How to Memorize Lyrics of a Song

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Memorizing the lyrics of a song is not an easy task for most people. But with a little time and effort, you will come to know every word of the song. Whether you will be able to sing it is another story. Memorizing song lyrics can be very hard but all you need is practice, practice, practice and soon you will know every word to a song backward and forth.

Steps

Find the song and the lyrics. By having the song on a CD, iPod, or on your computer, you will quickly be able to pick up on the rhythm, which will aid you a lot when you memorize the actual lyrics. However, a sheet with the lyrics of the song is also important; this way, you know exactly what the words are, as lyrics can be hard to hear sometimes. Remember that practice does not make perfect. It's perfect practice that makes perfect. If you practice it again and again with the wrong words, it's hard to break yourself from that habit you've formed.
Starting from the beginning, memorize the first line. Cover it up and say it out loud. When you are done, check to see if you got it right. If you did, add the next line. If not, try again. Over time, you will be able to keep adding lines until you know the whole song.
Play the song with the music while you sing along. See if you have the words memorized correctly. Try recording it and listening - watch for breaks or pauses where you might need to spend more time.
Write down the lyrics on a notebook. Do this after listening to it a couple of times,and you should be able to memorize it better
Alternatively, just listen to the song repeatedly. Go over the lyrics in your head as you listen.
Finally, try it without the music. If you can do this by now, congratulations! If not then just keep on trying. You'll get there in the end!
Do a search for the lyrics online. Make sure that where you get the lyrics from are the same. Sometimes different websites give you different information. Try to look them up on the artists website or the play or shows website. They will be correct there. After listening to the song one time, you could always find the lyrics on a lyrics-site such as www.songmeanings.net and print them out.
Go to YouTube and see if the song is there in karaoke style.
Listen to the song while you are sleeping. Even though you aren't conscious, your brain will take in the information. Before bed, read over the lyrics a few times before reading a book or watching TV.
Whenever you have free time, look over the lyrics.
Try to find emotions in the song. It might make you feel bewildered and lost, but then someone finds you. If you find some sort of emotional link to the song, that song defines you, and the lyrics become important to you.
Practice the lyrics in front of other people (different people each time if you can.) That way you will get used to singing them in front of a crowd. When you are alone it is easier to remember the words, when you're in front of people it may be harder to remember lyrics due to nervousness or shyness.
When you are sure of yourself, have a sort of dress rehearsal or a small performance. This helps if you are going to perform for a show, concert, etc.
After you have the chorus down, start focusing on the song's intro-verse. Whenever the song appears on the radio, and your friends just jump right in, don't feel pressured. If you get the intro-verse down, then when it comes on you'll be able to sing the first lines with everyone else. Plus if you can do that, they automatically assume you know the entire song (thus they stop listening so critically).
- Note: This process should only take about 2 to 3 days, but this depends on the memory of the person attempting to learn the lyrics and the length of the song.
- Actually LIKE this song you want to memorize. Get familiar with the rhythm and lyrics by humming along to it when you hear it, print out the lyrics, then graduate to singing along. Voila! By a week, at most, you should be a seasoned expert.
And remember, have fun. If you forget your words on the day, don't worry just 'Hum' them and it'll all be fine!

Tips

It helps a lot to listen to the song whenever possible. Buy the CD that has it, or find it online.
Try singing along with the song while it is playing in the background with your written lyrics. It will help ingrain it in your head.
Try writing out the lyrics yourself by ear before you look them up online or in a lyric booklet. This will make them stick in your head a little better.
It helps if you actually understand what the song is about. Most songs are derived from poems or stories.
If you know the music to the song it is usually easier to learn the lyrics.
After you think you know the lyrics look them up because sometimes lyrics can be misheard.
Don't be ashamed to ask a close friend who loves the song for help. They can correct you if you mis-interpreted the lyrics at all. Also, turn to your friend in the school band if you can't tell the difference between a verse and a bridge.
Online lyrics sites are there for a reason. If you think it will personally speed up the memorizing process for you, read the lyrics as you listen to the song. Many people get songs down easier if they do this.
A song cannot be memorized in a single sitting, and you must accept and embrace that fact. As long as you stay motivated and positive, the lyrics will come to you easier.
Practice makes perfect. Try and challenge yourself to sing the song perfectly and have that nutty friend we talked about earlier call you out.
Remember, it might not be the fact that you don't know the song, it might be that the song is too fast and hard to sing in the first place!
Fast songs with constant lyrics, such as rap or hip-hop, can be harder to get down.
If there's a music video to the song, watch it. Seeing the singer mouth the words to the song can help tremendously.

Warnings

If the song has words inappropriate for young children, be sure not to sing it around them and do not teach it to them.
There are a lot of lyrics that are quite obscure.
Most conjunctions and prepositions are sung very lightly rather than clearly in a beat. If your are playing "Singing Bee", be sure you sing it clearly to avoid controversy. You're trying to sing the lyrics correctly, not trying to sing in tune or in time, even when it helps.
This could cause daydreams or unexpected humming through out the day of the selected song.
If you are going to sing the song make sure the notes are comfortable to sing. If they're not try singing the song higher or lower because singing uncomfortable notes could damage your voice.
Don't proclaim that you know a song by heart the first time you make it through without error. You'll be able to fool many people, yes, but not everyone!
Sometimes lyrics sites will have viruses.

Things You'll Need

Song
Lyrics of the song written down

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