Copywriting looks similar no matter what arena youre working in, which holds true for lyrical copywriting. Lyrical copywriting has the same purpose as other forms of copywriting: to get a message across to your target audience. In order to effectively do this you must know your audience; what they think and want. There are many songs out there that do not make it onto the radio because they do not meet the audiences' thoughts and feelings. Good copywriters give their audience what they want.
Your song will have an overall message, but it must also have an instant recognition mechanism. Beyonce's new song, "Irreplaceable" illustrates this well. Here she sings "To the left, to the left" in a unique manner that immediately identifies the song to the audience. This helps build awareness of your particular singer and song.
Professional lyrical copywriting isn't focused solely on money either. The ability to move people with word and song is a great gift that few have. Words and music have the ability to transport people into another world. It is important to realize, though, that most people cannot remember the words to an entire song, so you should put your main point and hook in the chorus. This way it is easier for people to remember your message without having to know every word.
Copywriting is ultimately about persuasion, despite your particular field. In this respect, lyrical copywriting isn't any different from writing articles in a paper or magazine, its just that your product is a singer and an album. Copywriting song lyrics will attempt to send a unique message to a particular audience that will persuade them buy the album.
Hopefully this article helped illustrate the goals of Copywriting song lyrics. Your chief goal as a lyrical copywriter is to raise the awareness of a particular singer by successfully sending a message your audience. Note that it is difficult to remember all the lyrics in a song, so make a short and catchy message in the chorus. Lyrical copywriting has multiple goals and can be very rewarding.