It’s 4/20. Here’s a lyrical analysis of songs that mention weed.

April 20th, 2019 | by Alan Cross

LyricFind, the world’s largest licensor of song lyrics, has put together this infographic that shows the top weed name-drops in

It’s not your imagination. Lyrics are getting sadder and angrier.

December 29th, 2018 | by Alan Cross

Live long enough and you’ll begin to notice shifts in culture that happen not over months but years or even

What lyrics did people search for in 2018? LyricFind can tell us.

December 7th, 2018 | by Alan Cross

More year-end fun, this time with a look at what lyrics people searched for the most. LyricFind, the Canadian-based lyric

It’s not your imagination: pop lyrics ARE getting more repetitive

December 3rd, 2018 | by Alan Cross

If you’ve spent any time listening to the lyrics–and I mean really listening–you may have noticed something strange: repetition. Plenty of

Let’s analyze lyrics for mentions of cars. Who do you think comes on top? No, you’re wrong.

September 21st, 2018 | by Alan Cross

A company called Digital Third Coast took the time to go through 72,000 songs for mentions of cars. Within that

Cool gadget: A transparent speaker that displays lyrics as the music plays

July 27th, 2018 | by Alan Cross

Karaoke fans are going to love this. One of the most-searched-for music items on the Internet is song lyrics. The

Was this alt-rock hit inspired by a hard-to-open pickle jar?

July 22nd, 2018 | by Alan Cross

This email arrived over the weekend from Adam. I heard this story the radio in the 90’s about Aaron Lewis

Because everyone likes to make fun of people who mishear lyrics…

May 3rd, 2018 | by Alan Cross

[Another list from contributor Thomas Dennett. – AC] Lyrics. They can be a beautifully written narrative or a mess of

Rapper facing terroristic threat charges for song titled “School Shooter”

March 4th, 2018 | by Amber Healy

Roughly two weeks after the Parkland shooting in Florida, a New York man is facing felony charges after a song

Let’s try to figure out what exactly is happening in July Talk’s “Lola+Joseph”

March 1st, 2018 | by Alan Cross

An email from Brent popped into my inbox this week. He had some questions about the July Talk song “Lola+Joseph.”

Let’s talk about the growth of music streaming for a moment and how the money is distributed

January 17th, 2018 | by Alan Cross

Music streaming is quickly becoming the dominant way people access music. Let’s start with this graphic from Statista that shows

A Continuing, Very Serious Anthropological Study: Where Did the Special Lyrics in Billy Idol’s Version of “Mony Mony” Come From?

January 1st, 2018 | by Alan Cross

It was probably in the spring of 1987 when I first heard the special audience lyrics in the Billy Idol version of the Tommy James classic, "Mony Mony."  I was hosting one of the old CFNY Video Roadshows at a high school somewhere in Southern Ontario. When Martin Streek, the guy in charge of playing the videos, flipped to this clip, the dancers erupted.

At first, I couldn't make how what they were yelling.  "What are they shouting?" I asked Martin.  He helpfully translated with the appropriate arm gestures.

Billy:  Here she come now singing Mony Mony
Dancers:  HEY MOTHERF*CKER GET LAID GET F*CKED!
Billy:  Well, shoot 'em down, turn around, come on Mony
Dancers:  HEY MOTHERF*CKER GET LAID GET F*CKED!
Billy:  Hey she give me love and I feel alright now
Dancers:  HEY MOTHERF*CKER GET LAID GET F*CKED!

I looked at him weird.  "How do they know what to say?"

A puzzled look came across Martin's face for a moment; it was apparent that he'd never considered the question before. Then he just shrugged and turned to deal with a very angry principal who was appalled that such obscenities would be chanted by his students in his gym at his school.

The question of the origins of the special audience participation lyrics has been in the back of my mind ever since.  Perhaps it's time to address it once and for all--if that's even possible.

The Changing Nature of What Song Lyrics are Okay for Radio

November 30th, 2017 | by Alan Cross

I remember exactly where I was the first time I heard Rough Trade’s “High School Confidential.” I was driving in

Want Bespoke Merch from Your Favourite Artist? This Company Will Do It for You

November 9th, 2017 | by Alan Cross

LyricFind–a Toronto-based company that makes lyrics legally available for a variety of digital and online uses–has just expanded into a

Dylan’s “Like A Rolling Stone” Lyrics Up For Auction

September 28th, 2017 | by Larry Lootsteen

You know there’s going to be a frenzy when an iconic song’s lyric sheet hits the market. Bob Dylan’s “Like

Why is Taylor Swift Trademarking her Lyrics? Will Other Artists Follow?

September 25th, 2017 | by Alan Cross

She’s not quite at Gene Simmons’ level, but Taylor Swift has been rather aggressive when it comes to applying for

Are Pop Lyrics Getting Shorter and more Repetitive? Science Takes a Look

May 14th, 2017 | by Alan Cross

If you count up all the words David Bowie sings on the Diamond Dogs album, you’ll come up with a

Which Genre of Music Mentions Drugs the LEAST? (Nope. You’re Wrong.)

April 28th, 2017 | by Alan Cross

Exclaim! points us to a new study from Addictions.com that tracked drug mentions in music. Using data from SongMeanings.com and

Science Explains Why You Keep Hearing Those Lyrics Wrong

February 23rd, 2017 | by Alan Cross

Misheard song lyrics are called mondegreens. You know, like hearing “‘Cuse me while I kiss this guy” instead of “kiss

This is for Everyone Who Wants Song Lyrics Reinterpreted at PowerPoint Slides

February 21st, 2017 | by Alan Cross

Somewhere in the world, there’s a weird genius at work turning song lyrics into PowerPoint sides. Know what this one

Has This Generation Given Up (or Unable to) Write Decent Lyrics?

January 9th, 2017 | by Alan Cross

I wish I could remember where I read this so I could give the author credit: “Every generation has the

Need Music For Your Lyrics? There’s a Program For That.

December 14th, 2016 | by Larry Lootsteen

So you have written yourself a beautiful poem or lyrics but you lack the technical ability to provide a score