To make a song, start with one small idea (a few words, a chord loop or a hummed tune), turn it into chords and a melody, and arrange it into sections like verse and chorus. Then record it, and mix it so every part can be heard. You can do all of this on a laptop with a free music program, and you do not need to read music. If you have a tune in your head but cannot play it, Audio to MIDI is free, runs in your browser, and turns a hummed melody into notes.
This guide follows the order most songwriters work in, from the first idea to a finished file.
Every song starts somewhere small. Pick whichever of these comes easiest:
- A line of words. A phrase you said, or a feeling you want to describe.
- A chord loop. Two to four chords you like the sound of, played over and over.
- A melody. A tune you catch yourself humming.
- A beat. A drum pattern that makes you move. Our guide to how to make a beat covers that route.
Do not try to write the whole song at once. Save the idea as a quick voice memo so you do not lose it. Most finished songs grew from a single memo like that.
A music program for making songs is called a DAW (short for digital audio workstation). It records sound, plays virtual instruments, and lets you arrange everything on a timeline. If the word is new, read what a DAW is first. Free DAWs exist, and any of them can finish a song.
You also need headphones and, if you plan to sing, a microphone. A phone or a cheap USB mic is enough to begin.
Tempo is the speed, counted in beats per minute (BPM). Slow songs often sit around 60 to 80 BPM, and upbeat pop is often 110 to 130. If you are unsure, start at 100 and move it later.
The key is the home note of the song and the set of notes that sound right with it. A simple choice for a first song is C major, because it uses only the white keys on a piano. You can change the key later to fit your voice.
Chords are groups of notes played together. A short loop is enough to carry a verse.
One very common pattern uses four chords. In C major they are C, G, A minor and F. A lot of well-known pop songs use this order or a close cousin of it, so it is a safe place to start. Play each chord for one bar and repeat.
Then write a second loop for the chorus. It helps to start the chorus on a different chord from the verse, so the listener hears a change.
The melody is the tune a person sings or hums back. Keep it simple and let it repeat.
- Play your chords in a loop.
- Hum or sing over them without words. Do it ten times and keep what sticks.
- Record the best one.
If you cannot play it on a keyboard, record yourself humming, then upload it to Audio to MIDI. Choose "Vocals / humming" so the tool reads one note at a time. It turns your hum into notes you can drag into your DAW and give to any instrument sound. Nothing is uploaded, because the conversion happens in your browser. Short, clear recordings made in a quiet room convert best.
A structure is the order of sections. A very common one is:
| Section | What it does |
|---|
| Intro | Sets the mood, often just chords or a few instruments. |
| Verse | Tells the story. Usually the same tune with different words each time. |
| Chorus | The main message and the most memorable tune. |
| Bridge | A short change of chords or mood, usually once near the end. |
| Outro | Winds down. |
A simple map is verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge, chorus. Make the chorus a little louder or fuller than the verse. That lift is what makes it feel like a chorus.
Lyrics can come first or last. Many writers fill the melody with nonsense sounds, then replace them with real words that fit the rhythm.
Write about one specific thing, such as a place, a person or a small moment. Short lines are easier to sing. Read each line out loud before you commit, and change any word that is hard to say at speed.
A fast way to understand arrangement is to take apart a finished song. Upload one to Unmix Studio's stem splitter and you can solo the vocals, drums, bass, guitar, piano and the rest, one by one. In our test, a 4 minute 44 second song split into six tracks in 56 seconds and cost 5 credits. New accounts get 5 free credits when they sign in with Google, so your first song is covered.
Listen to the bass alone and notice how few notes it plays. Listen to the drums alone and see how they change between verse and chorus. Each track downloads as a 320 kbps MP3 you can drag into your DAW. The splitting runs in the cloud, so there is nothing to install.
If you only want to sing over a track, the Vocal Remover gives you the instrumental, and the Karaoke Maker is built for that. Most tools cost 1 credit per minute of song, which is about $0.30 for a 4 minute song on the Starter pack. The price shows on the button before you run it.
Practicing with other people's songs is fine for yourself. Publishing a song that includes their recording needs permission from the rights holders.
Record the instruments first, then the vocals. For vocals, pick a quiet, soft room, keep the mic a hand's width from your mouth, and record more than one take. Our guide to recording vocals at home goes through the details.
Do not chase perfection on the first pass. Get a rough version down, then improve the weakest part.
Mixing means balancing the volume of each part, and using EQ to give each one its own space. Start with every fader low, then bring up the drums and bass, then chords, then vocals. The voice should be easy to understand at a quiet volume. See how to EQ and mix vocals for the voice step.
Listen on headphones, then on a phone speaker, then in a car if you can. If it sounds good on all three, it is ready to share.
Click notes into the piano roll of your DAW with a mouse, or hum a melody and turn it into MIDI with Audio to MIDI. Many finished songs were built this way.
A rough sketch can take an hour. A finished song usually takes days or weeks, because writing, recording and mixing are separate jobs.
No. A few basics help, such as what a key and a chord are, but you can learn them while you write. Your ear matters more at the start.
Record a vocal melody, then add a simple chord pad or guitar under it. Free sample packs and built-in instruments in a DAW are enough for a demo.
Not in a release, unless you have permission. Practicing with a song you split is fine, but publishing needs a license from the rights holders.