July Songwriting Prompts
Take a song that’s public domain. Use the melody and rewrite the lyrics with a modern lens. Use this rewrite as the hook of a pop song.
Pick a historical topic of interest. Do some research on that time period (Wikipedia research is fine for our purposes). Write a song inspired by this time period.
Rewatch your favorite teen romcom. Pick a scene where music is featured heavily. Write a new song that you think could go over this scene.
Pick your favorite clothing brand. Write down 10 words that you would use to describe their particular style. Brainstorm what that particular brand might sound like. Now, write a song that you think could fit in an advertisement for that brand.
Pick your favorite line from your favorite book. Use this line as the emotional center of the next song you write. You may either use the line in its entirety or rewrite it a bit so as to avoid any publishing backlash in the event you want to release it.
Write a lullaby that speaks to a particular value or moral you’d like to impart to a child.
Pick a song that you think is terrible. Listen to it over and over again. Now, fix it.
Imagine you’re in the studio with your favorite artist. No matter who they are, they are desperately in need of a ballad today. What will this artist’s ballad sound like? How will their style and voice translate into a ballad?
Pick an untitled voice memo at random from your smart phone. Take that unfinished idea and complete.
Write a song that is only one word.
