Sync your exact lyrics to the recording

1. 1

   Match the words to the recording

   Include every sung repeat and remove text that is not performed.

2. 2

   Create the automatic draft

   Upload the recording and run alignment with your exact lyrics.

3. 3

   Listen and refine

   Check phrase boundaries, then word segments and word timestamps before downloading.

Transcription estimates what was said. Lyric alignment starts from text you provide and places it against the recording. That distinction matters for names, repeated hooks, invented words and AI-generated songs whose sung lyrics differ from the original prompt.

Read the lyric sheet while playing the audio once before generating timing. Correcting a missing verse in the text is more useful than repeatedly aligning a sheet that does not match the performance.

• Line boundaries: check that each phrase belongs to the right passage of audio.
• Word segments: listen for skipped words, long holds and crowded phrases.
• Word timestamps: refine the points where karaoke highlighting should advance.

Soft vocals, overlapping singers, reverb, fast delivery and long instrumental passages can make automatic placement less certain. Treat the draft as a starting point and spend your review time on those passages.

A useful timing file follows the actual recording. A repeated chorus may have the same text but different phrasing, so each occurrence needs its own place in the timeline.

Use the waveform and zoom controls to focus on a short phrase. Play the relevant line or word, then drag the timing boundaries so the selection follows the vocal. The word review passes begin at half speed; check the phrase at normal speed afterward.

A waveform is a guide to the recording, not a printed map of its words. Listen before and after the selected boundary, especially when instruments overlap the vocal or a singer joins words together.

When a vocal stem is available for the job, switch between the mix and vocals to hear the passage more clearly. You can reopen completed review passes if a later listen reveals something to change.

• Check word timing without confusing precision with accuracy

Here, a timestamp locates a lyric line or word within one song. A DJ tracklist locates where each track begins in a mix. Use SongTimestamps for that song-start workflow.

• Create a DJ tracklist or song-start chapters with SongTimestamps

Does lyric synchronization mean automatic transcription?

No. This workflow times the words you supply. If you start from a transcript, first correct it to match the recording, then align the corrected lyrics.

Can I fix an individual word without accepting the whole automatic result?

Yes. The review workflow lets you adjust line and word timing. Your final export reflects the timing you have reviewed.

Should I repeat the chorus in the lyric text?

Yes. Include each occurrence in performance order. A single chorus label does not describe all the places where those words are sung.

Can I sync lyrics for an instrumental track?

Lyric timing needs an audible vocal or spoken performance to match. Instrumental sections can sit between lyric lines, but an instrumental track has no sung words to align.

Why does the same LRC drift on a different version of a song?

The timestamps describe the recording used during alignment. Added silence, cuts, tempo changes or a different performance can make another version diverge.

Is syncing lyrics to audio the same as making karaoke word timestamps?

Word-level synchronization supplies the timing a karaoke display can use. For word-by-word highlighting, export enhanced LRC or word timing data and use a compatible player or renderer; a line-timed file alone does not contain every word's time.

• A complete lyric timing walkthroughPrepare the text, generate a draft and refine it by ear.
• Preview a timing filePlay an existing lyric file against your audio.
• Compare automatic and manual lyric sync toolsSee documented workflows, exports and the limits of the evidence.