How to write a rap about someone (with a 16-bar example)
Pick three specific facts about the person, build a 4-bar hook around their name, then use 12 bars of verse to tell those facts as small stories and end on something kind.
8 min read · Updated
The shape of a rap about someone
A personal rap is short. It is not an album track; it is a toast with a beat. Sixteen bars is the classic length of a verse and it runs about 45 to 60 seconds, which is as long as a room full of people will stay quiet. Split it like this:
| Part | Bars | Job |
|---|---|---|
| Hook | 4 | Their name, the occasion, the best joke |
| Verse, part 1 | 4 | Fact one as a tiny story |
| Verse, part 2 | 4 | Fact two, bigger and sillier |
| Verse, part 3 | 4 | Flip to sincere and end on love |
A bar is one line that takes one measure of the beat, about four beats. Two bars that rhyme at the end make a couplet, and couplets are what the ear follows.
1. Collect three facts nobody else would know
The facts are the rap. A good one is a habit, a running joke or a small story: always late, same drive-thru order every night, ten minutes of lifting and forty of mirror selfies. Skip looks, weight, race and anything they would not laugh at in front of their mom.
- Ask two friends for one story each. The best facts are the ones the person tells about themselves.
- Look in the group chat. A nickname, a typo that stuck or a meme only you share is gold.
- Make it concrete. Not "he loves food" but "he has the same drive-thru order every night".
- Pick one that shows why you love them. You will need it for the ending.
2. Build the hook on their name
The hook is four lines and it repeats, so it carries the name and the occasion. End lines on words that rhyme easily: late, date, weight, great. Short videos only play the hook, so it has to work alone.
Names that are hard to rhyme are fine: put the name in the middle of the line and rhyme on the word after it. "Happy birthday Mike, man, you are still great" rhymes on great, not on Mike.
3. Turn each fact into four bars
Give each fact its own four lines: set it up, exaggerate it, land the joke. Then flip the tone for the last four bars and say why they matter. A roast that ends sweet lands; a roast that ends mean does not.
Look at how each block works. "Said he’d be here at eight, rolled in at ten" is fact one, told as a story with a time in it. The drive-thru and the gym mirror are fact two and three, each exaggerated. Then "But when your car breaks down, he’s the first one there" turns the whole thing into a compliment.
Writing it from two people
If two of you are giving the rap, write it as "we". This sample is two best friends rapping to a third for her 25th birthday. Notice the first line names her, the second explains who is rapping, and the third gives the age.
“Jess, it's your birthday and we took the booth tonight”
“Two best friends on the mic and we wrote you every line”
“Twenty-five and glowing, you still own the dance floor”4. Check the flow out loud
- Keep lines to about 10 to 12 syllables, under 60 characters, so they fit a bar.
- Rhyme the last word of each pair of lines; inner rhymes are a bonus.
- Read it over a beat. Any line you stumble on, cut a word.
- Count the stresses, not the letters. "Group chat on fire, everybody knows" has four strong beats and sits on the bar.
- Say the name the way friends say it. If everyone calls him Mikey, write Mikey.
If a line still feels long, delete the adjectives first. Rap runs on nouns and verbs.
Match the tone to the moment
| Moment | Vibe | What to tease | How to end |
|---|---|---|---|
| Birthday | Hype | Age, lateness, habits | Another great year |
| Roast | Roast | Their worst habits | Why you still love them |
| Anniversary | Sweet | How you met | Why you would do it again |
| Office farewell | Hype | Meetings, the coffee | What the team will miss |
| Mother’s or Father’s Day | Sweet | Burnt dinners, dad jokes | Thank you |
For birthday-specific lines, see birthday rap lyrics. For a roast that stays friendly, see how to write a roast rap.
Performing it, or letting a video do it
If you are rapping it yourself at a party or a wedding, print it in big type, practise it three times over the beat, and slow down: nerves make everyone rap too fast. Pause after each punchline so the room can laugh. Look at the person on the last four bars.
If you would rather not stand up, play it as a video on the TV or the speaker instead. A wedding toast from two best men works well this way: the roast lands, and nobody has to remember the words.
“Danny's getting married, yo we flew in for the toast”
“Lost his keys, lost his phone, still the man who loves her most”
“Back in college he was burning ramen every night”The shortcut
Type the name and up to 3 facts into the rap lyrics generator and it writes the 16 bars in this shape for free, no account needed. Edit the lines that are not quite them, then make it a song or a video of them rapping it.
Questions
How many bars is a rap verse?
Usually 16 bars, about 45 to 60 seconds. A short gift rap works well as a 4-bar hook plus a 12-bar verse.
How do I roast someone in a rap without being mean?
Tease habits and stories, never looks, race or identity, and end with a line that shows you love them.
Can AI write a rap about my friend?
Yes. Give it their name and up to 3 facts and it writes 16 bars in seconds, free with no account.
What rhymes with a hard name?
You do not have to rhyme the name. Put it mid-line and rhyme on the last word instead.
