Just speak normally. And this app will turn it into a song, complete with music. For free.

There will be those who will wonder why we are talking about Songify now. After all, the app has been around for a while and has run up a number of downloads. Well, mainly because we think that this is one of those apps that everyone with an iOS device simply has to try out--it is simple to use and yet delivers something that is almost magical.


Songify simply converts everything that you say into a song. That's it. You switch on the app, hit the record button, speak whatever you wish--a speech, a poem, a random statement on economic policy...you name it. Once you have finished, the app will play back what you have said. Only it will be in the form of a song, with changes made to the pitch and tone of your voice and accompanied by music. If you don't like what you have heard, you can opt for a different style of music by hitting the "Re-songify" button--there are a number of other options available, some of which are free and some which have to be purchased.


The important thing to remember in Songify is that it does not just record your voice and throw in music randomly. No, there are tweaks made to the pitch of your voice and certain terms are repeated to give it a song-like feel. The overall result is a highly electronic voice that bears a passing resemblance to your real voice. The app has been prepared with help from the Gregory Brothers, known best for the Web series Auto Tune the News, in which the voices of people appearing on the news were tweaked to form a melody. Well, the formula definitely works in Songify--we found that it tended to handled speeches and poetry very well, and actually even managed to make a simple "Good morning" worth tapping a foot to. And we were pleasantly surprised to see that the app was not tied just to English--it even did a decent job with some Hindi and Punjabi statements, although its songification of a Tamil dialogue seemed a bit weird!  You can share the songs you create on Facebook and Twitter and also mail a file of your creation to your friends, and even check out the efforts of other Songify users, if you feel inclined to.

Of course, this is not the app for music purists. There will be complaints that the songs get generated too randomly with the user having no control over which phrase or word will get repeated time and again. Also, some will not like the fact that you have absolutely no control over the output and the fact that you cannot mix and match styles--but then this is a song generator, and not really an audio track editor. The real charm of Songify is in its simplicity and effectiveness. Download it, speak to it, and sit back and enjoy.


Available from: iTunes App Store
Price: Free

--Nimish Dubey