The title of the song is a good indicator of its theme. However, you can always come up with the title later.
Some rappers write out their songs as paragraphs first, then write the songs and rhymes to follow the general structure. Having a structure to your song helps you build a coherent idea out. For example, your best point of biggest rhyme wouldn’t come at the very beginning of a song, it would come near the end, like the climax of a good movie. This will help you engage and hold listeners. [1] X Research source At the very least, try and end your song on a different place than where you started. This is why even “material rap” about gold and girls often starts by mentioning how little the rapper had when they first started working.
Uptempo songs (Das Racist, “People are Strange”) usually require fast verses with lots of words, while slower beats (50 Cent, “P. I. M. P. “) usually have laid back verses. This rule is not hard and fast, however (see Twista on “Slow Jamz,” for example). When lyrics matches the beat, great songs are born. Think about how the beat makes you feel– is it tense and atmospheric, like Jay-Z’s “Renegade,” or is it upbeat and celebratory, like Kanye’s “The Glory?” Notice how the lyrics in these songs match the beat. Listen again to A$AP Rocky’s “One Train,” where five unique rappers have verses over the same beat. Note how each one approaches the song differently: some urgent (Kendrick), some joyful (Danny Brown), some angry (Yelawolf), some contemplative (Big K. R. I. T. ). All of them, however, fit into the beat. You do not need to have a beat to start writing raps. It can help to write your lyrics without a beat in mind, then save them until the right beat comes along.
50 Cent is a master hook writer, and songs like “P. I. M. P. " and “In Da Club” have hooks that are still sung over 10 years later. For an easy, classic hook, try coming up with 1-2 separate, simple, rhyming phrases. Repeat them each twice, back to back, for the “classic” chorus. Like this catchy hook, repeated in its entirety twice: Cigarettes on cigarettes my momma think I stank I got burn holes in my hoodies all my homies think it’s dank I miss my cocoa butter kisses. . . cocoa butter kisses. – Chance the Rapper, “Cocoa Butter Kisses”
You can write your rap without knowing the bars as well. Simply write until you feel like your verse is finished, then edit the beat to fit the desired length.
Simple Rhyme: When the last syllables of two lines rhyme, like “Can” and “man. " This is the most common and basic form of rhyme. Multi-syllabic rhyme: One of the best ways to show your lyrical skills is to rhyme multiple syllables at once. This can stretch across multiple words as well, such as Big Daddy Kane in “One Day:” “Ain’t no need for wondering who’s the man/ Staying looking right always an exclusive brand. " Slant Rhyme: Rhyming two closely related, but technically non-rhyming, words. Usually, they have a common vowel sound. This is incredibly common in rap, because how you say/sing the words can make them sound much more similar. Examples include “Nose” and “go,” or “orange” and “porridge. “[2] X Research source Internal Rhyme (In-Rhyme): Rhyming words that do not come at the end of a line but in the middle of it. For example, Madvillains’ “Rhinestone Cowboy:” “Made of fine chrome alloy / find him on the grind he’s a rhinestone cowboy. “[3] X Research source
If your punchline is “I’m stepping over competition, so expect to be trampled,” you might try to write a line leading into it that ends with a word rhyming with “trampled. " For example, “They see me in the booth so they know they should scramble/ I’m steppin’ over competition so expect to be trampled”).
If you’re a rapper that raps with a lot of flow (smooth, quick words) you may want to have every bar end with the same amount of syllables or almost the same amount of syllables. If you’re a rapper that raps fast you may want to have lots of internal rhymes in every bar, like " the industry’s gettin’ clean and I’ve seen what them haters mean/ if you thought I was lettin’ up setting up the terrain was dreamed”. If you’re a story rapper you can have the first verse be your intro, your second verse your problem, and your last verse your conclusion. To match this, you might play with a different rhyme scheme in every verse to show growth or use a similar one to indicate that there is no growth.
Specifics from real life will always make a better song. The reason Nas’ Illmatic is one of the all-time great albums is because it feels lived in, not made up. If you don’t have a theme or rhyme scheme yet, just start writing lines that you like. Eventually, these lines will come together to tell a full song, and this can be a great way to practice rhymes. The best rappers are able to tell stories from real life, connecting to their audience’s memories and emotions. They are successful not because they tell crazy or unbelievable stories, but because they make a simple story connect with practice and well-written rhymes.
Alliteration/Assonance: Words with similar sounds that are placed close together, like “Two tip-top teachers” or “apple attitudes. " Listen to Joey Bada$$’s “Waves” for a great example. Simile/Metaphor: Closely connected, this is when writers compare two objects that aren’t usually alike to make a point. For example – “I put the metal to his chest like Robocop” works on multiple levels, bullets are made of metal, Robocop’s chest is covered in metal armor, and the biggest target when shooting someone is their chest. This is a much more poetic way to imply “I might shoot him. “[4] X Research source Refrain: A line that is repeated at various points for emphasis. The more you hear the line, the more it changes, evolves, and gains power. For a master class in how to use a refrain, see Kendrick Lamar’s “The Blacker the Berry. " Anaphora: When the first half of a line repeats, but the rest of the line changes, like in Eminem’s “If I Had” where every line begins with “Tired of. . . . " This is a great way to show how difficult, constant, or trying something may be, or overwhelm the listener intentionally. [5] X Research source
This doesn’t have to be purely visual imagery. Action Bronson uses foods and scents in his raps to give them an entirely new dimension. The kings of imagery, Andre 3000, Ghostface Killah, Eminem, etc. are often those rappers that gain the greatest followings.
You don’t have to have the same flow throughout the whole song. Nas’s incredibly “NY State of Mind” flows like a great jazz solo – stopping, starting, pausing and pushing forward around the incredible rhymes. [6] X Research source
AZ’s, first verse on “Life’s a B—”, off of Nas’s album Illmatic. Notorious B. I. G, “Notorious Thugs. " Black Thought, “75 Bars (Black’s Reconstruction). Rakim on “As the Rhyme Goes On,” on Paid in Full. Kendrick Lamar, “Sing About Me, I’m Dying of Thirst. " Lupe Fiasco, “Murals. " Eminem, “Lose Yourself. "
