Although I want to create a funny, humorous,
relatable song I still need a connection with the music before I can start
writing it, I still need to feel something through the song for it to work so
that I can express my lyrics. "Music doesn’t
just happen it is what we make it and what we make of it. People think through
music, decide who they are through it and express themselves through it" (Cook, 2000).
Being
a referentalist "musical meanings, which in some way refer to the extramusical
world of concepts, actions, emotional states, and character."
(Meyer,
1956, p. 1) means that when I listen to music I listen to how it makes me feel,
and what emotion I feel due to the melody of the song etc. and also the lyrics
to the song. This is how I want to structure my song so that when people hear
it they will hear humour and relate to the lyrics and not always listen to the
music itself like and Absolutist. "Musical meaning lies exclusively within
the context of the work itself, in the perception of the relationships set
forth within the musical work of art"(Meyer, 1956, p. 1)
I can always get a connection from any one of Ed Sheerans
song and that’s one of the reasons why he inspires me in music. Ed
Sheeran: Well, I listen to a lot of Eminem and a lot of Damien Rice...
those would be my influences from that side. As far as song writing, my inspirations
came from love, life and death, and viewing other people's situations. (Kaplan,
I. 2011) This is exactly how Sheeran writes all of his songs relate to
love, life, death and viewing other peoples situations, because we can all
relate to every single one of those it instantly helps us get a better
connection with his music.
Examples:
Small
Bump: is an
emotional song written about the painful experience and feeling of losing a
baby during pregnancy. The song explores the feeling of becoming a parent with
lyrics like "You can wrap your fingers round my thumb and hold me
tight" but also focuses on dealing with the loss of a child "torn
from life". Best lyric: "You're just a small bump unborn for four
months then torn from life"
VIEWING OTHER PEOPLES SITUATIONS
Drunk: 'Drunk' is a sombre song which tells of someone unable
to cope with the end of a relationship so instead they drink to forget about
it, only to remember the pain regardless of whether they are drunk or sober and
realising that, "I'll never hold you like I used to". Best lyric:
"Now I'll watch you fizzle at the bottom of a coke can". - LOVE
The City-
'The
City' seems to be about the feeling of moving away from a small town as a young
adult and trying to make a home in the big city. The song sees Ed making London
his new home and tells of a time at the start of his career when he promises to
"start to do my music properly". Best lyric: "And if the city
never sleeps then that makes two."- LIFE
(Ed Sheeran: The meaning behind his song lyrics, 2016)
Afire Love- “Ed
allegedly finished writing it at his granddad’s funeral and it depicts his
suffering with Alzheimer’s and ultimately his death”.- DEATH
(Baillie, 2014)
