Bad Lyrics From Bad Moments

Do you ever have those moments where you feel so awful you don't think you can describe it in words? And when you try it comes out even worse? I have had so many moments in which I have felt that I immediately had to try to write some lyrices to capture the raw emotions and pain I was feeling. And most of those moments caused me to look back over those lyrics later and lauch at how bad they were. It wasn't just that they were corny. They were so whiny that it really didn't capture what I had been feeling at the time. So how do you create good lyrics from the bad moments?

The best thing to do is give it time because that will give you perspective. If you truly felt those emotions you wanted to capture so strongly you won't forget what it felt like overnight, but you will have have a different perspective on the situation.

Think about the last time you got into an argument with someone over something that didn't really matter. In that moment it seemed so important because you were annoyed or proud. You probably realized the next day just how stupid it was to get so bent out of shape over nothing.

Some of your other bad moments will be like that as well. You might not wake up feeling like you were wrong or that you overreacted to something, especially if you're upset about something far more serious than a silly argument that never should have happened, but time gives you a chance to reevaluate and justify what you were feeling and how you acted. And if you end up being unable to justify those things you have a fresh perspective which can give you a new angle for writing lyrics about what happened. Strong emotions and powerful moments will not be forgotten so quickly as everything else. A few more moments won't erase those memories. It will give you a second chance to write about.

~Eliza

Songs that Deal with Grief

On the 10th anniversary of 9/11 most of the songs that come to my mind are songs that deal with grief. They are either about releasing grief or overcoming whatever hardship caused the grief.
People often say that the purpose of music is to make people happy and spread joy. I believe that the purpose is to help us feel and not every emotion we feel is happy. I have found many times that I didn't realize just how much I needed to release my emotions until I started singing along to a song that helped me release them. Songs don't bring back lost loved ones or make all of our problems go away, but they do help us recover when we are hurt.
The hurt that was felt in the United States on September 11, 2001 is difficult to comprehend. I was only eleven years old at the time. Since I couldn't remember much from that day, I looked at some of the newscasts, images, and phone calls from that day. The phone calls were the most painful, but I'm glad I listened to them. It's important that we never forget that event and listening to those phone calls was a good thing for me. When we look at the images, it's so easy to just see a couple of buildings with smoke coming out of them, but when we hear the voices on those phone calls and see the images of people jumping from windows to escape flames it is a somber reminder that those were real people and real lives that were lost that day.
I remembered 9/11 today through videos of the days news, but when I finished these were the lyrics that stood out to me, the lyrics that I wanted to sing.

Oh, beautiful, for spacious skies for amber waves of grain
For purple mountain's majesties above the fruited plain
America, America, God shed his grace on thee
And crown thy good with brotherhood
From sea to shining sea

It's not that 9/11 makes me think of beauty. That was a very ugly day, but it reminds me how glad I am that I'm still here, how glad I am that there haven't been more attacks like this, and how glad I am that I'm an American. And as an American I will always remember this day and the lives that were lost.

~Eliza