I randomly chose this song without any thought because I believe all songs are poetic in nature. “Climax” by Usher is like a poem because it has (as most songs do) rhythm. This rhythm is achieved by the recurrence of stressed and unstressed sounds that the artist use to produce a slow paced, a sort of smooth sound. Some of these sounds are also achieved by Usher’s use of assonance and alliteration repetitively though out the song. For example the poem has 7 verses (stanzas), that begins and ends with the chorus (or stanza that repeats itself in the poem.) Assonance appears in the second verse with the words “ground” “down” “now” and “around”. Alliteration appears thought out the poem with the consonant “W” dominating most nearby words. The effect of the devices are heard better than when just reading the lyrics, and produces a sound that, although may not rhyme, flows perfectly together. There is simile when he says “Love is the cloud” in that same verse (so the artist also use figurative language).
Besides variances in the song structure there aren’t any characteristics in the song (that I can think of) that deviate from poetry. However, the tone of a song doesn’t solely rely on the words in the lyrics; the addition of beats, musical instruments, and voice of the artist has an effect on the tone as well. Some people may think the song denotes a steamy sexual encounter as the title “Climax” suggests but a careful analysis or line by line read of the lyrics reveals that the song is actually more than just that. (So Usher’s word choice also plays a role in the song similar to poetry) The song is about love and it’s experiences particularly relationships that have reached it’s highest point or peak (climax) and one either have to let it go or commit. Usher’s voice and high falsetto along with the beat of the song gives it that sexy tone, as the title suggests.
here’s the link to the song http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/usher/climax.html
