About LyricTimestamps
LyricTimestamps is an independent lyric-timing tool built and operated by Micaiah Mackenzie. It aligns lyrics you provide to audio you upload and creates LRC, SRT, VTT, and JSON files.
It has no affiliation with any streaming service, label, or AI music generator.
Why it exists
Timestamping lyrics by hand is tedious and fragile. You play a song repeatedly, note where each line begins, and any correction shifts everything that follows. Automatic transcription does not solve it either, because a transcriber has to guess the words and gets them wrong on sung, mixed vocals, especially with names, slang, and stylized spellings.
Alignment splits the problem sensibly: you provide the words, which you already know, and the tool decides only the timing, which is the part a computer is good at.
How the product works
Word-level from the start
Every alignment returns a start time, an end time, and a confidence value per word. Line timing is derived from that, which is why the same job can produce both ordinary synced lyrics and karaoke-style word highlighting.
Review instead of silent failure
When the aligner is unsure, it says so. Lines that look like section labels are skipped and shown to you, and low-confidence lines are flagged with their score. You can edit the lyric text and re-align, or adjust individual words in the manual timing editor.
Built to be used by other software
There is an HTTP API for creating alignment jobs and fetching results. See the API page.
Current limitations
- Lyrics must be supplied. There is no transcription and no lyric lookup.
- An audible vocal is required, so instrumentals cannot be timed.
- Dense mixes, heavy effects, and stacked harmonies lower confidence rather than failing quietly.
- Timing follows the order of the text you paste, so text that does not match the take will not align well.
Data and privacy
Uploaded audio, lyric text, and generated timestamps are retained so alignment quality can be reviewed and improved, which is disclosed at the point of upload. The privacy policy covers retention and deletion requests, and the terms cover acceptable use.
Getting in touch
Feature requests can be voted on publicly, and the contact form reaches us directly. Both get read.
About: common questions
- Who operates LyricTimestamps?
- It is an independent product, not affiliated with any music service, streaming platform, or AI music tool. Support and business enquiries go through the contact page.
- What happens to the files I upload?
- Uploaded audio, lyric text, and generated timestamps are stored so alignment quality can be reviewed and improved. The privacy policy sets out what is kept and how to ask for deletion.
- Do you need my lyrics, or can you transcribe the song?
- Lyrics are required. The service places words you already have onto the audio timeline; it does not transcribe or look up lyrics.
- Is there an API?
- Yes. The same alignment engine is available over HTTP.