Today, I am going to be writing simply about the art of songwriting. How I take part in it, and why I love it. Fun fact about me: I love writing, and I love singing, and I love unique sound. So, naturally, I fell quickly in love with songwriting. See, when I listen to music, I listen intently. My ear goes beyond the surface of the music I listen to, and it listens for soul. When I hear music, I want to hear the very essence, the very heart of the artist who composed it. I, personally, crave music that means something, which can be quite rare in the world we live in today. This is why songwriting is so important to me! I can be as unique, original and deep as I want when I take what I feel in my heart and pour it out on the pages of my journal.
Songwriting is a raw process but, to put it simply, I just don’t think too hard about it. When I write a song, I don’t try to make it perfect. I take what is in my heart, and I put it down in words. I believe God blessed me with the ability to do what I do. 99.9 percent of the time, I write about what God has done for me in my life, His love, and His being. That’s a fun one by the way. It’s hard to even wrap one's mind around God’s being, but finding the words to say about it… Like I said, it’s a process.
In my limited experience, some of the best songs come from the most raw and emotional circumstances. When my heart is overwhelmed, I sit down with my song journal and I take whatever emotion I have, and I use that energy to write a song about the essence of Jesus. If I feel joyful, I write about how wonderful He is. If I feel angry, I write about His peace and comfort. If I feel totally broken, I write about His never failing, never changing, unending LOVE. Words are my release. In fact, I think words are the best release, when used in an uplifting, positive and God-glorifying way. It reminds me of a passage in scripture that comes from Psalm 33:3:
“Sing to Him a new song; play skillfully on the strings with loud shouts.”
Songwriting literally is creating a new song to sing to the Lord. But I’m going to go a bit further in this chapter to show why this verse is relevant and why I believe what I do about songwriting. Verses 4-7 declare “For the word of the Lord is upright, and all His work is done in faithfulness. He loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of the steadfast love of the Lord. By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the breath of His mouth all their host. He gathers the waters of the sea as a heap; He puts the deeps in storehouses. Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him!” That is why I feel so strongly that music should be meaningful. I’m not saying all music should be deep and have lyrics that go way over the head of the listener, because music is individual and unique to each person. But God, as the passage described, is so vast and wonderful, I want to tell the world exactly what is in my heart about Him.
Sometimes it makes me nervous to present new songs to anyone, simply because I feel exposed. When I pour myself into lyrics, everything I feel is open to critique. But I don’t mind. As long as people know how much I love Jesus, and as long as He is honored by the words that leave my tongue, all is well. So, my friends, that is how I write songs and why I love to do so. (Sidenote: I can be spontaneous and write a fun and happy little song every now and again, but for the most part, I write songs like I described. Just so you know!)
Keep smiling!
Maddie
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