Is “Don’t Bore Us, Get to the Chorus” Fact or Myth?

Is it true that the longer it takes you to get to the chorus of your song, the less likely it is that it’ll be a hit? On the face of it, it would appear to be true. After all, for most songs, the chorus is the most “hooky” part of the song, the part everyone remembers, the part that’s supposed to keep us coming back. So let’s take a quick look at the top ten hits on Billboard Hot 100 this week, and find out how long it actually takes them to get to the chorus.
Starting the clock with the first note of the song, and checking when it reaches the chorus, and then when the title words are sung, we get the following results:

1. Far East Movement: Like a G6: 0’15″ to title words (song starts with the chorus).
2. Bruno Mars: Just the Way You Are: 0’52″ to chorus, 1’05″ to title words.
3. Nelly: Just a Dream: 0’20″ to start of chorus, 0’29″ to the title words.
4. Rihanna: Only Girl (in the World): 0’46″ to start of chorus, 0’48″ to title words.
5. Usher, feat. Pitbull: DJ Got Us Falling in Love Again: 0″39′ to start of chorus, 0″41 to title words.
6. Taylor Swift: Back to December:0’55″ to start of chorus, 1’05″ to title words.
7. Katy Perry: Teenage Dream: 0’52″ to start of chorus, 0″56 to title words.
8. Taio Cruz: Dynamite: 0’38″ to start of chorus, 0’54″ to title words.
9. Flo Rida: Club Can’t Handle Me: 0’21″ to title words (song starts with chorus).
10. Trey Songz Feat. Nicki Minaj: Bottoms Up: 0’17″ to title words (song starts with chorus).

Three of Billboard’s current hit songs start with the chorus, and it’s a great way to make sure that your song title gets into the listeners’ heads early and often.
The song that takes the longest to get to the chorus is Taylor Swift’s “Back to December”, notable for being the only ballad currently in the Top Ten.
And when you start looking at other songs within the current top 100 hits, it seems to be pretty much a rule that you’ll get to hear the chorus, and in most cases the title words, before the first minute of the song has elapsed.
We know that verses give us background – they lay the groundwork and give us the basic story. And we know that choruses give us the emotional response to all of that.
And, it would appear, the longer you make your audience wait for that emotional response, the more frustrated you’ll find your audience to be.
With that in mind, the following tips will probably apply to 90% of the songs you’ll write:

1. Get to the chorus before the 1-minute mark of your song; on average by the 45-second mark.
2. Only use a pre-chorus in your song if the verse is short and does not venture very far harmonically.
3. Don’t use a bridge or instrumental solo until after the second chorus.
4. Consider starting the chorus directly after the song intro, then Verse 1.
5. Place the title words in a structurally significant part of your chorus melody: at the start, at the end, or on the highest note.

-Gary Ewer