Songwriting Webquest

Have you ever thought about what goes on behind your favorite song? The artist who sings that song may not be the same person who wrote the lyrics, melody, or even the theme! In fact, most songs have several people writing and performing them. 

I absolutely love music and spend a lot of my time enjoying songs by a variety of artists/bands of different genres.  However, some of my absolute, all-time favorite songs are those that never get old and I can listen to countless times.  

Writing a song is almost exactly like writing a poem, but it has a beat to it. Today, you are going to use this WebQuest in order to learn how to write a song. 

Then, on Thursday, you will be working with my friend, singer/songwriter Robb McCormick to create your own original songs.  You are going to use your English grammar and writing skills in order to write your lyrics, and you will also use music, harmony, and rhythm skills in order to make your lyrics sound like a real song! 

Click on each tab and complete the activities provided in order to build your knowledge of songwriting and prepare to begin the songwriting process.  

The objective of this lesson is for you to learn and understand the basic structure of a song.  You will use that knowledge to analyze and evaluate example songs as well as to begin the brainstorming and prewriting process.  On Thursday, you will synthesize all of your knowledge and apply it as you create your own original song with the help of singer/songwriter Robb McCormick.  

PART ONE: GET SOME INSPIRATION!

Listen to these videos for songs in different genres. I have a large selection and variety of videos so that you can see that sometimes artists and songs that sound nothing alike can be placed in the same music genre (like Michael Jackson and Rihanna!). Do not watch every single video, it would take far too long. However, please watch at least four videos, all from a different genre. You may watch more videos if you are very interested in each genre, but do not spend more than 1 class period watching these videos. 

Keep an open mind!! Just because you do not like a song in a genre, does not mean you cannot write a great song from that genre. Also, just because you do not like a genre or artist, does not mean you can automatically cross it off the list. Who knows, maybe you’ll enjoy a genre, song, or artist that you never expected!!

Acoustic/Country:   

• Don McLean, American Pie
• Bryan White, Someone Else's Star
• Lady Antebellum, Need You Now
• Johnny Cash, Ring of Fire
• Tim McGraw, Don't Take the Girl
• John Anderson, Straight Tequila Night

R&B/Soul:

• KCi & JoJo, All My Life
• Celine Dion, My Heart Will Go On
• Mariah Carey, We Belong Together
• Usher & Alicia Keys, My Boo
• Beyonce, Sweet Dreams
• Destiny's Child, Say My Name

Hip Hop/Rap:

• Eminem, Mockingbird
• Nicki Minaj & Drake, Moment 4 Life
• 2pac, California Love
• Bone Thugs N Harmony, Tha Crossroads
• Nicki Minaj, Superbass

Rock (Punk, Classic, Light):

• Journey, Don’t Stop Believin
• Avril Lavigne, Sk8er Boi
• The Beatles, All You Need is Love
• Guns N Roses, Knockin on Heaven’s Door
• Gotye, Somebody That I Used to Know
• Matchbox 20, 3 a.m.

Pop:

• Michael Jackson, Beat it
• Rihanna, Please Don’t Stop the Music
• Katy Perry, Last Friday Night
• Madonna, Material Girl
• Carly Rae Jepson, Call Me Maybe
• ‘N Sync, Tearin Up My Heart
• Hanson, Get the Girl Back

Techno/Dubstep/Reggae:

• Skrillex, Cinema Remix
• HelloGoodbye, Here in Your Arms
• Psy, Gangham Style
• Deadmau5 ft. Rob Swire, Ghosts N Stuff
• Bob Marley, No Woman No Cry

Note: During the videos, pay attention to lyricism, rhymes, alliteration, or anything else you think pertains to the song you might want to write. Search the lyrics of the songs if needed. Please note that the videos of live performances may have different lyrics than the original songs.

Absolutely no derogatory words or profanities may be used. If a song had profanities, I chose the clean version only. Do NOT use curse words or put people down in your lyrics.

PART TWO: LEARN ALL ABOUT IT!

Use the materials (the articles and videos) linked below about the songwriting process and the parts of a song.  As you read, fill in the information on the corresponding Google Doc assignment titled "Beginning Songwriting Basics" provided on your Google Classroom.  You may also need to do a bit of research to complete the assignment.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXv4KVduKjw

https://mysongcoach.com/

https://mysongcoach.com/write-a-song-in-ten-steps/

https://www.wikihow.com/Write-a-Song

https://mysongcoach.com/song-starters/

This WebQuest assignment will be worth 70 classwork points, so I want you to take your time and do your best work.  As you are completing this project, be thinking about what you want your own, original song to be.  You will be working with Robb on Thursday to create your own lyrics.  

I hope this WebQuest helps you to have a better understanding of song structure and some ideas on how to begin, so it doesn't seem like such an overwhelming task!  I am really looking forward to working with you guys on your original songs on Thursday.  

 Christina Zawaideh, Gladstone Elementary

Rob Swift, swiftlessons--YouTube

Robin Frederick, mysongcoach.com