How to add synced lyrics and captions to a music video

Text turns a music video into something people can follow with the sound off — and on social platforms, many people watch with the sound off. Lyrics also make a video easier to sing along to, easier to share, and more accessible to viewers who are deaf or hard of hearing. This guide covers how to sync lyrics properly and how to make text that’s easy to read on a phone.

Lyrics, captions and titles

They’re different jobs:

Text	Purpose	Typical placement
Title	Names the song and artist	Top or centre, first few seconds
Lyric line	Shows the words being sung	Centre or lower third, in time with the vocal
Caption	Transcribes speech or adds context	Lower third, while someone speaks
Credit	Attribution for the music or footage	Small, in a corner or at the end

A good music video usually uses a title at the start, lyrics throughout, and a credit somewhere visible.

Step 1: prepare clean lyrics

Write one line per row, the way the line is actually sung, not as a block of text. Break long lines at natural pauses; on a phone, two short lines are much easier to read than one long one. Remove section labels like “[Chorus]” unless you want them on screen.

Step 2: sync each line

There are two ways to time lyrics.

Tap along. Play the song and mark the moment each line begins. In Slowed Room’s Lyrics tab, put the cursor on a line, start the song, and tap Insert time as each line starts; a timestamp is written at the start of the line and the cursor moves to the next one. You can sync a whole song in a single listen and correct individual times afterwards.

Use an LRC file. LRC is a simple, widely used format for timed lyrics, one line per row:

[00:12.50] under the streetlights
[00:16.20] we were young and slow
[00:20.85] every song sounded like rain

The time in brackets is minutes:seconds.hundredths when the line starts. Many music players and lyric sites use LRC, and you can paste an LRC file straight into the Lyrics tab.

If you change the speed of a song after syncing, remember that the timestamps refer to the edited version. Sync last, after you’ve settled on the sound.

Step 3: make it readable

• Size: on a 1080×1920 vertical video, lyric text should be at least 50–60 pixels tall; titles look best around 90–120 px.
• Contrast: light text on a dark background (or the reverse) with a soft shadow or glow. Over busy footage, use a box or outline.
• One line at a time: lines that fade in and out individually are easier to follow than scrolling blocks.
• Duration: a line should stay on screen long enough to read twice — about a second for every three or four words.
• Fonts: decorative fonts (gothic, handwritten, pixel) are great for titles; for long lyrics, keep the body text simple.

Step 4: respect the safe zones

On TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts, the interface covers parts of your video: the bottom fifth (captions, music credit, buttons) and the right edge (like, comment and share icons). Keep lyrics in the middle band of the frame, and don’t put essential words in the lower corners.

Accessibility

Lyrics and captions aren’t just style; they make videos usable for people who can’t hear the audio.

• Caption all speech, not just the parts you find interesting.
• Use plain, high-contrast text and avoid fast animations on long lines.
• Platforms also offer their own auto-caption track. If your lyrics are burned into the video, check that the two don’t overlap.

Copyright for lyrics

Lyrics are protected separately from the recording: the songwriter and publisher own the words. Putting the lyrics of a commercial song on screen therefore needs permission, just like using the recording does. If you’re making a lyric video for your own song — or for music you’re licensed to use — you’re free to go.

Checklist

• Lyrics broken into short, sung lines
• Synced after the final speed and effects
• Text large enough to read on a phone
• Important text outside the bottom fifth and right edge
• Credit for the music in the video or caption

Done well, synced lyrics turn a song into something people watch to the end, and watch again.