What is a Hook?

A “hook” in songwriting is simply a short phrase or passage that grabs a listener’s attention and sticks in their memory. A hook can be musical, lyrical, or both. In commercial songwriting, strong hooks are essential for selling a song.

A hook can be a lyrical line, a sequence of notes, a motif, a distinct chord progression, a riff, or an irresistible rhythmic groove.

• You can think of the hook as a distillation of the song itself. In Robin Frederick’s words, a hook should “evoke the emotional world of a song.”
• Lyrically, the hook of a song is usually located in the chorus or refrain. It can be any verbal phrase that’s repeated several times throughout the song.
• Since a verbal phrase in a hook will be repeated throughout the entire song, it often summarizes the narrator’s feelings, the idea, or the situation that’s at the core of the song.
• The lyrical hook is often, but not always, also the title of the song.
• If you find a riff moving from a supporting role to a strong draw in its own right, you’ve got a hook!
• In the following article, John Braheny forwards an interesting idea: that a storyline can be the hook.
• A song can have more than one hook.
• Set a lyrical hook to a melody that is a musical hook, and you’ve got a powerful combination.

Examples of Hooks

Musical:

• • “The Ghost Inside ” by the Broken Bells
  • “Train to Thiensan ” by John Zorn
  • “Mommy, What’s a Funkadelic?” by Funkadelic
  • “Manteca” by Dizzy Gillespie

Lyrical:

• • “Let’s Get It On” as performed by Marvin Gaye
  • “I Walk the Line” by Johnny Cash