You may need to learn the lyrics of a song for an upcoming recital, or you just want to do it for fun. In any case, it is good to know the lyrics of the songs you like so that you can sing them and enjoy them even more. Memorizing lyrics can be quite a feat, but with a little work, you will get there. Get familiar with the songs, give yourself a pass and analyze the lyrics in order to learn them.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Get Familiar with the Song
Step 1. Listen to the song frequently
Play the song everywhere and at all hours, even when you go to school or work in the car, on your cell phone when you are in your room getting ready to go out and anywhere else you can listen to music.
- It will be easier to listen to it frequently if you have digital copies on different platforms, such as your cell phone, laptop, a CD, an MP3 player or a USB.
- Listening is great for learning the lyrics, whether it's in your native language or not.
Step 2. Write the letter
Look up the letter on the Internet and then print it out. Copy the entire letter by hand onto a sheet of paper, using the printed sheet for reference. Copy the letter over and over. You can do it in a quiet place, if you want to be totally focused, or while doing some other minor activity, like watching television.
- If you prefer to type the letter with the keyboard, it is also a valid option. It will have the same effect as if you do it by hand.
- You can also test yourself by writing the entire letter without looking at the printout.
Step 3. Sing the lyrics just before you go to sleep at night
To memorize anything effectively, you will need to be rested. There are numerous studies that link poor sleep to poor memory and difficulty thinking and learning. Focus on the lyrics throughout the day and sing the song a few times before bed to keep it fresh in your head.
Get 7-9 hours of sleep if you are an adult, or 8-10 hours if you are a child or adolescent, to make sure your memory is working properly
Method 2 of 3: Put yourself to the test
Step 1. Sing over the instrumental version
Get a copy of both the full original song and the instrumental version. Sing along with the original song and, right after, with the instrumental version. With the instrumental it will be much more difficult, since you will not have help from the singer of the original song. If you forget details like the word that the next verse begins with or the end of the letter, you will have to figure it out yourself.
Step 2. Memorize the letter line by line
Study only the first line of the song, and then sing it out loud without looking at the lyrics. Next, study the second line and sing both lines 1 and 2 without looking at the lyrics. Keep memorizing the lines in this way until you can sing the entire song without looking at the lyrics.
If the song is not in your native language, be sure to pronounce the lyrics correctly while you study them so you don't memorize the words incorrectly
Step 3. Read and pronounce the letter aloud part by part
Print the lyrics of the song, then read a part out loud. Then turn the page over and try reciting that whole part again. Do the same with all the parts of the song over and over until you can recite practically all of them without looking at the sheet. At the end you will be able to recite the entire letter out loud with the page turned so that you cannot see the printed side.
You can also read the lyrics early in the memorization process to familiarize yourself with the content
Step 4. Go over the song in your head
Without listening to the music or looking at the printed lyrics, try to sing the whole song in your head. If you get stuck, take a quick look at the print and locate the part you don't remember. Then turn the page over again and keep going over the song in your head. Repeat this process until you can remember the entire song without looking at the print.
Method 3 of 3: Analyze the Song and Create Connections
Step 1. Visualize the letter as you read it
As you read or listen to the song, imagine yourself in different scenes doing everything the lyrics say. This will help you remember the lyrics, as you can visualize what happens in the song or what will happen next.
For example, if one of the lines in the song is "We're going to party, it's Saturday night," you can imagine yourself in your bedroom on the weekend listening to fun music or picking up a fancy and colorful outfit, getting ready to go out
Step 2. Try to figure out what the letter means
As with any art form, the meaning is not always obvious. When you read or listen to the lyrics, focus on deciphering what the writer is trying to communicate and exactly what is happening in the story he tells. Memorizing is much easier when you learn something meaningful that is part of a whole rather than a bunch of random, empty words.
- If you are not able to find out on your own, you can always look up the meaning of the letter on the Internet.
- For example, in "The Scientist" by Coldplay, there is a part that says: "Questions of science / Science and progress / Do not speak as loud as my heart. / Tell me you love me / Come back and haunt me / Oh, and I rush to the start.”In Spanish:" Science / science and progress / don't speak as loud as my heart beats. / Tell me you love me / come back and catch me / oh, and I rush back to where I started. "By studying just these lines, you can conclude that, in this song, the narrator may have made a mistake in a romantic relationship, you are not able to concentrate on your work because of it, and you want to go back in time to handle the situation in another way.
Step 3. Try to identify with the song on an emotional level
As with other art forms, songs often express some kind of emotion. When you listen to the song or read the lyrics, try to catch the expressed emotions and connect with them, allowing you to experience them on your skin as you sing.
- For example, if you sing a song about a breakup, you can focus on the feeling of loneliness and sadness that you would experience if the lyrics were about you.
- If you sing a song about standing your ground and moving on when someone hurts you, you can imagine that you are in a state of power and determination.
Step 4. Translate the song if it is in a foreign language
When the song is not in your native language, it is even more difficult to know what you are saying and to learn the lyrics. Find a translation of the song on the Internet and read it in your language to better understand what it is about.
- You can even copy the translated version if it helps you remember what each part of the song means.
- Use a song translation app like Musixmatch Lyrics Finder.
Advice
- Be as patient as possible. You must accept and assume that it is unrealistic to try to memorize a song in one sitting. If you practice staying motivated and optimistic, you will end up learning the lyrics in no time.
- Practice makes perfect. Try to focus on memorization and set yourself affordable but complicated challenges to learn the letter faster.
- Try to playback by synchronizing the movement of your lips with the words that sound while listening to the song.