Affordable lyric video ideas for your next indie release
Lyric videos are a powerful tool, but it can be difficult to navigate how you can create one with a limited time and budget.
So I’ve put together 5 ideas that you can try to get those creative juices flowing.
💡Not sure if lyric videos are the way to go? Check out my blog post discussing lyric videos vs music videos to get a clearer idea on what you need.
Overlay text on a clip
This is probably the most accessible technique, and despite it’s simplicity, has been used by many big artists, gathering a lot of views and publicity.
Simply take a photo or a 5-minute video on your phone of anything that ties in with the themes of the song. This could be the blue sky surrounded by trees, your favourite coffee shop, the coastline, flowers - get creative. Then you can simply use an app like CapCut to add the lyrics in over the top. Aim to record a clip 2 minutes longer than your track to give you flexibility in the edit.
It’s always better to have a little bit of movement on the screen, so I’d personally recommend a long video clip so you don’t need to animate the text. However, if you do wish to add animations, most video editing apps will have built-in text animation options that you can choose from.
If you want to go the extra mile, check out some templates on Canva to incorporate the photo or video into a design that reflects your brand.
When going down this route, bare in mind accessibility. Stick to subtle text animations where possible, and ensure the colour and font is contrasted enough with your background. You can add things like drop shadows onto the text, or a transparent black overlay over the background to further separate the elements.
Check out the below examples for inspiration!
Music video / lyric video hybrid
If you are comfortable in front of a camera, this is a good way to showcase yourself as a performer and deepen your connection with your fans.
Set up your phone or camera on a tripod and film yourself lip syncing to your track. you can get as creative with this as you like, as long as it fits your persona and brand.
You can choose to leverage sunlight and shadows by a window, or start with a completely dark room and use lamps or phone torches to create a different type of atmosphere. Play around with textures, materials, reflections, fashion - the video will consist of this one shot, so you can afford to take a little extra time to get those visuals just right.
Once you have a clip you’re happy with, bring it into your editing program and add in your lyrics. Again if you choose to animate your lyrics, opt for a more subtle animation style so the viewer can focus on the words themselves.
You can choose to have the lyrics appear over the full frame, contrasting between no more than two fonts to really put a spotlight on them. Or you can include the lyrics in a subtitle style at the bottom of the frame in a smaller font to create more of a focus on your artist persona.
The direction you take will entirely depend on your brand and the type of song you’re promoting, so I encourage you to take some time to experiment with different visuals and layouts.
💡If you’re feeling lost on your creative direction, have a look at my blog post explaining how it can be leveraged to push your music career further.
Check out these examples below for some inspiration!
Simple and clean visuals
Sometimes, simplicity can be the most effective, which leads me to what is probably the most accessible option on my list - simply putting words on top of a solid colour background!
In a world where standing out is becoming increasingly difficult, keeping some visuals intentionally simple can be more attention grabbing - think about how much of a cultural impact Charli xcx’s ‘brat’ album artwork had!
There is, however, a fine line between this approach coming across confident, and lazy. The difference is the creative direction behind it, as that is what will make the decision feel more intentional.
To pull this off, the design needs to work with your wider brand. If you’re a folk artist, we don’t want to be using bold colours and heavy fonts, for example.
If you decide to go down this road, have a look at your current visuals and other lyric videos that follow a similar style to get a good idea on what sort of creative decisions you need to be making.
Once that side of things is set in stone, creating and replicating this type of lyric video is a breeze!
Check out these examples below.
Handwritten lyrics in the real world
These last two ideas follow a more tactical DIY approach for those who want to get a little more hands on.
Take some scrap pieces of paper, and write a line of lyrics from your track on each one. You can cut them out or rip them off for a more textured feel.
Then go out and take a photo or short clip of each scrap of paper against a different backdrop.
You can get creative here with anything you find around you - use the sky, brick walls, grass, landmarks, fences - whatever catches your eye and fits your messaging!
I’d recommend taking the photo or clip with a slightly wider frame than you’d like and keeping the lyrics in the middle. iPhones have a grid overlay you can use to make sure everything is framed consistently. Shooting it slightly wider will allow you more options to crop and reposition it in the edit if you need to.
Due to the changing backgrounds, it’s important that the scrap paper with the lyrics remains clear and consistent between shots so the audience doesn’t miss anything. Make sure the contrast between the ink and the paper is high enough to read your handwriting - black ink on white paper is always a safe bet.
This is a fun way to showcase bits of your personality and surroundings, and it’s also a very different approach to normal lyric videos which means it’ll definitely stand out!
Involve your fans
Lastly, you can invite your fans to take part!
Whether you have thousands of followers or just 15 dedicated fans, including them in your journey through projects like this will really strengthen their loyalty to you, as they now have skin in the game.
You can either ask them to send a clip of themselves lip syncing to your track for you to edit together and add subtitle-style lyrics to, or you can ask them to write a line of your song on and hold it up.
Music fans love to get involved, especially where indie music is concerned where they can see the direct impact their support is having. Giving them a platform, and encouraging them to showcase their creativity will showcase to new listeners what sort of community they could be joining when they choose to support you.
Additionally, because the fans are now directly involved, they’re more likely to share the video when it’s out or even share social media clips talking about it.
For most people, being able to be in their favourite artists music video is enough of an incentive - but it may work in your favour to offer gift bags to participants. Think stickers, hand written notes, and polaroids. The more you can tailor this to your brand’s narrative, the better.
🍏 Need help putting together some visuals for your release? Get in touch below and see how I can help turn your ideas into music videos, lyric videos, short‑form visuals, and release‑ready content.
