{"id":7422,"date":"2016-08-25T03:40:47","date_gmt":"2016-08-25T07:40:47","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.online.berklee.edu\/andreastolpe\/?p=201"},"modified":"2026-01-19T15:19:12","modified_gmt":"2026-01-19T20:19:12","slug":"tips-for-writing-big-message-songs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/online.berklee.edu\/takenote\/tips-for-writing-big-message-songs\/","title":{"rendered":"Tips for Writing Big Message Songs"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

How Songwriters Can Make Big Message Songs Personal, Relatable, and Emotionally Effective<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There are two topics they say never to bring up with your inlaws \u2013 religion and politics. Funny enough, those same topics carry some baggage for songwriters, too, though not for the same reasons. These topics are difficult for us songwriters to deliver believably and purposefully. Writing about them is almost always biting off more than we can chew. They are what I refer to as \u2018Big Message Songs,\u2019 where the immensity of the subject calls for a commensurate emotional reaction \u2013 which is where we often fall short.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TAKE A SONGWRITING COURSE WITH ANDREA STOLPE<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The intent of Big Message Songs is to convey a truth we feel strongly about, and do so in a manner that invites the audience to think and feel as we think and feel. But the result is sometimes a song that audiences feel is short-baked, idealistic, or trite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n

The challenge is that we\u2019re not writing about a small and personal moment, but about a big concept that our listener already has feelings and opinions about.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So how do we write Big Message Songs effectively? I\u2019d like to suggest a few ideas, in the hopes it may help deliver these important songs with better results.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One way is to find a small moment. Make the idea personal, while expanding to the universal \u2018we.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

John Mayer does this right away in his song \u2018Waiting on the World to Change:\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Me and all my friends<\/em>
We\u2019re all misunderstood<\/em>
They say we stand for nothing and<\/em>
There\u2019s no way we ever could<\/em>
Now we see everything that\u2019s going wrong<\/em>
With the world and those who lead it<\/em>
We just feel like we don\u2019t have the means<\/em>
To rise above and beat it<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The singer establishes that it\u2019s not only his personal story, but the stories of many. Notice how the song becomes less about the issue and more about the singer\u2019s feelings when we turn the point of view inward to \u2018I\u2019:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lately I<\/em>
I felt misunderstood<\/em>
They say I stand for nothing and<\/em>
There\u2019s no way I ever could<\/em>
Now I see everything that\u2019s going wrong<\/em>
With the world and those who lead it<\/em>
I just feel like I don\u2019t have the means<\/em>
To rise above and beat it<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, let\u2019s see what happens when the point of view allows for \u2018you\u2019 instead of \u2018they\u2019:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Me and all my friends<\/em>
we\u2019re all misunderstood<\/em>
You say we stand for nothing and<\/em>
There\u2019s no way we ever could<\/em>
Now we see everything that\u2019s going wrong<\/em>
With the world and those who lead it<\/em>
we just feel like I don\u2019t have the means<\/em>
To rise above and beat it<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The result here is finger-pointing, not establishing who \u2018you\u2019 is but certainly making the \u2018you\u2019 an enemy. Point of view has great power to help us writers find our neutral position, where we can be received by the listener in a non-judgmental tone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another John Mayer tune provides a great example of how using \u2018she\u2019 in the specific moment of the verse helps the song move towards summarizing a larger and more universal point in the chorus. The focus of the song message is not the girl or the singer\u2019s relationship with her, but what the singer has realized about life and love because of their relationship:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Verse:
I know a girl<\/em>
She puts the color inside of my world<\/em>
But, she\u2019s just like a maze<\/em>
Where all of the walls all continually change<\/em>
And I\u2019ve done all I can<\/em>
To stand on her steps with my heart in my hand<\/em>
Now I\u2019m starting to see<\/em>
Maybe It\u2019s got nothing to do with me<\/em>
Chorus:<\/em>
Fathers, be good to your daughters<\/em>
Daughters will love like you do<\/em>
Girls become lovers who turn into mothers<\/em>
So mothers be good to your daughters too<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The chorus summarizes the bigger point that pertains to us all. The specific instance the verse describes gives the singer credibility to say what he\u2019s saying in the chorus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other ways we can help our Big Message Songs to be more effective is to avoid cliche in the verse, never assuming for a moment that your listener agrees with you or knows what you mean without explanation. The verse is where you show the listener, through a specific experience, why you have come to believe what you believe (the chorus message).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you find it difficult to settle on a specific moment in the first verse, try writing a first verse and chorus, then letting your first verse be verse two, writing a new first verse. You\u2019ve gotten all the generalizations out of your system, and now you\u2019re ready to sit down and get real in verse 1.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And remember, don\u2019t lecture your listener. When we include ourselves in the problem and the solution, we are treading on more neutral ground.
I\u2019ll leave you with a lyric that speaks to the times and upholds many of the tools I\u2019ve touched on here. It\u2019s a wonderful example of how mainstream songwriting still touts some great craft.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sometimes a certain smell will take me back to when I was young<\/em>
How come I\u2019m never able to identify where it\u2019s coming from<\/em>
I\u2019d make a candle out of it if I ever found it<\/em>
Try to sell it, never sell out of it, I\u2019d probably only sell one<\/em>
It\u2019d be to my brother, \u2019cause we have the same nose<\/em>
Same clothes homegrown a stone\u2019s throw from a creek we used to roam<\/em>
But it would remind us of when nothing really mattered<\/em>
Out of student loans and tree-house homes we all would take the latter<\/em>
My name\u2019s Blurryface and I care what you think<\/em>
My name\u2019s Blurryface and I care what you think<\/em>
Wish we could turn back time, to the good old days<\/em>
When our momma sang us to sleep but now we\u2019re stressed out<\/em>
Wish we could turn back time, to the good old days<\/em>
When our momma sang us to sleep but now we\u2019re stressed out<\/em>
(Stressed Out Twenty One Pilots)
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

STUDY SONGWRITING WITH BERKLEE ONLINE<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There are two topics they say never to bring up with your inlaws \u2013 religion and politics. Funny enough, those same topics carry some baggage for songwriters, too, though not for the same reasons. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":7502,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,9564,9566],"tags":[853,1318,1319],"class_list":["post-7422","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-articles","category-features-articles","category-songwriting-articles","tag-lyric-writing","tag-songwriting","tag-songwriting-tips"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nTips for Writing Big Message Songs - Berklee Online Take Note<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Berklee Online songwriting course author Andrea Stolpe offers tips for writing big message songs, including how to write believably.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/online.berklee.edu\/takenote\/tips-for-writing-big-message-songs\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Tips for Writing Big Message Songs\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Berklee Online songwriting course author Andrea Stolpe offers tips for writing big message songs, including how to write believably.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/online.berklee.edu\/takenote\/tips-for-writing-big-message-songs\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Berklee Online Take Note\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/berkleeonline\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-08-25T07:40:47+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-01-19T20:19:12+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/online.berklee.edu\/takenote\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/photo-1474692295473-66ba4d54e0d3-1024x758.jpeg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"758\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Andrea Stolpe\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@berkleeonline\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@berkleeonline\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Andrea Stolpe\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/online.berklee.edu\/takenote\/tips-for-writing-big-message-songs\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/online.berklee.edu\/takenote\/tips-for-writing-big-message-songs\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Andrea Stolpe\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/online.berklee.edu\/takenote\/#\/schema\/person\/7b73193524090385e8c9513212a44c7c\"},\"headline\":\"Tips for Writing Big Message Songs\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-08-25T07:40:47+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-01-19T20:19:12+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/online.berklee.edu\/takenote\/tips-for-writing-big-message-songs\/\"},\"wordCount\":1062,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/online.berklee.edu\/#org\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/online.berklee.edu\/takenote\/tips-for-writing-big-message-songs\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/online.berklee.edu\/takenote\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/photo-1474692295473-66ba4d54e0d3.jpeg\",\"keywords\":[\"lyric writing\",\"Songwriting\",\"songwriting tips\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Articles\",\"Features\",\"Songwriting\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/online.berklee.edu\/takenote\/tips-for-writing-big-message-songs\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/online.berklee.edu\/takenote\/tips-for-writing-big-message-songs\/\",\"name\":\"Tips for Writing Big Message Songs - 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