Lyric Websites are the Trashiest Places on the Internet
Music is a very important part of my life. I don’t pay attention to lyrics much though. However, there are times when I want to read the lyrics to a song. Google “[song title] lyrics” and click on the first result. This will always lead to one of the worst experiences one can have on the internet. Lyric websites are some of the most user-hostile websites in existence. They are horribly designed and slathered in ads. In addition to the regular ads there’s at least half a dozen more ads that jump around the page trying to sell you the ringtone for whatever song you’re interested in. You may or may not be able to copy-n-paste lyrics. Unexplained things may happen simply by moving the cursor around.
It seems like song lyrics is an area where it’s impossible to do good work. Why? Surely, a well-designed user-focused lyric site or app would be a great thing which lots of people would use.
Better yet, why don’t the songs I buy from iTunes have the lyrics embedded in the metadata? iTunes has a place for it. Lyrics have their own tab right alongside ‘Artwork’. Many albums on iTunes will include lyrics in the digital booklet. Why not just put ‘em into the metadata as well? Why make me go to the trashiest places on the internet just so I can confirm the lyrics I think I’m hearing are correct?
