How to Write a Song Using Imagery: 9 Songwriting Tips from Andrea Stolpe | American Songwriter

[@amphitheatre]

16:46 one moment in detail 24:40 showing and telling with toggling 27:01 showing telling archetypes 29:12 write thru a lens

[@brandonseaborn3112]

rss313 bless your soul

[@elansings]

👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼💆🏻‍♂️👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

[@TheJigglicious]

I still advise watching everything tho

[@lawd1804]

21:26 So I’m driving on interstate 85 And I’m thinking about the past And outside the blurr of the telephone lines Get me lost lost lost

[@lawd1804]

22:33 6 verse Imagery

[@calohtar]

Unbelievably helpful. Some of this stuff I already knew, some of it is obvious, but it makes a difference to hear these concepts linked together in a coherent framework. A lot of times the challenge isn't in learning new things, it's in accessing and making sense of what you already know.

[@MartinManweiler]

That's precisely how I felt when I heard her first video.

[@MARLERMAKESMUSIC]

This is a great comment!

[@elansings]

Agreed, if we can paint the picture vividly the listener will pay more attention

[@Devanox4Five]

So very true

[@kennethcarvalho3684]

So at the end of the day you learnt something??

[@droneproductions625]

Incredible to see that 182 people didn't like this video. I literally watched it FOUR times and took notes. Incredible stuff here! This lady rocks!

[@kubita-thecall8795]

There will always be the mixit that will be ungrateful. Born to mock even the stuff meant to make them better in life. 😂✌️

[@collinchingota7717]

Each time I watch this video I feel like I can write a song straight away

[@normanroxwell7883]

Facts!

[@sanderrom9810]

You probably can ;)

[@andreastolpe]

You totally can! So glad you've found inspiration from this. By the way, I checked out a few of your videos, you have such a great voice. I wish you all the best on your songwriting journey, stay creative!

[@forbiddenevil1]

and do you? actually write a song?

[@collinchingota7717]

@@andreastolpe oh thank you Andrea! my songwriting is getting better and better thanks to this video and many of yours!

[@Foxy64]

As I'm relatively new to songwriting I found this absolutely invaluable . Andrea has a great way of explaining these techniques in a way that is simple to understand which is perfect for someone like me

[@andreastolpe]

Thanks Stuart, I'm so glad you enjoyed this. Wonderful to have you join the songwriting community. I wish you all the best on your songwriting journey, stay creative!

[@SebastianGohCS]

Watching this made me realized that I had applied just about everything you teach without my knowing that's how I should approach my song writing. Andrea thank you because you put into perspective why I write lyrics the way I do and how much more I can improve. You are an amazing teacher 👏

[@dannybernotv7881]

Her voice is so soothing.

[@grahamwilson6709]

I have now decided, since turning 50, to finish all those partially written songs I have. Your words have helped so much. I've completed 2 songs!! I really want to get another 4 or 5 done soon. Thank you for giving me a new perspective and great inspiration.

[@joebobhenrybob2000]

I was wandering youtube for inspiration on a song I am writing... ABOUT A TRUCK!!! Holy cow, this lady really IS helpful!

[@andreastolpe]

I'm so glad to have helped. There is so much great imagery that can be associated with a truck, I hope you were able to use a few of these tools to help you finish your song. Stay creative!

[@Malikasadlion]

This shit right here is worth paying for.

[@juliab7410]

Prom Coordinator but you are broke haha

[@andreastolpe]

Thanks @Prom Coordinator, so glad you enjoyed this. I hope you're staying creative!

[@nickdryad]

Hopefully you learned something from this video. Shit isn’t the right word to use for what we’ve just learned. Yes I know your not writing lyrics but, write and speak like a poet as much as you can.

[@adisatrio3871]

dude, this is gold! she's so smart and really capable to explain shits with a great flow. i love how the video is really well structured. it makes me grasp the idea loud and clear easier. straight to the point so i can really learn. she's a great teacher. thank you for doing this Andrea. gbu. really well done. quality content at it's best.

[@cpollero53]

100% agree and I must add, she is sooo beautiful

[@jazz_addict7079]

The clarity and practical value of your guidance regarding the craft of songwriting are phenomenal. You are truly a godsend to anyone who feels compelled to express themselves through words and music.

[@DeuceSF]

Your voice is so relaxing. Thank you for the advice!

[@andreastolpe]

You're so welcome, happy to help!

[@templehillsfunk]

This is the reason, she's the only songwriting tutorial that I listen to. It makes it easier to connect with her advise.

[@LaynoProd]

Shoutout Professor Andrea Stolpe. Had the privilege of learning from her songwriting class at the USC Thornton School of Music a couple years back. Still applies those fundamental songwriting tips til this day in my music, thanks Professor appreciate you!

[@DamonMedekMusic]

GOLD GOLD GOLD!!

[@chrisgodina3222]

Damon Medek viva

[@andreastolpe]

Thank you so much Damon, so glad to have helped. Stay creative!

[@TIMOWHITEBUFFALO]

This is wondrous and how I create...too many people do not realize that it takes work...most people I know call me to ask me...to make them a star...because I work at it daily...there is no special pill...thank you so much...

[@GraveGear]

I've always wanted to be able to write moving lyrics, but never knew how. I always told a story, instead of painting a picture. The one sensory writing a day is amazing. Thank you Andrea for your knowledge. The chair squeaks as it rocks back and fourth. The soft hum of central air. Rapid squeaking of an old trolley cart, pushed by an even older woman. It smells musty, a fine layer of dust covers the shelves. Specks of dust swirling in the rays of light. Mouth dry as yet another page is turned. The soft sound of leather sliding on wood, as another book is pushed aside. The gentle sounds beckoning, tempting sleep. Hands dry, unable to grip the page for turning. The tick, tock, tick, tock of the clock. A tiny splash, as a drop of sweat hits the table.

[@cpollero53]

Andrea you are a natural teacher, really well done, and you are gorgeous too!!!

[@brian_b_music]

The verses are the nails, the chorus is the hammer that drives them.

[@nickdryad]

The song is the coffin that keeps warm. See, I’m doing it already.

[@MrMikomi]

The listener is the plank of wood into which we drive the nails.

[@stephanmayer6600]

An incredible amount of valuable information. I guess i need to watch that a couple of times. Thank you.

[@Beckyphillipsguitar]

I was totally blocked until I saw this. Thank you so much :-)

[@waliwriterdiddatbeat341]

This Is So Valuable..... I love her spirit and the way she projects her message. I could listen to her all day!

[@vishu7076]

Priceless Knowledge given to write a song can be used for years, this is real gold.

[@lauralopes9988]

only 8 minutes watched and this video already changed completely my view on songwriting.

[@linneblack3802]

Andrea is an incredible instructor! It is so easy to listen to her voice, and beyond that, she really knows her stuff! It was very helpful to be refreshed by her tutorial! I especially appreciated the topics of "capturing a single moment", and "Writing through the lens of something else".

[@jairusomollo4955]

Changing the POV as a polishing technique, writing through a lens,are advice I've read in books on how-to write novels and you sum it up well in songwriting.♥️it

[@alissa-mariesmith2389]

She's beyond gorgeous and such a genius.

[@CaioV94]

this is a type of lesson that you need to watch a couple of times. And everytime you watch, there is a new amazing detail... Thanks a lot for this!!!

[@preetikapathare8026]

this is the first time i'm watching videos for songwriting and i struck gold right at the beginning. thank you so much for this!

[@AnskarNEX]

I love this content. Makes me want to write lyrics when I‘ve always been a music guy believing I will never be able to write good lyrics

[@MarionFiedlerMusic]

oh my, this is gold. Andrea, thank you so very much! This made my day. I love this video, I am so inspired by your ideas, your way of presenting this is low-key yet super professional, sharing powerful and well-summarized and presented essentials for songwriting. YOU ROCK!

[@minstrelofMir]

penny lane (song) comes to mind...after writing songs since 1975 i can tell you we evolve with our songs,and learn its like being a shrink or doctor,we have to find deeper answers on subjects..later i found its best if we are moved by some event or statment it sets us off,trying to pin it down again,,the answers to the universe,,and see that life is a personal evolution in the deepest mystery

[@milbernbreeden6354]

Much thanks to Andrea for sharing all her expert advice.

[@d-alphamuszic2800]

I'm eternally grateful, thank you so much Andrea your the best.i wish you all the best, take care.

[@eismccc]

I love the way you break it down; I'm a mechanical engineer but i always felt that i needed to discover more creative thought processes to be a better musician... The more i learn about music the more i recognize systems and patterns and structure etc. so rather than struggle with a lack of creativity, i can apply an analytical approach either to get the ball rolling or fill in or put finishing touches on my music. Thanks for the lesson!

[@suites.74]

im a mechanical engineer too. both require analysis and creativity. for example sometimes when designing a system there is more than one way to solve the problem. when you are inspired by the world around you, the solutions come easier.

[@simonlawrence1234]

I got so much information and lesson from this, you wouldn’t believe. Thank you.

[@BeGoodNow5]

She's the songwriting GURU!

[@irenenzeka6443]

That’s awesome,this is what I have been waiting for. Thanks

[@anthonynardini4295]

Your videos are changing my writing for the better. Being able to apply some analytical thought has helped organize ideas into jumping off points for songs. This worked so well without losing the artistic element and feeling formulaic. Thank you so much!

[@eleonoraformatoneeszczepan8807]

Thank you. I just downloaded the Songwriting Handbook.

[@mojoefelix]

Thank you , Andrea, very much for this great teaching and for what I have learned from your book. After learning from you I have written a song which I consider my best yet and that makes me very happy. Song writing is in the realm of what most people would consider magic. Certainly a great song IS magic.

[@151yaron]

Excellent, underrated.

[@sandEffect]

I get hypnotized just watching her talk.

[@tientrinh943]

She was the best teacher!

[@dr.mryansaldivard.c.8028]

This teacher is so high level!

[@patfinnegan467]

Andrea, thank you. Your presentations are very helpful.

[@ericlamme6489]

Hi Andrea. I really got so much from your understanding. Thank you. It led me to think how different personal perspectives are taken in songs...for example--Hit the Road Jack has Ray singing about his experience with his discontented woman in the verse; then you have the woman saying the chorus--Hit the Road Jack. That perspective-taking in lyric writing is interesting and useful as well. But you probably know that. I will listen more to your insights! Thanks so much

[@ralphditchburn1456]

oh my gosh, i am so glad to be informed of these in depth techniques for songwriting and a delightful presentation by such a knowledgeable cutie, thank you Andrea

[@setphaser]

i haven’t written for ages and have forgotten how to start (with more suvccess) but this is really helping remind me of the skills and how to keep the muscles going more regularly.

[@jimervin387]

Some great songwriting tips there, But I think you should support them by giving examples of well known songs..For instance, writing about a specific moment could be exemplified by a song called This Magic Moment by The Drifters. I find that it also helps if you can feel that you're writing for a certain person, most likely a lover, or a certain group of people, rather than just yourself. The truck song idea, now that has country written all over it. Pickup trucks especially, have been included in many country songs. but can still be a source of song inspiration. To an old car enthusiast song writer such as myself, that also leads to car songs, which I've also written.

[@user-mc5fg3fx5w]

Bro ur lucky she even gave tips

[@nielssteffenssen8852]

This video really helped me to write lyrics in a different way than what I used to do. I am Swedish so writing in English can be a challenge for me. 😊

[@ashishit4134]

Pure Gold thank you

[@airbee6]

"Thank you" won't be enough 🙏❤️🌹

[@L.V.O.U]

thanx a lot Andrea for this great, professional tutorial! I would have been happy to know all this , when I was 16, it would have been helped me creating more powerful songs. It's never to late though. Now I'm 40 and happy about learning this really brilliant methods !!

[@rasmuskrsgaard807]

Thank you so much Andrea- this was really helpful, especially with 2 verse issues. You are amazing!

[@arthurmurfitt7698]

Thank you for posting these, Berkeley Online ❤️

[@kubita-thecall8795]

Andrea and Berklee. Thank you so much with this valuable information. Music is been my passion as a young boy, from dancing but as I grew up it got kinda lost. Now in my 40s I still come across the bouts of love for music production. As a Swazi we got our own Swazi rhythms and culture. Most of my youth days was fascinated by Hillsong music and few American music. Hip hop era also took grasp of me when I fell away from church when I was a varsity. I'm my thirties got back to Christ and have been active in church band but I still feel there's a lot I could be doing especially in the writing and production space. Being a family man it's hard to spare some money to achieve the professional skills of enrolling into your university. I would love that before I die, to have made it in one of your online courses. Thanks for keeping your material on KZbin. I recently liked your Facebook account too.

[@cherylireland1833]

This was incredibly helpful and thoughtful. Thank you very much! I have registered for Berklee Online. I can't express how much I appreciate the effort that went into this. Thank you.

[@michaelthompson9253]

Thankyou, i was too locked into just a few words of a chorus im writing, the i you he she all of your video opened a new door, Thankyou so much

[@tourdesource]

Some great tips in this one. Thank you, Ms. Stolpe!

[@mcjohnkarshavski1953]

I feel like Billie Eilish and Ed sheeran already

[@NealScottGanslaw]

There is so much to unpack in this one~ this really helped me out ~ thanks so much!

[@RichardNeumannsongs]

Thank You Andrea for these videos. I always go back to them. They are so helpful! -Thanks for what you do!

[@Bobby-iu5iu]

SUPER helpful!! Great examples and explaintions. Thanks!

[@zam7380]

Wow. Can't believe this content is for free 👏🏼 Added this to my favorites

[@MonekayDennis]

Very helpful, I like how you explained the show and tell patterns. And how to take a song from I or you, to we. I will definitely apply this is my next song!

[@ama__dee]

This was so amazing! You explained everything in such a clear way with great examples, thank you so much! Very helpful and insightful tips ❤

[@ch9995ch]

tons of tips and ideas here

[@paigeandrews4184]

Awesome...your style of teaching is very informative. I normally lose focus halfway through but you captured my attention all the way through!!! Thank you soooo much🤗

[@BoWestcott]

Soooooo helpful….both for songwriting and writing…THANK YOU 🙏🏻🎶

[@Jillady]

Wow man even the pros object write! This is great stuff! So grateful to see this!

[@melvinpearson1017]

I admire her focus.

[@evillano]

What a master teacher!

[@MartinManweiler]

Wonderful advice as always.

[@ismailech-cherrate]

Thank you! Really helpful, many tips and techniques, The best i ever listened to! 🙏 ❤️

[@RebeccaDMusic]

Brilliant video! So much to think about and try next time I'm writing a song.

[@JansleyMusic]

This is incredible, really useful concepts. Andrea, I bought your Songwriting book and plan to do sensory writing every morning now!

[@jamesrossmusic6013]

Amazing... Intelligence, beauty... and Class!!!!

[@stressVine]

So much valuable information! Much appreciated! Thank you!

[@HeatherDMorris]

I love your videos! I watch them when im writing when im stuck

[@jaikumarsivalingam]

Thank you, Andrea!

[@KingMarino]

I loved every minute of the material. I was just browsing KZbin for something helpful and this definitely fit the bill. Thanks. Very soothing voice.

[@StevePhillips]

I love watching/ listening to Andrea Stolpe; great tips. Location-image-sensory, idea motif DNA miss my plane, lover waiting. Yeah this works hurrah! I just wrote this song took about 40 minutes. I imagined Andrea being a news reader come singer-songwriter; it's called City of lost souls I saw you on TV, reading the news, It was just a moment in time My love at home was waiting for me I should have arrived at a quarter to nine I was waiting for my train But it never came Thunder and lightening Hit the dark sky Another storm again Dark clouds above But was I really in love Took a taxi in the pouring rain Drove for miles and miles Until we reached the city of lost souls Booked into a posh hotel Where I saw you You came along, just like in a song After reading the news Your hair soaking wet Wearing a big coat With high collars Over your shoulders Smiled across at me. I got a text on my mobile phone “darling it’s all over, I tried so hard to tell you, But I’ve met someone else I know he is right for me And it hurts” I didn’t reply Put my phone In my bag And returned your smileWe waited at reception While a young couple Booked in I introduced myself Said I saw you Reading the newsYou said it was your last day You had joined a band You’re a singer-songwriter From London town But grew up in GeorgiaOur conversation Was interrupted By a polite steward Next please I nodded for you to go firstLater we met for a drink and chat, the aroma of your sent the hotel room, a glass of red wine all comes back to me.Your place or mine I knew I got it right this time Sitting with you in your hotel room Just sharing the latest news In the City of lost souls Just a moment in time where we first metYou came along, just like in a song After reading the news Your hair soaking wet Wearing a big coat With high collars Over your shoulders Smiled across at me. (These are notes I used to write this song took about 40 minutes wrote it all in one go. Location-image-sensory, idea motif DNA miss my plane, lover waiting. drove all day to be with you again).

[@johnnygoldendong235]

Steve Phillips Hey man well done thats pretty good. I liked it. :) I see you did demonstrate those "tools". 👌

[@susannamasciulli1173]

Wow!!!

[@rmz4863]

I'm a songwriter for pop artists You have to pick a very strong title so the public stick in their heads and it has to be easy to Google , it can be weird title but Don't pick too weird one.

[@paulroberts6820]

First rule is there are no rules. Sure lowest common denominator requires brainwashing and etching the title into memory, but a little surprise in the title and chorus will make the song stand out.

[@usmananwar9489]

R mz I will r to rr to r to see to to do t to go to get ewszzwst es

[@minstrelofMir]

hi i have written since age11 in 1975 .shame no one uses my songs,as paul mac says if we write a song everyday,in 365 (a year) we should have some good ones,,,,i dont write that much,,but i have some good songs,,how do i sell them mate..

[@michelebeneforti3246]

Great course, took songwriting classes at Berklee and this is some extra infos!

[@Berklee_Online]

Thank you!

[@Raphael-fi8hd]

What a brilliant and beautiful woman 🥺

[@LaurenAdryanna]

Enormous amount of value and education.

[@ajiterapia]

Beautifully done. Thanks Andrea.

[@oconomymusic]

thank you for shareing! you are so helpful!

[@Hellothere23344]

Really helpful! A massive thank you to Andrea!

[@mikestubbs9377]

Thank you so much for this, It has helped me with the process so much!

[@wyldeboiy7151]

You're work is very valuable, well stated, elegantly explained, and absolutely enlightening. It's simple yet profound... like a good chorus. Thank you for this. (still got that crush)

[@charlievankesteren8756]

Andrea; my first teacher for my first song :)

[@xkillbilly]

Thank you Ms. Stolpe.

[@filipeferin8171]

she is the best.

[@jovantemusic68]

This is really good, very helpful tips and well thought-out. Thanks so much!

[@alanpugielli4743]

Sooo good! She’s like the Bob Ross of songwriting lol

[@yahnover262]

This is such excellent advice!

[@hhippofresh4537]

This is so detailed an amazing I have to watch all your videos twice

[@Berklee_Online]

Glad you like them!