Song Writing: The Soul Behind the Music

The foundation of my love for music and what drives my interest in the music industry is one of the fundamental elements of music—the lyrics. Though most know the protective riddle from childhood that states words can’t hurt us, but anyone who loves music as I do knows and has experienced the power of words through song. My favorite songs are the ones that have the ability to connect to people in the most emotional and intimate of ways, allowing listeners to explore and expose their own vulnerability. So how or what influences the lyrics of tearjerker songs such as John Legend’s Ordinary People or Chrisette Michelle’s A Couple of Forevers? I am sure most listeners, like myself, tend to believe (or like to believe) the lyrics of such songs are a result of a relationship the artist is currently in or had in the past, but despite how much we’d like to believe that it is not always the case. According to an American Song Writer Magazine article that hi-lites an excerpt from the book Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Story Behind the Song, Ordinary People was not written as a result of Legend’s or co-writer Will.i.am’s own personal relationship experiences. John Legend admits to his parent’s up-and-down relationship being a point of reference, but the song itself was developed simply from the idea of how the dynamics of relationships can be; Chrisette Michelle’s A Couple of Forevers, on the other hand, evolved from a completely different source of inspiration. In an interview with American journalist of ABC News and National Public Radio Michel Martin, Chrisette reveals that her inspiration for the lyrics to her most recent album derived from an internal sense of wellness. Michelle declares that focusing on her physical health landed her in a better mental, emotional, and spiritual space which is where she wrote from. Author of The Art of the Story-teller, Marie Shedlock, suggests that in time, for positive work, writers will discover their own way to tell a story.1  So be it a personal experience, an idea, or just feeling healthy, we now know powerful and heartfelt lyrics can be birthed from a variety of sources. As long as these type of songs continue to be written, produced, and performed with heart, my love affair with music will be long-lived. 

1. Shedlock, M. L. (2008). The Art of the Story-teller. [S.l.]: The Floating Press.