Contributor handbook
Transcription Guide
A clean, well-structured transcription clears review faster and makes a better page. Here’s how to find the words, format them the way AskLyrics expects, and turn a rough draft into a finished lyric. When you’re ready, add your song.
Where to start: three ways to get the words
Fastest first. Pick whichever fits the song you’re adding.
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1. Let AskLyrics auto-fill from an open source
For many charting songs we can pull a clean, synchronized lyric automatically when your submission is approved — nothing to type. Add the artist, title and an official video link and we’ll try this first.
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2. Pull a YouTube transcript as a starting draft
If the song has an official video, you can fetch its transcript and clean it up. Use transcript.you ↗ to grab the transcript of a YouTube video, then paste it into the lyrics box and format it using the conventions below. Auto-captions are a draft, not a finished lyric — always listen through and fix mishearings, add section tags and correct the line breaks.
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3. Transcribe by ear
The most accurate method for anything without captions. Play the recording, write a line, replay, confirm. Short repeated sections only need to be written once with a repeat note.
Formatting conventions
Structure the lyric so a reader — and our synced player — can follow it.
| Element | How to write it | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Section headers | Square brackets on their own line | [Verse 1], [Pre-Chorus], [Chorus], [Bridge], [Outro] |
| Performer of a part | Add the name in the header | [Verse 2: Artist Name] |
| Lines | One lyric line per line; keep natural phrasing | Break where the vocalist breathes, not mid-phrase |
| Ad-libs / backing | Parentheses | I’m running (running) |
| Blank line | Separate each section with one empty line | Between [Verse] and [Chorus] |
| Non-lyrical audio | Brackets, kept minimal | [Instrumental], [Laughter] |
What editors look for
- Accuracy — the words match the recording you linked, not a cover or a different mix.
- Structure — section tags and blank lines, so the page is readable and can be synced.
- Clean text — no timestamps, no “[Music]” caption noise, no duplicated auto-caption lines.
- Rights — you’ve told us how you’re authorized to share it. See the Contributor Guidelines.
Questions
The YouTube transcript is messy — is that normal?
Yes. Auto-captions are speech-to-text and struggle with singing, so treat them as a rough first pass to clean up, not a final lyric.
Do I have to add section tags?
They’re strongly preferred — they make the page readable and let us add synced karaoke. A submission without them can still be approved, but tagged ones clear faster.
What if I only have part of the song?
Submit what you have and say so in the notes. You or another contributor can complete it later.