This month we are focusing on the Country and Americana genres of music and how they intermingle to create a specific niche of their own within the music industry. Americana is basically the folk side of country whether it be in the rhythm, melody or lyrical content. Americana is the type of music you picture playing in the background of an indie film or in coffee shops. Here are a few exercises to try your own hand at writing for the Americana genre while still staying true to the country roots it is stemmed from.
1. Write about someone else. Go to a coffee shop, a mall or even a crowded restaurant and take notes about the people you see around you. Pick a specific subject and write down everything you can tell about them immediately (not in a creepy way, but in an observant, detailed way). Create a character in your mind for them. Use your details to form your descriptive lyrical content that will make the song stronger. Americana has a way of attaching itself to details and the blues like no other genre. Use that to your advantage. Example: “She had blond hair and a sad-looking stare.”
2. VOCABULARY. Get yourself a thesaurus and go to town. Not every lyric has to rhyme, especially in Americana, so use that to your advantage! Write the most simplistic version of the song you are thinking of and then circle all the overused words like ‘very,’ ‘good.’ or ‘yeah.’ Replace those words with other synonyms that are more intriguing. I can tell you about a thousand songs with the same pattern of words a different way, but I can go into detail about the ones that were unique and stuck with me. The ones that stuck are the ones with the best vocabulary because it’s not about using the biggest words; it’s about using a simple line of words in a different way than what you’ve already heard. The joy of Americana is staying outside the lines a lot more than in structured, commercial country.
3. Pick a word. Open a dictionary and put your finger down. Whatever word it lands on, no matter what, write about that. Make yourself write an entire song without stopping. It can be silly or nonsense, but it will exercise your mind and give you a better grip on rhyming. Sometimes this will help with writer’s block because it offers a new perspective without trying to overdo it with meaningful lyrics. Taking a break from the seriousness that is sometimes linked to Americana will keep your writing unique and fresh.
4. Disassemble a song. Think of one of your favorite songs. Print off the lyrics to it and analyze it stanza by stanza. Pick a line from each stanza that seems most Americana or folk when you think of only the lyric. Highlight that line. By the end of the song, you will have 4 or 5 really strong lines to pull from. Now use one of these lines as the hook on your new song. Write to this title the entire time. See how much you can come up with strictly from that hook. This will teach you to find new ways of writing around a hook, especially when you feel uninspired. Half the battle of being a songwriter is battling writer’s block and continuing to stay disciplined in your weekly writing times. As Bart says, “It’s easy to write when you’re inspired, but a real songwriter knows how to work through the times they don’t feel the inspiration.”
5. Be your favorite Americana artist for the day. Look up the top Americana bands of recent years. You will probably find The Lumineers who are famous for the mega hit “Ho Hey” or The Avett Brothers who are constantly churning out festival sing-alongs. Maybe you are a Jason Isbell fan and love the Drive-By Truckers. Get in their mindset. Do some digging on what they do everyday. Look them up on social media. What kind of places are they visiting? How often do they put out music and do you notice a specific theme amongst their albums? As childish as it seems, pretend you are them. Pretend you are about to visit a cabin in the hills of Kentucky for a 2 week writing retreat with your band. Write about the nature and fellowship you would experience while on this writing escape. Americana is so similar to country in the way it uses detail to give us imagery as we listen. The love of nature, being outdoors and fellowship with friends and loved ones is something both of these genres share.