TITLE: Phone Face Down

STYLE: modern pop-soul ballad; warm, radio-ready, live-band feel; intimate verse → big emotional chorus; timeless, not retro cosplay

TEMPO: 86 BPM, 4/4

KEY: A minor (chorus warms with major color via chords; no key change)

STRUCTURE: Verse → Chorus → Bridge → Final Chorus → Outro

INSTRUMENTS: Rhodes + warm acoustic piano; melodic electric bass; tight live drum kit (rim/snare in verse → fuller kit in chorus); clean electric guitar chords; tambourine in choruses only; subtle strings ONLY in final chorus

DROP: 1-beat breath-drop before each chorus—cut drums+bass; leave Rhodes + dry knock; slam back on “I”

MOTIF: dry knock accent hits on “Phone face down” and every “I love you”; on “one, two, three” it becomes 3 knocks (ONE—TWO—THREE), then 1 beat of silence

VOCALS: solo male tenor; close-mic; warm and confident; crisp diction; smooth vibrato only at line ends; NO ad-libs; NO ooh/ah; stacked harmonies enter in choruses (2-part), thicker in final chorus (3-part)

MIX: warm saturation; vocal upfront; chorus wider than verse; tight low end; keep space

DO NOT SING ANYTHING IN BRACKETS.

VERSE

close, conversational; behind the beat; dry

soft hold

gentle lift; hold “two” slightly

2nd “you” a touch higher; warmth

CHORUS

after breath-drop: full band hits; chorus opens up

open chest tone; clean

repeat same melody; mantra

let “truth” bloom; slight vibrato at end

firm landing; tiny smile

BRIDGE

strip back: Rhodes + bass + light rim; voice tight and emotional

steady; honest

slightly darker tone; controlled

3 knocks with the words; then 1 beat silence

bare, closest-mic moment

FINAL CHORUS

biggest lift; tambourine + harmony stacks; strings enter softly

harmony stack begins

harmony stack

wider; brighter

hold “do”; gentle resolve

OUTRO

strip back; dry and close; leave silence