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This article is about developing bars as a technique in writing raps.

I have received the question, "What are bars?" on many occasions and

have briefly touched on the subject in a previous MC Improvement Article/visitor

e-mail. In this article I will expand on the topic as well as describe

an effective way of writing a solid 16 bar verse.

First of all?what are bars, exactly?

Well bars are simply a form of dividing a verse into segments. Each

segment, or "bar", consists of one line. The following is an example

of two bars by Jay-Z:

"And all you other cats takin' shots at Jigga/

You only get half a bar, 'F*ck ya'll niggas'"

As you can see both "lines" or "bars" rhyme at the end. This is usually

the case, but as verses are created more and more organically by artists

(read: freestyled) they many times won't end so picture perfect?but

don't worry about that for now. In case you're a little confused, you'll

get a clearer picture through future articles.

So Why 16 bars?

If you're a hip hop fan, you have undoubtedly heard the term, "16 bars"

at some point. Maybe something along the lines of, "Nas dropped a sick

16 bars on that mixtape."

The reason that "16" became the standard is because the music industry

strategically determines the most effective duration of a typical song.

Usually the shorter the song is, the better for the record's success.

The shorter the song is, the more times that it can be played on the

radio, the more times that it can be played on the radio, the more popular

the song will become, the more popular the song becomes?you get the

picture.

Also taken into account was the average amount of time a run-of-the-mill

listener would wait between hooks before becoming tired. You have to

keep in mind that not all listeners are looking out for the real substance

of the song (the verses) but instead merely tune in to listen to the

beat and the chorus. A verse that's too short will leave something to

be desired (substance) and/or may grow old fast (since the hook/chorus

will be played more frequently). A verse that's too long will lose many

mainstream listener's attention.

So in time, the typical "16 bar" format was created. About the same

time, the typical 8 bar chorus came into popularity in hip hop. This

was long ago?dates mean little. Don't get this confused, though?not

every song sticks to the 16's and 8's formula. Ghostface Killah came

out with the single, "All That I Got Is You" which was one long verse?with

one long hook at the end. Therefore, a lot of songs vary from the classic

3 verse and 3 hook layout, and they even vary from the classic 3-minute-a-song

set-up. Some songs are 7 minutes long. But if you pay attention, most

of these "odd" songs are usually not released as singles and if they

are, they are usually released by more well-known artists with a well

established fan base. The fact is that most pop or "popular" songs still

follow the typical format most preferred by the radio and recording

industry?and that is the "16-bar verse" and the "3 verse" format. (Note:

Actually, with the increased popularity of catchy "breaks" "bridges"

and "hooks", artists are increasingly neglecting the 3rd verse of their

songs.)

In case you're wondering, the radio industry prefers shorter songs so

that they can vary their playlist in order to reach more listeners.

Reaching more listeners and keeping more listeners is important to radio

stations so that the advertising spots they offer are attractive to

advertisers.

There are even radio stations that have been known to speed up the pace

of their songs so as to shorten their length of play'of course these

songs tend to sound nothing like they were intended to, but that's the

cost they are willing to take.

Writing 16 Bars: Part 1

So how should you go about writing the actual 16 bars? Well, there's

two broad methods; to a beat, or without a beat. I recommend you write

any verse to a beat. Firstly, because a lot of beats follow very similarly

timed or even exactly similar drum patterns, therefore, one

of your verses may be able to adapt very smoothly to various

beats. Second, and more importantly, when you write to a beat that you're

listening to, you can more easily play with your bars. By that I mean

you can stretch your words or adjust your flow and say something like:

"Shopping sprees, coppin' three, deuce Beamer IS's Fully loaded??ahhh

yes! (haha)" - Jay-Z

That was from "Can't Knock The Hustle" and when Jay-Z was at the top

of his game lyrically (in my humble opinion). But, you can see how his

pause during that second bar built up the punch line to that lyric.

This is facilitated by listening to a beat while putting together your

verse.

You can also choose to just write. Forget the beat, just write. A lot

of times we don't have the luxury of having a beat playing when creativity

strikes. That's ok?you can make it work anyway. If you are intending

to put together a whole verse, however, it is best to at least have

a beat in your head if not in your ears. And I don't mean a popular

rap beat, necessarily?just a simple drumbeat will do. The idea is to

have something in mind that you can bounce to?literally'if you find

yourself bopping your head while you're formulating a rhyme?that's good!

Writing 16 Bars: Part 2

When you write lyrics, there is a very important principle which will

benefit many of you to understand. It has already been made clear that

bars tend to rhyme at the end (mostly). But what about the center? Though

rhymes don't necessarily need to rhyme in the middle (meaning the middle

of the first bar rhymes with the middle of the second), there does many

times seem to be a pattern to the emphasis throughout

bars. By this I mean that there are usually two emphasis (or accents)

in each bar.

Usually, somewhere during the middle of a bar there is a break, a pause,

or an emphasis in a syllable, and then there is another similar emphasis

towards the end of the bar. A good example would be 50 Cent's second

verse from "In Da Club":

(Note: The "bolded" letters indicate the emphasis I spoke about)

"And you should love it, way more then you hate it

Nigga you mad? I thought that you'd be happy I made it

I'm that cat by the bar toastin' to the good life

You that f*ggot-*ss nigga tryin' to pull me back right?

When my joint get to pumpin' in the club it's on

I wink my eye at ya b*tch, if she smiles she gone

If the roof on fire, let the motherf*cker burn

If you talkin' about money homie, I ain't concerned

I'ma tell you what Banks told me "Cous' go 'head switch

the style up

If the niggas hate then let 'em hate then watch the money

pile up

Or we go upside your head with a bottle of bub'

They know where we f*ckin' be..."

Hopefully you have a better idea of what I mean by now. If you simply

think about each individual bar as having two parts then you can attempt

to pause at the beat-break (the drum beat or bass tends to pound

twice per bar) present around the middle of each bar and allow your

flow to synchronize with the beat. This is CRITICAL. Treat your

voice/words like an instrument that like any other instrument must be

in tune with the beat.

Don't be afraid to adjust your flow by using emphasis, stretching out

your words, shortening words, chopping words in mid sentence and continuing

them in the next bar, accenting syllables, (by that I mean accenting

certain syllables even when they normally shouldn't be) etc?just to

make them fit appropriately to the end of the beat. You might even consider

using synonyms to make the bar fit the beat.

Your Lyric Conent

There are many ways to start a verse. You can tell a real story, describe

an event, narrate a fictional scene, etc. Your approach will vary depending

on your style. Let's say you're writing literally about what you're

doing at the moment...actually writing a rhyme? (or at

least that's how you choose to begin)?you can say something like:

"It cost me more to be free than a life in the Penn/

Makin' money off of cus words, writin' again/

Learn how to think ahead so I fight with my pen/

Late night down Sunset, likin' the sin" - 2pac

Or perhaps you can say it like this?

"F*ck a pad and a pen, I write rhymes on the IBM/

Ebonics is dead and binary language is in" - Canibus

Obviously, both of these approaches are distinct. The hardest part about

writing a verse, though, is starting it. Once you begin, and you know

your style, it's just a matter of keeping it going.

Now, as far as ending or wrapping up a verse?you can do many things

with that as well. You can follow the example from 50 Cent (above) and

end your verse half-way (and allow the beginning part of your chorus

or "hook" to end the last part of your final bar for you). You can also

just complete the bar but on the same vibe as that of your chorus, for

example:

"What's the worst they can do to a nigga, got me lost in Hell/

To live and die in L.A., on bail?(and my angels sing)" - 2pac

"2 Live and Die in LA"

The idea is to let your verse end on a vibe that easily flows into the

mood that your hook provides.

Final Note

Playing around with your voice or tone (intonation) is also a great

way to add a bit of flare. Adding something unique to your flow seems

more and more necessary in this highly competitive market we call the

rap industry. It is not necessary to create a gimmick (there is a fine

line between a gimmick and a unique style?but interestingly, most mass

consumers of media don't notice or care what that difference is) but

it is important to have something distinctive about your flow to help

you stand out and be remembered.

More on that and other tips to come in future articles. Until then,

take a look at our other MC Improvement Articles as well as our

Hustling Hip Hop Articles and all our other free content at TheStateofHipHop.com

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