Download Article
Find any song whether you know the lyrics or not
Download Article
If you've got an earworm and it's driving you crazy, there's help. Software is available on your phone and computer to help analyze the melody of the song and identify a list of options for you to choose from. It's also possible to effectively search the web for the song and come up with a narrower list of options to choose from. Don't let it drive you crazy any longer. Read after the jump for specific instructions to find a song you know nothing about.
Steps
-
Use Shazam or MusicID. These are popular apps that analyze sounds and identify songs from their database of recordings. If you've got Shazam on your phone and hear a song you can't identify and don't know anything about, activate the app and hold it toward the audio source and wait for a result. [1] X Research source You can also use MusicID or Google Assistant to identify songs that are playing in your environment. [2] X Research source
- Shazam can be used on iPhone, Blackberry, Android, and most other mobile devices. It can also be used on iPads and iPod touches. MusicID costs a few dollars to put on your iPhone and can also be used on other devices. [3] X Research source Google Assistant is available on a wide variety of smart devices. [4] X Research source
- Shazam was bought by Apple Music in 2018, but don’t worry—it’s still available for Android devices. In fact, the Android version even has features that iOS doesn’t, like a pop-up window that you can use to identify songs playing in another app on your phone. [5] X Research source
- These apps typically don't work as well with live performances. If you're watching a band doing a cover, but you can't quite place it, you'll probably need to use another method to identify the song.
-
Record the song with your phone and upload it to AudioTag. Even if you can only record a brief clip of the song you like and want to identify, you can upload it to AudioTag to identify the song from its own database when you're back at your computer. [6] X Research source
- At the very least, you've got a recording of the song that you can use to play for friends or music aficionados and see if they recognize the tune.
Advertisement -
Hum it into a song ID app like SoundHound. On your phone, you can hum the melody into SoundHound, which is available for free. The app will analyze the melody you sing and give you a list of possible options. [7] X Research source On your computer, Midomi serves the same function. [8] X Research source
- Both of these apps are typically a lot more effective for contemporary songs. Trying to find the name of the song your grandfather used to sing while he worked tends to be more difficult on these apps, and may require other methods.
- WatZatSong [9] X Research source is a crowd-sourced option that works basically the same way. On this website, you can upload your clip (or yourself trying to sing and describe the song) and other people will get back to you with options.
-
Play the song on a virtual keyboard. If you've got an ear for the melody and an elementary knowledge of the keyboard, you can enter the melody into Musipedia or MelodyCatcher to search for the melody. [10] X Research source
- These sites tend to work better for classical, wordless music and other types of non-pop music, because they have a slightly different sort of database of material to analyze.
Advertisement
-
Google any lyrics you remember in quotes. Type any lyrics you remember into Google or another search engine, making sure to add quotation marks around the lyrics. This limits the search to those words in that order, so even if all you can remember is "she said you would be mine," it'll be easier to find if you group them in quotes.
-
Search for the context of the song to help narrow it down. If you're looking for a song you heard during the credits of a TV show, do a quick search for "Song playing at the end of Sopranos Episode Six, Season Five" or "Song in Mazda commercial."
- If you heard the song on a TV show or movie, try searching for the soundtrack on iTunes. If you find it, play free samples of each song on the album by hovering your mouse over the track number and pressing the blue play button that appears.
- You can also try searching on YouTube when you've narrowed your search down some.
-
Search the artist by describing them. Describe whether its sung by a male, female, or group, and any other kinds of descriptions of the song you might remember. Ask yourself if the song sounds familiar. Is the voice distinct? Could it be somebody you already listen to or like? If you think it sounds a lot like a singer or group you have heard, check that band's website or their fan sites to see if they have any new releases and listen to them
-
Listen for the radio DJ. If you're hearing the song on the radio, try to stick around for a moment and listen. The DJ may go over the songs they just played. Call the station or visit the station's website to see if they post a playlist of the songs played that day.
Advertisement
Community Q&A
Search
-
QuestionHow can I find a song if I only know two lines?Community AnswerType two lines of the song in Google search, then you can find the websites that have lyrics of that song.
-
QuestionCan I identify a song, or have someone else identify it, when I have a link to its intro?Community AnswerProbably, yeah. The intro is part of the song, and some of them are really memorable. If someone has heard a song a few times, they probably know the intro. If you have the Shazam app, you might try letting it "listen" to the intro and see what comes up.
-
QuestionHow do I find a song if I remember only part of the music lyrics?Community AnswerIf you remember a few lyrics, google "____ (part you remember) lyrics", this should help you find it.
Ask a Question
200 characters left
Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.
Submit
Advertisement
Video
Tips
- Try to make the lyrics you type in distinct, and avoid common words such as "the," "and," "or," "but," etc.Thanks
- If you know the name of the radio station you can search up the schedule and look through the songs that were around the time you heard the song you're looking for.Thanks
Tips from our Readers
The advice in this section is based on the lived experiences of wikiHow readers like you. If you have a helpful tip you’d like to share on wikiHow, please submit it in the field below.
- If you heard the song in a Vine or TikTok video, you can search on YouTube for "vine songs" or "tiktok audios" and browse through those videos to find the song.
- You can also hum a song into the Google app if you remember the melody.
Submit a Tip
All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published
Name
Please provide your name and last initial
Thanks for submitting a tip for review!
Advertisement
References
- ↑ https://www.shazam.com/company
- ↑ https://www.theverge.com/2017/11/6/16615700/google-assistant-shazam-like-what-song-is-this
- ↑ https://musicid.com
- ↑ https://assistant.google.com/
- ↑ https://www.theverge.com/2019/6/11/18661008/shazam-identify-songs-through-earphones-internal-music-android-ios
- ↑ https://audiotag.info/faq
- ↑ https://soundhound.com/soundhound
- ↑ https://www.midomi.com/index.php?action=main.about_us
- ↑ https://www.watzatsong.com/en
About This Article
Article Summary
X
To find a song you don't know the name of, try entering any lyrics you can remember into a search engine with quotes around them, which will pull up better results. You can also try searching for the context you heard the song in, like "song playing during the credits of the new Superman movie." Also, try including any information you know about the artist, like whether they're male or female or if there's anything distinct about their voice, in your search. To learn how to find a song you know nothing about using an app or computer program, read on!
Did this summary help you?
Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 1,208,329 times.
Advertisement
