Dave Grohl teaches you how to write a hit song
Dave Grohl knows his shit, man. We all get to a point in our miserably musical life when we have to get real. After all that experimental, artsy, pseud crap we lived through and survived (rather miraculously), we just want to cut the crap, man up and write a good tune. No, a pretty darn good one. The ever elusive hit song. Dave Grohl (ex-Nirvana, Foo Fighters) and his friend, singer-songwriter and actor Kyle Gass really breaks it down for you. Check this shit, man.
How to write a hit song? Dave Grohl teaches you
– “I only write hits. The deep cuts don’t keep the mansion running.”
That’s wisdom right there. Do you really need to get into some pseudo intellectual, self indulgent agony? Nope. It’s hit tunes where the money is. Never forget that, bro.
– “Most white people dance to the lyrics.”
You may think it’s sad, but it surely is the truth. You can’t enchant a lot of people with things like melody or even rhythm. You can’t seduce girls with just the music itself. They just don’t know what these things are. Give them what they do know (hopefully): words.
– “Don’t think about a groove; think about it like it’s a bumper sticker.”
Yup. Groove schmoove, right? You need to get to the point, and you need to do that with a couple of well chosen words. “Life’s a bitch!” Now that’s poetry.
– “You don’t even need to change the way the chords are.”
Changing the chord progression from verse to chorus, now that’s pretty much something you should avoid like the black plague. Why? Do you really want to seriously overwhelm your audience with such complexity?!
How to write a hit song? Dave Grohl teaches you
– “chorus, chorus, pre-chorus, chorus, verse (kinda), chorus, pre-chorus, chorus, chorus, chorus, finale, chorus. It’s all chorus.”
Says it all, hey? If you catch yourself working on anything else than the chorus, you know you’re just a verse away from total failure. Be careful, my friend. With the words of Dave Grohl: “Don’t bore us, get to the chorus.”
– “Life’s a bitch, but keep on truckin’.”
