There’s something magical about songwriting. You’re taking your thoughts, feelings, and experiences and setting them to music that’ll hopefully resonate with listeners. If you’re doing it right, you’re baring your soul to anyone who hears it. With the upcoming release of the miniseries adaptation of NYT bestselling novel Daisy Jones & The Six (streaming March 3, 2023 on Amazon Prime), a documentary-style account of the rise and fall of a 1970s rock band, songwriters everywhere can get a burst of inspiration for their music. If you’re experiencing writers block, here are some tips you’ll learn from the show.
The best lyrics come from the heart.
So many songwriters struggle with coming up with meaningful lyrics. If the words don’t come from the heart, from personal experience, from something real, the audience can tell. They feel hollow. When Daisy Jones asks The Six front man Billy Dunne what he thinks the song “Honeycomb” is about, it’s her way to connect with the words he’s written. Even if it’s personal and you don’t necessarily want to answer, you should always have your own reason for what the song is about and why you felt compelled to write it.
There’s magic in collaboration.
Sure, there are songwriters out there who do it all alone, but they’re few and far between. Whether it’s just collaborating on the music or a duo writing a song’s lyrics together, like in Daisy Jones & The Six, a collaborator will help you come up with things you never thought of. Remember: Don’t shy away from criticism and comments in the songwriting process. In the end, it’s what makes your writing stronger.
True love is the key ingredient to a love song.
Just like struggle creates meaningful lyrics, actually feeling real, upending love will help you write a love song. It’s that passion between Daisy and Billy, in the songs they write together, that gives his girlfriend pause about what’s really going on between the lead singers. This tip is harder to follow if you haven’t yet been in love, but always be looking out for that little bit of inspiration in the romances around you.
You shouldn’t shy away from conflict.
You might have this idea that you need to experience pure fairytale romance to write a love song. That’s certainly the way I described it in the last point, but here’s something to consider: No real love story is 100% perfect. If you caught the trailer for Daisy Jones & The Six, you know it can become incredibly messy. Some of the best art is made from the wreckage sprinkled around you after a conflict. Channel that beautiful wreckage in your music.
Songwriting has to be intimate.
As Sam Claflin’s Billy Dunne says in the show, “When you’re making an album, it’s an intimate thing.” It’s not just intimate for those you’re writing and performing the songs with, but for everyone who encounters the song after it leaves your lips. When you write a song, you’re letting the listener into your world. Although intimacy can feel intense, don’t shy away from vulnerability. Your songwriting will be better for it.
Catch Daisy Jones & The Six starting March 3, 2023 on Amazon Prime Video with new episodes releasing every Friday through March 24.
