How to Make a Lyric Video on YouTube: The Ultimate Guide

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Edited by Ben Jacklin
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Lyric videos are incredibly popular, especially on YouTube. A lot of users enjoy learning the lyrics of their favorite hits, and many people use this type of video for a little personal karaoke fun. That’s why we decided to walk you through how to make a lyric video on YouTube – in just a few simple steps!

  1. What is a lyric video?

  2. How to make a lyric video using Movavi Video Editor

  3. How to make a good lyric video online

  4. Summary

  5. FAQ

What is a lyric video?

Before we get too deep into how to make a music lyric video on YouTube, we need to answer the question, “What is a lyric video?” A lyric video is any music video where the song’s lyrics are displayed prominently on the screen. Bands and artists will often put out lyric videos of their latest songs before they release their official music videos. However, musicians aren’t the only creators making lyric videos. Lyric videos are very popular with fans, and many creative music fans enjoy making these videos in tribute to their favorite artists.

Because there are so many different people making lyric videos for different reasons, they also vary a great deal in look and feel. Some video creators will use images or video of the artist throughout the video. Others will create a video with a blank background and add the lyrics in large, animated fonts. If you’re creating a lyric video of your own work or a song that you have rights to, you can also add lyrics as annotations or subtitles to the official music video for the song.

There’s really no limit to the style and creativity you can apply to a lyric video. The only thing that you really need to make a really successful lyric video is to ensure that your lyrics show up clearly across the screen in a font that’s easy for viewers to read. With the right video-editing software, making one of these videos can be quick and easy.

How to make a lyric video using Movavi Video Editor

Step 1. Install Movavi Video Editor

Download Movavi Video Editor on your computer and double-click the installation file. Follow a few quick installation prompts and then launch Movavi Video Editor to get started.

Step 2. Import your media files

Once you’ve opened Movavi Video Editor, click on the Add Files button. Browse for the media files you want to use for your lyric video. If you have a music video, you can upload this, or you can just upload the audio file and any video clips or still images that you want to add to your lyric video. After you’ve added your media files, they’ll appear in your Media bin, and you can drag and drop them into your Timeline in the bottom half of the screen. 

Step 3. Add lyrics to your video

To add lyrics to your video, open the Titles tab on the left of the editor window. This will allow you to type in lyrics and add them to your timeline. Drag and drop your lyrics onto your timeline to sync them with the vocals of the song. You can drop individual lyrics into the appropriate times in your Timeline and then animate them to make them appear as the words are sung in the song.

Step 4. Make any other edits you want

After you add your lyrics and have the timing set up for your music video, you can also make a few more tweaks to your video if you want. Movavi Video Editor has features and tools to trim and cut video and audio tracks, add filters and transitions, smooth out shaky camera work, and more. Check out all of the professional-level tools available to you to enhance your video and make it really stand out.

Step 5. Export your finished video

Once you’re done editing your lyric video, it’s time to export it and get it ready to share to YouTube. First, save your video by clicking the blue Export button on the right of the screen. 

Open the Upload online tab to directly export your video to YouTube. Sign in to your YouTube account and upload the video.

If you prefer to save the video on your computer first, then open the Save video file tab and choose the file format you want to use for your finished video. The video editor supports all of the most popular formats, but most YouTubers will opt for MOV, MP4, AVI, or WMV. Select the one you like best for your purposes and save it to your preferred destination on your computer. When your video is saved, you’ll be all set to upload it to YouTube.

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How to make a good lyric video online

Step 1. Go to Fastreel.com

Using any compatible browser, navigate to the Fastreel website to get started making your lyric video. We recommend opting for Chrome or Firefox, but almost any browser will work.

Go to Fastreel

Step 2. Upload your media files

Click the blue Add Your File button in the center of the screen. You can choose to upload media files from your computer, Google Drive, or Dropbox. Locate your file and click Open.

Step 3. Add lyrics to your video online

Once you’ve uploaded your media file into your Fastreel timeline, you can add lyrics with the Subtitles tool. Enter a lyric and select the specific time they’ll show in a video. Click the Add Subtitle button to add a next lyric. You can add as many lyrics to your video as you need. If you want to change the text style, go to the Format tab.

Step 4. Enhance your video with editing tools and effects

Fastreel has a wide variety of pro-level editing tools that allow you to enhance your lyric video and make it really stand out. You can add your own watermark to ensure that no one can use your video without your permission, create a slideshow video, crop and trim videos and/or add transitions between clips, create a split-screen effect, and much more.

Fastreel also includes multiple beautiful templates that make video creation quick and easy. You can use one of these to enhance the look and feel of your video. For example, you might want to include an intro to include the song title and artist.


Step 5. Download your video and post it to YouTube

When you’re happy with your finished lyric video, just click the Export Result button. Then, follow the easy prompts to save your video. Once you’ve saved your video to your computer, you can easily upload it to YouTube.

Summary: Get started making lyric videos now

Now, you should hopefully have all the info you need to get started creating lyric videos for YouTube and other online video-sharing platforms. With Movavi Video Editor, you can easily edit music videos on your computer and save them to easily upload them to YouTube. If you cannot download a video-editing app or need access to editing capabilities from multiple locations, an online option like Fastreel might be the best way to go for your lyric video projects. Try them both out for free and see which one you prefer.

Frequently asked questions

Does a lyric video need a storyboard?

While a storyboard isn’t absolutely necessary for a lyric video, it’s definitely a good idea. With a storyboard, you’ll have a basic structure and roadmap to follow for your video, and this guide below shows you how to easily make one in just a few steps.

What music copyrights should video makers be aware of?

To share copyrighted music or video footage on YouTube, you must have permission from the copyright owner. Some music is licensed for personal use or non-commercial use, and YouTube has a full library of non-copyrighted music and sound effects available to users. Before you create your lyric video, though, be sure that you have permission to publish it to YouTube.

How do I nail the timing of the lyrics to match the sound?

If you’re creating your lyric video with Movavi Video Editor, you can change the timing on your animated lyrics in your timeline to match the audio. You can also use the automatic subtitles feature on YouTube to generate captions to add perfectly timed lyrics to your video. Whichever option you choose, you can ensure that your lyrics are animated perfectly in time with your video by using Movavi’s preview feature to watch your video as you edit it. This will allow you to make tweaks as you go and create a perfectly synced finalized video.

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