-
✅ Technical and creative solutions for your film.
✅ Screenplay formatting help, plot and story guidance.
✅ A respectful community of professionals and newbies.
✅ Network with composers, editors, cast, crew, and more!
🎬 IndieTalk - Filmmaking and Screenwriting help site and community.
By filmmakers, for filmmakers since 2003 -
Wondering which camera, gear, computer, or software to buy? Ask in our Gear Guide.
Fictional song for fictional singer - should I actually write a song?
- Thread starter Inarius
- Start date
Welcome to indietalk.
You should just write; He sings a Rap song.
You should just write; He sings a Rap song.
What kind of story will this end up being? If it's a screenplay, then I'd say that writing "he sings a rap song" won't suffice - because on the screen, whatever he is singing is pretty important. When writing a screenplay, you always need to be able to have an image of how your vision is being translated to the screen - so if a player in your game is performing a song, you should know what it'll sound like. If it's an important element in the screenplay, I'd highly consider writing the lyrics and music, or finding someone who can. By ignoring doing that, you're setting yourself up for difficulty down the road in production when "he sings a song" doesn't suffice.
Now, if it's just a story, which it may be, since you didn't really specify, (Though I assume a screenplay, since it's in said section) then you may be able to get away with just saying "he sings a song." However, even in written story, having the actual lyrics to whatever song is being performed is a really wonderful addition to the story/plot. I actually have two examples from the last two things I read:
1. In Lord of the Rings, Tolkien regularly has the lyrics to the hymnes and songs being performed by characters. It makes it much more powerful for the reader. (And again, if it's going to a screenplay, it makes it even more powerful)
2. I was just reading Merchant of Venice, (I love to read Shakespeare) and Shakespeare utilizes a scene where he gives you the lyrics of a song being sung in the background of a scene. However, the song's lyrics are comedic and relate to the scene being performed, because the lyrics rhyme with the main element of the scene. (Bassanio is choosing from three caskets, the correct casket is the LEAD casket, so the song being sung in the background has end-rhymes with the word "lead".)
I'm a musician/lyricist, so obviously I have a bias towards utilizing actual lyrics vs just saying someone is singing an undisclosed song.
I dunno, food for thought!
Now, if it's just a story, which it may be, since you didn't really specify, (Though I assume a screenplay, since it's in said section) then you may be able to get away with just saying "he sings a song." However, even in written story, having the actual lyrics to whatever song is being performed is a really wonderful addition to the story/plot. I actually have two examples from the last two things I read:
1. In Lord of the Rings, Tolkien regularly has the lyrics to the hymnes and songs being performed by characters. It makes it much more powerful for the reader. (And again, if it's going to a screenplay, it makes it even more powerful)
2. I was just reading Merchant of Venice, (I love to read Shakespeare) and Shakespeare utilizes a scene where he gives you the lyrics of a song being sung in the background of a scene. However, the song's lyrics are comedic and relate to the scene being performed, because the lyrics rhyme with the main element of the scene. (Bassanio is choosing from three caskets, the correct casket is the LEAD casket, so the song being sung in the background has end-rhymes with the word "lead".)
I'm a musician/lyricist, so obviously I have a bias towards utilizing actual lyrics vs just saying someone is singing an undisclosed song.
I dunno, food for thought!
Seriously? In the screenplay? You would write the music?
Does it? Did you read the screenplay before you saw the movie?
Were the lyrics and music written in the screenplay?
I wonder if you are confusing the power of music in the finished film
with the power of a lyric (and music) written in a screenplay.
It's a screenplay, of course. If the screenplay about a Rapper, he must sing Rap. But I don't care what he sings about. Lyrics of the song and its beat has nothing to do with the story itself.
I'm not musician, and even if I can write lyrics, I can't write the beat of the song. But suppose I find someone who can and I create the song - after the script is sold, the director or producer may not like the song and use another one. So my efforts were in vain.
I'm not musician, and even if I can write lyrics, I can't write the beat of the song. But suppose I find someone who can and I create the song - after the script is sold, the director or producer may not like the song and use another one. So my efforts were in vain.
In "Drillbit Taylor" a fat kid has a rap-off with a high school punk:
===========================================================
All right. I can do it. I can do it.
- Whassup, whassup?
- Whassup?
I wanna rap with you.
Hey, flip the script, Ronnie.
Hit that beat.
- Yo, this cool, Fil?
- Sure, whatever.
Yo, call me whatever you want
but you know I gets busy I'm so badass
I'm the king of Vice City
Like the Buddha, I'm Zen
Like Beckham, I bend, I tell suckers
"Say hello to my little friend"
Snap! This guy!
Hey, meatball, where's your spaghetti?
Your rapping's like a nightmare
But I don't see Freddy
You best
not even try to spit rhymes, dude
'Cause when you spit
all I ever see is chewed-up food
Yeah, that's how we roll!
That's how we do!
Hold on!
I know you didn't just go there
I got more skills than you
in my one and only nut hair
Nice, man, nice.
So you better step off
before you insult me and mine
'Cause if you decide to step on, see
I'm like a land mine
Boom!
===================================
...But it was necessary for the songs to be written into the script because the two characters are slamming each other with their impromptu rap tunes. The main question is "Is it necessary?" Is there a special reason why YOU need to be writing the lyrics? If not, then I agree with Directorik. If it's necessary ...then rap away.
It doesn't take much for rap anyway. You could write out all of the words and have the music specialists add in the scratchy record sound effects and the always-predictable bass beat. Just remember ...if your rap music sucks ...so will your screenplay. The fact that it's rap music means you're starting out at a disadvantage.
-Birdman
===========================================================
All right. I can do it. I can do it.
- Whassup, whassup?
- Whassup?
I wanna rap with you.
Hey, flip the script, Ronnie.
Hit that beat.
- Yo, this cool, Fil?
- Sure, whatever.
Yo, call me whatever you want
but you know I gets busy I'm so badass
I'm the king of Vice City
Like the Buddha, I'm Zen
Like Beckham, I bend, I tell suckers
"Say hello to my little friend"
Snap! This guy!
Hey, meatball, where's your spaghetti?
Your rapping's like a nightmare
But I don't see Freddy
You best
not even try to spit rhymes, dude
'Cause when you spit
all I ever see is chewed-up food
Yeah, that's how we roll!
That's how we do!
Hold on!
I know you didn't just go there
I got more skills than you
in my one and only nut hair
Nice, man, nice.
So you better step off
before you insult me and mine
'Cause if you decide to step on, see
I'm like a land mine
Boom!
===================================
...But it was necessary for the songs to be written into the script because the two characters are slamming each other with their impromptu rap tunes. The main question is "Is it necessary?" Is there a special reason why YOU need to be writing the lyrics? If not, then I agree with Directorik. If it's necessary ...then rap away.
It doesn't take much for rap anyway. You could write out all of the words and have the music specialists add in the scratchy record sound effects and the always-predictable bass beat. Just remember ...if your rap music sucks ...so will your screenplay. The fact that it's rap music means you're starting out at a disadvantage.
-Birdman
Last edited:
No, I don't need lyrics or the song. It's not important for the story. It's alright even he would sing a song that already exists, but that's about copyright laws. Whatever song the director adds - I don't care. What I care, is what should I do to make him understand that the Rapper needs to sing a song.
The Rapper doesn't need to sing a full song, only 10-15 seconds of it. But it happens a few times in the film. For some realism, he shouldn't sing the same words over and over.
The Rapper doesn't need to sing a full song, only 10-15 seconds of it. But it happens a few times in the film. For some realism, he shouldn't sing the same words over and over.
Do you want to write the song? Can you write the song?
Of course, somebody is going to need to write this song. If not you, then a songwriter with whom you can collaborate to tailor the song to your requirements. Either way, it needs to be written somewhere.
As far as placing it in the script, I’d say it depends on the circumstances. If the character is walking along the street, headphones in, singing a song (so, really, the song itself is irrelevant), just write that.
If, however, the lyrics to the song are pivotal to the scene; there is action as the lyrics are sang, or perhaps the character is interacting with others (or even with objects) as they rap about them, the lyrics themselves would be pretty important. You should put them into the script.
Rap is an odd genre though. For “8 Mile”, a lot of the actors were rappers anyway, so they were allowed to come up with their own lyrics within a set of guidelines. The script simply laid those guidelines out.
Take a look over at www.imsdb.com. Click on MUSICALS. “8 Mile” is top of the list. I also checked out “The Rocky Horror Picture Show”, “The Wizard Of Oz” and “South Park”. These scripts all contain the lyrics to the songs.
EDIT: Ignore all that, I was writing at the same time as you. If the song is not important, just put "...sings a rap song."
Of course, somebody is going to need to write this song. If not you, then a songwriter with whom you can collaborate to tailor the song to your requirements. Either way, it needs to be written somewhere.
As far as placing it in the script, I’d say it depends on the circumstances. If the character is walking along the street, headphones in, singing a song (so, really, the song itself is irrelevant), just write that.
If, however, the lyrics to the song are pivotal to the scene; there is action as the lyrics are sang, or perhaps the character is interacting with others (or even with objects) as they rap about them, the lyrics themselves would be pretty important. You should put them into the script.
Rap is an odd genre though. For “8 Mile”, a lot of the actors were rappers anyway, so they were allowed to come up with their own lyrics within a set of guidelines. The script simply laid those guidelines out.
Take a look over at www.imsdb.com. Click on MUSICALS. “8 Mile” is top of the list. I also checked out “The Rocky Horror Picture Show”, “The Wizard Of Oz” and “South Park”. These scripts all contain the lyrics to the songs.
EDIT: Ignore all that, I was writing at the same time as you. If the song is not important, just put "...sings a rap song."
Last edited:
That is why I said you should simply write "He sings a rap song."