lyric draft like the one I've used as an example above?

It's simple, you tell a story!

More specifically, ...

So how could that look like regarding the example we used before?

Can you see how switching "night" with "love" sets up the core need of what the song will be about?

Letting the audience immediately know it's a love song?

The second line now has a better reference point.

By referring to "trying to mend what's torn," we think of someone's heart.

We now have a clearer picture in our minds. We already have more context!

Now we know where the song's main character is (we can picture them in an empty ballroom), and we understand more about the gravity of the situation because they broke up when they were supposed to get married.

That creates a lot of empathy because we understand how much it must hurt to be left on such a special occasion that is meant to be one of the happiest days of someone's life.

And through starting the song with the breakup, you have the beginning of the story.

You could then include the turning point moment in another verse.

This moment throws the song's main character into a crisis, and they have to make a choice about how they will continue: Will they double-down on what they did before? Or move on from the past?

For example, the verse could have a turning point that refers to the old love showing up with someone new (for more dramatic effect, it could be in the very same room):

This is how you tell a story.

Taking the audience on a journey through a particularly turbulent time in someone's life, where something happened that threw their life out of balance and led to another turning point event where they faced a crossroad moment ... an important choice.

And what they did (expressed by a literal action) shows the listener their internal decision expressed in an active choice.

And through that, the message you're trying to communicate... those empowering statements you wanted them to know... that's how they gain meaning.

Now, when you wonder HOW can you actually tell a story in a song so you can achieve this meaningful progression that leads to a valuable takeaway that truly impacts your listeners... then I have it already all mapped out for you.

Check out the Lyric Mastery Circle (for FREE), and you can explore the Lyric Mastery Success Path that is all about telling powerful stories in song lyrics!

See info below 👇