[[quoteright:297:[[Webcomic/ElGoonishShive https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ThisIsASong_1325.png]]]]
[[caption-width-right:297:Sarah's ringtone is very descriptive.]]

->''"Joss, that song had no content. It wasn't even about the movie, it was about itself! That's like breaking the ninth wall!"''
-->-- '''Jed''', ''Ten Dollar Solo'', ''WebVideo/CommentaryTheMusical''

A song that is, at least partially, about itself.

When MediumAwareness meets music. There are quite a few songs in which the lyrics explicitly reference the fact that... well, it's a song. However, since listing every example that does this would be practically impossible, this trope limits the range to songs that don't just [[BreakingTheFourthWall break the fourth wall]], but, in fact, are pretty much all about the fact that they're songs.

Generally PlayedForLaughs. Closely related to TheSomethingSong. Compare and contrast HowIWroteThisArticleArticle, which is writing about not knowing what to write anymore. Compare SelfDemonstratingSong. Sometimes BreakingTheFourthWall. See also TropeName, {{Postmodernism}}, and HeavyMeta.
----
!! Examples:

[[foldercontrol]]

[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
* ''Anime/PokemonTheOriginalSeries'': In one episode, Team Rocket decide to forgo their usual motto in favor of a song:
--> ''You know us as Team Rocket, and we fight for what is wrong.\\
We're tired of our motto, so we thought we'd try a song.''
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Asian Animation]]
* The full version of the English-dubbed ''Animation/GGBond'' theme song contains a short rap section that has the lyrics "''GG's always going strong/That's why he's got his own theme song''".
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Comedy]]
* "The Chicken Parmigiana Song" on The D-Generation's ''The Satanic Sketches'' album, about a singer in a crowded hotel:
-->I'm just a singer in a crowded hotel\\
I only work here 'cause the money's steady\\
Sometimes I think no one's listening to my song\\
''(over PA, drowning out singer)'' Number 26! Your chicken parmigiana is ready!
* Comedy duo Shortis & Simpson have an AudienceParticipationSong called "Don't You hate It When They Make You Sing Along?"
* Music/MorrisMinorAndTheMajors: "This is the Chorus" is a parody of Music/StockAitkenWaterman that describes how formulaic it is.
-->And this is the chorus, yeah, this is the chorus,\\
It goes around and around and gets into your brain.\\
This is the chorus, the fabulous chorus,\\
And thirty seconds from now, you're gonna hear it again.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Films -- Animation]]
* ''WesternAnimation/{{The Little Mermaid|1989}}'': Shalalala float along, and listen to the song, the song say "Kiss the Girl!"
* ''WesternAnimation/JonahAVeggieTalesMovie'':
** "The Credits Song":
--->''This is the song that comes under the credits, These are the credits, so this is where it goes. Has nothing to do with the movie, so we'll say: Hey, hey, hey-hey hey hey hey hey!''
** And then later:
--->''There should be a rule that the song under the credits, remotely pertains to the movie's basic plot! That rule has not been made, so for now we'll have to say: Hey, hey, hey-hey hey hey hey hey!''
* ''WesternAnimation/TheLEGOMovie2TheSecondPart'': "Catchy Song", a song which tells you as the chorus it's going to get stuck inside your head.
-->''This song is now in your brain''\\
''And even if you go insane''\\
''In your brain it will REMAIN!''
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
* The TitleThemeTune from ''Film/SpyHard''. Of course, given [[Music/WeirdAlYankovic the artist who wrote it]] and [[{{Parody}} the type of film it is]]...
-->''You're watching Spy Hard.\\
It's the theme from Spy Hard.''
* In ''Theatre/TheSoundOfMusic'', the song "Do Re Mi" is about singing the song "Do Re Mi". The scene is a TrainingMontage as the characters learn how to sing.
* In ''[[Series/TheColbertReport A Colbert Christmas]]'', the first song is "Another Christmas Song," which is about how he wrote a christmas song and intends to make lots of money off of it.
* ''Film/{{Elf}}'': Buddy improvises one to demonstrate how easy it is to sing in public.
-->''I'm singing... I'm in a store, and I'm singing...''
* ''Film/{{Woodstock}}'': Richie Havens, "Handsome Johnny"
-->''Hey, what's the use of singing this song\\
Some of you are not even listening''
* ''Film/TheBeauBrummels'': The silly song that Shaw and Lee sing at the end of the routine.
-->''The guy who wrote this song was deaf\\
He couldn't hear a note...\\
This is the verse\\
This is the verse\\
The bird who wrote the words was crazy as a loon\\
There's nothing to this song but the tune\\
This is the chorus to the song\\
This is the chorus, you're hearing now.''
* In ''Film/Fury2014'', the SS battalion is heard at distance singing ''Teufelslied'' (The Devil's Song)
--> ''SS marsciert im Feindesland\\
und singt das Teufelslied''\\
(SS marches in the enemy country\\
and sings the Devil's song)
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Live-Action TV]]
* ''Donny Loves Jenny'' opens with the very obvious "This is Our Theme Song".
* Probably the best TV theme example for this trope: The TitleThemeTune of ''Series/ItsGarryShandlingsShow''.
-->''It's almost halfway finished, how do you like it so far? This is the theme to Garry Shandling's Show.''
* "[[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin The Song That Doesn't End]]" from ''Series/LambChopsPlayAlong''.
* ''Series/MysteryScienceTheater3000'':
** "[[Recap/MysteryScienceTheater3000S03E10FugitiveAlien Fugitive Alien]]" [[WithLyrics made one]] for [[Film/FugitiveAlien the film]]: [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=juvKrcMWXKc This is the song written for the train chase...]]
** Also [[Recap/MysteryScienceTheater3000S03E22MasterNinja their theme for]] ''Series/MasterNinja''; "MASTER NINJA THEME SONG!"
* In ''Series/SesameStreet'', Music/{{Sugarland}} and Elmo sing [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKkrXtXEb0M "All You Need is a Song"]] which is about... well... [[ForHappiness when songs are helpful]].
* ''Series/SpittingImage'': "The Chicken Song" is about an annoying song that you hear on holiday and which seems to follow you everywhere:
-->''And now you've heard it once,\\
Your brain will spring a leak,\\
And, though you hate this song,\\
You'll be humming it for weeks!''
* In the ''Series/StarTrekStrangeNewWorlds'' episode "[[Recap/StarTrekStrangeNewWorldsS2E09SubspaceRhapsody Subspace Rhapsody]]", ''Status Report'' is a song about how everything appears to be fine except for the oddity that [[MusicalEpisode everyone finds themselves delivering their reports in song form]].
* "Beggin' On Your Knees" by the cast of ''Series/{{Victorious}}''.
-->''So oh, Mister Player, do you feel like the man now?\\
And I bet you're nervous 'cause this song makes you freak out''
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Music]]
* In Markoolio's song "Nostalgi", the verses are about nostalgia. The refrain, however, is an argument where Markoolio sings that he want the song to have a refrain - and the chorus sing a message about how he shouldn't bother because they can just record one later.
* "Just a Song About Ping Pong" by Operator Please.
* Music/TimMinchin's "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrmOTkcfZgA Dark Side]]".
** Also, his song "The Fence".
** And "Three Minute Song", his (mostly) clean song written for TV spots which details why and how he wrote a (mostly) clean song for TV spots. And which is ''exactly'' [[RunningTimeInTheTitle three minutes long]].
* Music/JonLajoie's "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0Gs4xGw1Eg Radio Friendly Song]]".
** Also, "Pop Song":
-->'''Cause they market this song to young, impressionable, and insecure teenage girls\\
'Cause all you gotta say is "ooh baby, I love you" and "girl, I need you in my world"\\
Yes, they market this song to young, impressionable, and insecure teenage girls\\
'Cause all they gotta do is find a sexually attractive man that can sing all the words''
* Music/LeonardCohen did a fair amount of this:
** "Hallelujah" spells out its own chord progression.
-->''It goes like this: the fourth, the fifth, the minor fall and the major lift...''
** "Take This Waltz" is, in fact, a waltz.
* Molly and the Tinker's "The Anti-Singalong Song" is a song about [[MindScrew the act of]] ''[[SelfDemonstratingArticle singing]]'' [[PostModernism "The Anti-Singalong Song"]]. [[LogicBomb Or rather, about refusing to sing it.]]
* "So Far, So Bad" by Music/FiveIronFrenzy.
-->''Don't worry what this song would say,\\
you'll never hear it anyway.\\
They won't play this song on the radio.\\
So far, so bad, that's how it goes.''
** Subverted with "See The Flames Begin To Crawl", which describes the band [[TrashTheSet Trashing The Set]], but the tone of the song doesn't match the lyrics at all, and they don't actually do any of the things they're describing.
* "Please Play This Song On The Radio" by Music/{{NOFX}}.
* Music/BritneySpears - "Everytime"
-->''I may have made it rain''\\
''Please forgive me''\\
''My weakness caused you pain''\\
''And this song is my sorry''
* "I Write the Songs" by Music/BarryManilow is the TropeCodifier.
* Music/{{Microdisney}}'s "Bullwhip Road" uses it twice, in a bitter and cynical way:
-->''I am no good for you; I can do no wrong''\\
''I've written you this song''
** And later on:
-->''I hate the world''\\
''I hate my life and this song''\\
''Now run along''
* From "I'm Lucky" by Jim's Big Ego:
-->''Now here's the part of the song where you'd expect to find a little''\\
''IRONY!''\\
''About how I'd really much rather have you back''\\
''SORRY!''
* "Chicken and Corn" by Music/{{Annihilator}}:
-->''This is a song,''\\
''All about...''\\
''The best darned food in the world,''\\
''It's called [[RuleOfThree Chick-Chick-Chicken]] and Corn.''
* "Dont't Forget Me" by Dermot Kennedy is a song for the narrator's ex-girlfriend, who's moving on with her life:
-->I get this feeling like I'm fading from your memory \\
So I wrote this song and called it "Don't Forget Me" \\
Every time you hear it will you smile?
* Naturally, "Your Song" by Music/EltonJohn:
-->''And you can tell everybody''\\
''This is your song.''
** As well as "Step into Christmas"
-->''Welcome to my Christmas song''
* Lampshaded to hell and back in the self-explanatory [[https://youtu.be/do5vXn_Rap4 "This Song's Just Six Words Long"]][[note]]The actual line in the song is "This song ''is'' just six words long," making the song actually seven words long, even not counting all the other stanzas.[[/note]] by Music/WeirdAlYankovic. It's a send-up of George Harrison's "I've Got My Mind Set On You."
** In fact, Weird Al does this all the time, throughout his repertoire. Another example would be "Don't Download This Song".
** "Achy Breaky Song" is a meta-example, as it's not about itself, but rather about the song it's parodying:
-->''Don't play that song''\\
''That "Achy Breaky" song''\\
''You know I hate that song a bunch''\\
''And if you play that song''\\
''That nauseating song''\\
''It might just make me lose my lunch.''
** "Smells Like Music/{{Nirvana}}" is another classic example about how hard it is to understand the lyrics of the titular grunge band.
* Creator/ShelSilverstein's [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxGX9OeQCCo "26 Second Song"]], designed as a TakeThat to all who thought his usual songs were too long.
** Kenny Price had a novelty song that topped this. The lyrics, ''in their entirety'':
-->''This is the shortest song in the world.''
* [=DaVinci's=] Notebook's song [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=734wnHnnNR4 "Title of the Song"]] is made of this trope.
* Dave Soroka pushes this to another level in "Thief Of Hearts":
-->''I've taken enough of your time with this stuff,''\\
''And all without a change of key.''\\
''The intention here was to try and help make it clear''\\
''Not to start crying pity for me.''
* "The Last Song" by Music/TheAllAmericanRejects:
-->''This may be the last thing''\\
''That I write for long.''\\
''Can you hear me smiling''\\
''When I sing this song,''\\
''For you and only you?''
* "Cupid's Chokehold by Gym Class Heroes
-->''Now she's even got her own song (But movin' on)''
** Similarly, the earlier "Last Song" by Edward Bear:
--->''It's the last song I'll ever write for you''\\
''It's the last time that I'll tell you''\\
''Just how much I really care''\\
''This is the last song I'll ever sing for you''\\
''You'll come looking for the light''\\
''And it won't be there''
* Music/BarenakedLadies, "What A Good Boy":
-->''I couldn't tell you that I was wrong,''\\
''Chickened out, grabbed a pen and a paper, sat down and I wrote this song.''
* Music/TenaciousD does this frequently, from advising all male listeners to pay close attention at the start of their song, "Fuck Her Gently", to making tributes to other songs.
** "Tribute" is not the greatest song in the world. Rather, as the lyrics state, it is just a ''tribute to'' the greatest song in the world.
* Music/{{Lagwagon}}'s "Falling Apart":
-->''Second verse,''\\
''The same as the first.''\\
''I forgot the words again.''
* Music/LemonDemon's [[WordSaladTitle "Holy Bison Breaks"]] is about songwriters block.
-->''Well, I thought I'd write a little song,''\\
''So I wrote a little song.''\\
''Then I tried to write some lyrics,''\\
''But I didn't last too long.''\\
''So I figured: why not sing about me''\\
''Trying to write a song an' stuff,''\\
''And I decided to keep on singing 'till I had had enough.''
* Tony Mason, author of ''Barney's on Fire'', did an entire '''album''' of this, with tracks such as "Title Track", "Hit Single" and "The Song You Skip".
* Music/CarlySimon presents a LogicBomb in "You're So Vain".
--> ''You prob'ly think this song is about you.''
* Let's not forget Music/BowlingForSoup's song "A Really Cool Dance Song".
-->''This song sounds like a dance song''\\
''Because dance songs are cool now''\\
''So get up and shake what your mama gave you''\\
''It's our attempt at a dance song''\\
''A really cool dance song''\\
''It's gonna be a great big hit!''
** And then there's: "You want it? You got it! Here's your freakin' song!"
** ''Almost'' ends with a line about how the singer almost wrote the song he just sang, [[MindScrew but didn't]].
-->''I almost wrote a song, about you today,''\\
''But I tore it all up and then I threw it away!''
* Music/FrankSinatra, "I Sing the Songs"
** Sinatra also sang the original version of "The Christmas Waltz", written by Sammy Cahn and Jule Styne, which features the lyric, "And this song of mine, in three-quarter time..."
* Music/TheyMightBeGiants, "Number Three" (which is the third track on their [[Music/TheyMightBeGiantsAlbum debut album]]):
-->''There's only two songs in me, and I just wrote the third.''\\
''Don't know where I got the inspiration or how I wrote the words.''\\
''Spent my whole life just diggin' up my music's shallow grave''\\
''For the two songs in me, and the third one I just made.''
* [[Music/TheBeatles Ringo Starr]], "This Be Called a Song".
* Music/PetShopBoys' "All Over The World":
-->''This is a song about boys and girls''\\
''You hear it playing all over the world''
* Music/{{Pulp}}'s "The Fear":
-->''So now you know the words to our song,''\\
''Pretty soon you'll all be singing along.''\\
''When you're sad, when you're lonely & it all turns out wrong.''
* "Kill The Director" by The Wombats
-->''So with the angst of a teenage band''\\
''Here's another song about a gender I'll never understand''\\
''Here's another song about a gender I'll never understand''
* "Track #10" by the Procussions. The lyrics consist solely of variations on ''"This is track number ten!"''
* "The Song Of No-involvement" by Music/{{Skyclad|Band}}.
* "Love Song" by Music/SaraBareilles is all about how she was asked to write a love song, but she's not going to write one just because someone else wanted one.
* Similarly, Music/AlyAndAJ's "Potential Breakup Song", which states that this is their potential breakup song because their album needed one.
* "Sad Songs and Waltzes" by Music/WillieNelson ([[CoveredUp or CAKE]]), although it's not ''necessarily'' talking about itself.
-->''I'm writing a song all about you''\\
''A true song as real as my tears''\\
''But you've no need to fear it, 'cause no one will hear it''\\
''Sad songs and waltzes aren't selling this year''
* Subverted by "This is Not a Song, It's a Sandwich" by Music/{{Psychostick}}. Which is not a song, [[SarcasmMode it's a sandwich]].
** But played straight later in the same album with "#1 Radio $ingle", which actually IS a song about itself.
--->''This is the part of the song where I talk about emotions''\\
''And this is the part of the song where I sing about how I feel so cold inside''\\
''And this is where my producer told me''\\
''To say "Yeah!" (yeah!)''
* "Only A Northern Song" by Music/TheBeatles, which is actually more about the dissonance in the song than the song itself.
** The lyrics mention the dissonance, but what the song is actually about is Harrison's dissatisfaction with his contract with the music publisher "Northern Songs". The lyrics basically amount to "it doesn't matter if this song is any good or not, because it's only a Northern song" (and therefore Harrison will only receive a pittance in royalties compared to what he would have gotten had he published it with his own company Harrisongs).
* Music/GeorgeHarrison, who wrote "Only a Northern Song" (see above), used this trope again as a solo artist. He wrote "This Song" while legal action was underway regarding "My Sweet Lord/He's So Fine", saying in part:
-->''This song ain't bad or good and as far as I know''\\
''Don't infringe on anyone's copyright so''\\
''This song we'll let be''
* Music/{{Radiohead}}'s "My Iron Lung", which was about FanDumb audiences who wanted to hear "Creep" and only "Creep". It's up to interpretation whether the song is talking about itself or a hypothetical song, though, in the relevant part:
-->''This, this is our new song''\\
''Just like the last one''\\
''A total waste of time''\\
''My iron lung...''
* Music/SimonAndGarfunkel's "Song for the Asking"
-->''Here is my song for the asking''\\
''Ask me and I will play''\\
''So sweetly I'll make you smile''\\
''This is my tune for the taking''\\
''Take it, don't turn away''
** Also the first two lines of "Leaves That Are Green," which were reused by Billy Bragg for his hit "A New England":
-->''I was twenty-one years when I wrote this song''\\
''I'm twenty-two now, but I won't be long''
* "This is the Hook" by Music/{{Deadmau5}}, which sounds something like an electronica-backed [=DJing=] lesson.
-->''Now it is time for the breakdown.''\\
''The breakdown allows the track to really break the repetition.''\\
''Let's filter the hi-hat, let's filter the chords, let's filter the bass.''\\
''I like the filters. I like the grooves, but I digress.''
* "When Did You Fall" by Chris Rice:
-->''And I can tell now by the way that you’re looking at me''\\
''I’d better finish this song so my lips will be free.''
* "This Song for You" by Music/ChrisDeBurgh, although it's not ''entirely'' self-referential.
* "It's My Life" by Music/BonJovi:
-->''This ain't a song for the broken-hearted''
* Music/TraceAdkins' "This Ain't No Love Song" is somewhere between this and SuspiciouslySpecificDenial:
-->''This ain't no love song''\\
''I just felt like gettin' my guitar on''\\
''And singing a tune, singing about you''\\
''Yeah feeling good and tapping my shoes''\\
''And all this stuff I’m making up''\\
''Well, you probably wont be hearing it on the radio''\\
''But then you never know''\\
''So baby, if you want, you can sing along''\\
''But this ain’t no love song''
* Darryl Rhoades and the Hahavishnu Orchestra's "This Song is Boring" lampshades itself with not only the words repeated ad infinitum but the same guitar riff over and over.
* "This Is My Song," written by [[Creator/CharlieChaplin Sir Charles Chaplin]] for his 1966 movie ''A Countess From Hong Kong'' and performed by Petula Clark.
* This portion of the last verse from Music/TheBeatles' "I Will":
-->''And when at last I find you,''\\
''This song will fill the air''\\
''Sing it loud so I can hear you, make it easy to be near you''
* Music/{{Chicago}}'s "25 Or 6 To 4" was about the song writer's bout with writer's block.
* Music/MitchBenn
** "West End Musical" is three of these put together.
--->''This is a great big opening song...''\\
''This is a very simple tune...''\\
''This is the song you've already heard...''
** And in Radio/TheNowShow Pantomime (2010), he completed things with [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rwut3CgU_2Y "The Very Happy Ending Song"]]
--->''This iiisss - the Very Happy Ending Song !''\\
''It's a happy, clappy ending song, it's a bit too long,''\\
''But it has to go right here !''
** "Steal This Song" is about how he doesn't care if you copy it, distribute it or "change half the words and claim you wrote it".
** "Everything Sounds Like Music/{{Coldplay}} Now" is a kind of meta-example; it's about a class of songs that includes itself.
** Similarly, "Never Mind the Song (Look at the Stage Set)" is a big metal number describing [[GreatBallsOfFire the extravagant special effects at the concert]].
* "Song About Nothing" by <3
-->''So this is a song about nothing (Nothing!)''\\
''This is a song about nothing at all''\\
''Some other bands try to write serious songs''\\
''But we'll just have a ball''
** The completely unrelated "[[http://www.stevegoodie.com/actualsize/lyrics.html Song About Nothing]]", by Andy Corwin, which even goes so far as to say that "the very idea for this song isn't even original".
*** Meanwhile, "[[http://www.carlau.com/music-7.html Nothing to Say]]", written a couple years earlier by Carla Ulbrich, has most of the same thoughts as Corwin's song, up to and including hoping that, despite saying nothing, it'll become a hit due to its catchiness.
* ''Dragon Road'' song -- not Akira Kushida's, TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons-themed filk one ("It was on the first of August...").
* Music/{{Sparks}}' "Strange Animal" is about someone escaping the police by somehow walking into a song, although it's never quite specified that it's the song you're now hearing. At one point he begins to criticize the very song he's now part of ("But this song lacks a heart \ comes off overly smart"), and in the end it seems that he murders everyone else in the song and tries to change it into something more to his liking ("You're in need of a fix \ of a total remix \ so I must kill you all").
* The lyrics to Music/KingCrimson's song "Happy with What You Have to Be Happy With" from their album "The Power to Believe" is filled with this trope. Here is a sample:
-->''And when I have some words''\\
''This is the way I'll sing -''\\
''Through a distortion box ''\\
''To make them menacing''\\
''Yeah, then I'm gonna have to write a chorus''\\
''We're gonna need to have a chorus''\\
''And this seems to be as good as any other place to sing it till I'm blue in the face''
* "Hook" by Music/BluesTraveler is entirely about itself, describing how the hook brings you back, confessing that he doesn't mean any of what he is singing, and how the lyrics affect the listener, among other things.
** "Battle For Someone" goes into this territory slightly. The first verse is deeply cynical and bitter, the second verse is hopeful and optimistic. The third verse is about how the singer (and by extension most people) [[SlidingScaleOfIdealismVersusCynicism have to deal with both positive and negative attitudes]]. A line in the third verse spells it out: "The preceding verses are the two halves of my soul."
* "Wild Swimming" by Martha Tilston contains a verse in which she tells the person to whom the song is directed, that she plans to write a song about him, in which she will compare him to wild swimming. That song is, presumably, the one being sung.
* Music/VanessaAmorosi: "Heres your fucking song" on "I Thought We'd Stay Together".
* Music/TaylorSwift has done this at least a couple of times. "Dear John" and "Our Song" are the ones that spring immediately to mind.
* [[WebVideo/{{Charlieissocoollike}} Charlie McDonnell]] has a few:
** "A Song About A Song"
-->''Welcome to this song, which I wrote all myself''\\
''It's all about this song, which I did write''
** "The Birthday Song"
-->''This is a song that I wrote you for your birthday''
** "A Song About Love"
-->''This is a song about love!''
* Music/AliceCooper plays with this trope in "School's Out":
-->''Well we got no class''\\
''And we got no principles''\\
''And we got no innocence''\\
''We can't even think of a word that rhymes''
* Monty Python's "I Bet You They Won't Play This Song on the Radio". Which is only ''kind of'' about itself, as it actually could be played on the radio due to all the self-censorship.
-->''You can't say [airhorn] on the radio/Or [gunshot] or [twang] or [splat] ...''
* [[Music/{{Fun}} fun.]]'s "Some Nights"
-->''When I hear songs, they sound like this one...''
* When this trope is applied to a whole genre, we get the GaitaZuliana. There is a lot of songs about how itself is a traditional gaita song, how the song is more authentic and in a traditional style than others, and so on. Not that they doesn't hit other themes, but still a good third of all Gaita songs are or have some form of this trope.
* Music/TheShins' "Simple Song"
-->''This is a simple song/To say what you'd done''
* "Julia" by Music/TheBeatles states that it's a song of love. It's not a "Love Song" per se, as it's about John Lennon's late mother.
* "Silly Love Songs" by Wings. It's basically Music/PaulMcCartney going "there's a lot of silly love songs, I got no problem with that, I'm gonna sing one right now... IIIIII looooooove yooooooou..."
* "This is Just a Modern Rock Song" by Music/BelleAndSebastian.
* As you might anticipate from the title, [[http://www.thefump.com/fump.php?id=1491 "A Song For Worm Quartet To Sing With TV's Kyle"]] by Worm Quartet featuring TV's Kyle. Which breaks the fourth wall even more than you might expect, since it also has Kyle singing about how he refuses to appear on the song because it's repetitive and lazily written... And pointing out that Shoebox must have realized he'd feel that way to begin with, because he was the one who wrote all of the lyrics.
* Music/JonathanCoulton uses this trope in "Not About You":
-->''[[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial This song is not about you]]''\\
''You can put that in your pipe and smoke it''
* Music/PaulWilliams wrote "An Old Fashioned Love Song" along these lines. You might know the Music/ThreeDogNight version best.
-->''Just an old fashioned love song / Comin' down in three part harmony''\\
''Just an old fashioned love song / One I'm sure they wrote for you and me''
** He also wrote "Sad Song": "That's a sad song, that used to be our song."
** Arguably the opening line of [[Film/TheMuppetMovie "Rainbow Connection"]]; "Why are there so many songs about rainbows / And what's on the other side?"
* Music/ThePixies gave us "Tony's Theme":
-->''This is a song about a superhero named Tony! It's called Tony's Theme!''
* "One Of Those Songs" (also called "One of Those Wonderful Songs"), by Jimmy Durante
-->''Well, this is one of those songs that you hear now and then...''
* In "New Orleans" by Silver Jews, David Berman and Stephen Malkmus become "trapped inside the song".
* The Frank And Walters' "This Is Not A Song", which arrives at its chorus ("This is a song I wrote especially for you...") after first telling us a whole list of things the song is ''not''.
-->''This is not a song about politics''\\
''This is not a song about sex...''
* Music/FooFighters' "The Last Song" even opens with "This is a song". In that case, the last "that I will dedicate to [[Music/CourtneyLove you.]]"
* Common for Music/ScatmanJohn. The majority of his songs is about some message, some call themselves a song with a message explicitly.
-->I betcha really glad we're near the end on the song
----->''Popstar''
-->'''Scatman John:''' Hey Louis!\\
'''Ghost of Louis Armstrong:''' Yeah...?\\
'''SJ:''' Is that you?\\
'''LA:''' Yes, yes.\\
'''SJ:''' Oh, I'm Scatman John! Would you like to sing a song, man?\\
'''LA:''' Well, sure could! Look out...
----->''Everybody Jam!''
-->This is my song for you\\
Happiness will see you through\\
Listen to what I say\\
We can make a happy day
----->''Pripri Scat''
-->Just listen to the song,\\
That's as close as you'll get\\
To any sense of hope\\
To get your soul out of debt.
----->''Shut your mouth and open your mind''
* Music/RelientK's "Crayons Can Melt on Us For All I Care" is ten seconds long. The lyrics go like this:
-->I\\
Just wasted\\
Ten seconds of your life.
* Music/RandyNewman does this in the first verse of "Rednecks":
-->''Well, he may be a fool but he's our fool''\\
''If they think they're better than him they're wrong''\\
''So I went to the park and I took some paper along''\\
''And that's where I made this song.''
* Music/ThomasRhett, "It Goes Like This":
-->Hey girl, you make me wanna write a song\\
Sit you down, I'll sing it to you all night long\\
I've had a melody in my head since she walked in here and knocked me dead\\
Yeah girl, you make me wanna write a song\\
And it goes like ooh, what I wouldn't do\\
To write my name on your heart, get you wrapped in my arms baby all around you\\
And it goes like hey, girl I'm blown away\\
Yeah, it starts with a smile and it ends with an all night long slow kiss\\
Yeah, it goes like this
* "Partners, Brothers, and Friends" by the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band does this on the last verse:
-->The band says it can't stand\\
My latest song, it's too personal\\
But my first wife's second marriage blew up\\
They had to get the dang thing annulled\\
Well, if that ain't something to sing about\\
You tell me what is\\
And we'll give it a beat and put it on the street\\
And we'll just might have another hit
* "This Song" by ''Music/PaulAndStorm'' is a commercial pitching the song as perfect for a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KSCbk3BPxZI commercial]].
-->This song could be in a commercial\\
It's simple and acoustic so it's utterly non-threatening\\
And it's pretty and sincere, and there's not too many words\\
You can talk about insurance or a car *Beat*\\
In all the spaces in between
* Music/PorcupineTree's "Hatesong":
-->This is a hate song just meant for you\\
I thought that I'd write it down while I still could\\
I hope when you hear this you'll want to sue
* "One Million Views" by ''Goldfish'' is a variation on this, being a song about the music video for the song
* The first track of Music/{{Alphaville}}'s ''Catching Rays on Giant'' is "Song For No One."
-->This is the song for no one but myself, for myself, for myself
* A ditty similar to "The Song That Never Ends."
-->I know a song that gets on everybody's nerves\\
And this is how it goes
* "Fire and Rain" by Music/JamesTaylor
-->I walked out this morning, and I wrote down this song\\
I just can't remember who to send it to
* "The Last Cowboy Song" by Ed Bruce
-->This is the last cowboy song\\
The end of a hundred year waltz\\
The voices sound sad as they're singing along\\
Another piece of America's lost
* "Fight Song" by Music/RachelPlatten:
-->This is my fight song\\
Take back my life song\\
Prove I'm alright song
* "Heartbeat Song" by Music/KellyClarkson:
-->This is my heartbeat song and I'm gonna play it\\
Been so long I forgot how to turn it up up up up all night long
* "Them Old Song Writin' Blues" by Music/EricBogle is a song about how hard it was to write the song. May also counts as a SanitySlippageSong.
-->And why do I write all my songs in the key of G?\\
Be easier usin' another one like -- umm-err-umm
* "Ask Me How I Know" by Music/GarthBrooks has the line "Go on and shake your head and tell me that I'm wrong / Say, 'I'm just another fool and this is just another song'." Later on, Garth sings "And you best put this song on repeat / Maybe then you won't end up like me"
* Music/{{U2}}:
** Bono does this in "Song For Someone" by saying "This is a song...a song for someone".
** Earlier, they asked "How long must we sing this song?" several times in "Sunday Bloody Sunday". Although the "song" in question might have been UsefulNotes/TheTroubles.
* Afroman did an entire verse of this in "Because I Got High":
-->I'mma stop singing this song because I'm high.\\
I'm singing this whole thing wrong because I'm high.\\
And if I don't sell one copy, I know why.\\
'Cause I'm high, 'Cause I'm high, 'Cause I'm high.
* Chilliwack's song "My Girl (Gone, Gone, Gone)" has the singer lament the loss of his girl and the fact that he has no way of getting in touch with her. However, he claims there's a chance if "she hears this song, hear it on the radio."
* Music/AxisOfAwesome has a few songs like this, including [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2cfxv8Pq-Q "How To Write A Love Song"]] and [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dBMl2DvlNHU "We Are So Young"]].
* "Pop 101" by Music/MarianasTrench is a tongue-in-cheek explanation of how to write a catchy pop song.
--> The chords are 1-4-6-4\\
Now I'm talking familiar\\
Harmony in thirds not fourths\\
Will take you into the pre-chorus
* Music/OneDirection's "Don't Forget Where You Belong":
--> Don't forget where you belong, home\\
Don't forget where you belong, home\\
If you ever feel alone, don't\\
You were never on your own\\
And the proof is in this song
* The Coodabeen Champions' "If It's Not Country (What is it?)"
-->"Sing this song that I'm singing\\
It's not too complicated, is it?\\
No fancy stuff, no tricky bits.\\
You might say there's not much in it.\\
Well they say there's someone for everyone,\\
And one born every minute.\\
Well they say my music's not country,\\
But if it's not country\\
What is it?\\
It's only got three or four chords and it's four on the floor.\\
Well, if it gets too fancy, it's not country anymore.
* "The Song Is The Single" by BARR - the verses do go off on tangents but are mainly about the song itself or the nature of pop songs in general. The chorus is simply:
--> The song is the single
--> And the single sucks
--> It never sounded good
--> It always sounded bad
* Howard Jones' "New Song":
-->I've been waiting for so long\\
To come here now and sing this song\\
Don't be fooled by what you see\\
Don't be fooled by what you hear, whoa\\
\\
This is a song to all of my friends\\
They take the challenge to their hearts\\
Challenging preconceived ideas\\
Saying goodbye to long standing fears
* Bing and Gary Crosby's "Sam's Song":
-->Here's a happy tune you'll love to croon\\
They call it Sam's Song\\
It's catchy as can be, the melody\\
They call it Sam's Song\\
Nothing on your mind\\
And then you'll find you're humming Sam's Song\\
Why, it makes you grin\\
Gets under your skin as only a song can do
* The Mills Brothers' "Opus One":
-->Oh, baby, I'm a-rackin' my brain, to think of a name\\
To give to this tune, so Perry can croon\\
And maybe old Bing will give it a fling\\
And that'll start everyone hummin' the thing\\
\\
The melody's dumb, repeat and repeat\\
But if you can swing, it's got a good beat\\
And that's the main thing, to make it complete\\
'Cause everyone's swingin' today
* A version appears in the chorus to the Music/{{AJR}} song [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4THFRpw68oQ "Bang!"]]
--> So put your best face on, everybody
--> Pretend you know this song, everybody
* The final song Boys Will Be Boys in Music/DuaLipa second album Future Nostalgia includes this
--> If you're offended by this song
--> You're clearly doing something wrong
--> If you're offended by this song
--> Then you're probably saying
--> Boys will be, boys will be Boys will be, boys will be boys
--> But girls will be women
* Al Green's "[[SpellingSong L-O-V-E]]":
-->I started to write this song about you\\
And then I decided that I would write it all about love
* Labi Siffre's "My Song":
-->This is my song\\
And no one can take it away
* Radio/RadioActive's album ''Never Mind the Originals Here's the Heebeegeebees'', contains parodies of Music/StatusQuo (''"We have to play the same refrain/And the same refrain again/Of this boring song"'') and Music/PaulMcCartney (''"And now we come to the second verse/Which I'm singing now/I wonder what I'll say in it/Oh well, it's over anyhow"'').
* The group Yachts had a ditty love song, "Suffice to Say" that started:
-->''I'm just an old romantic fool\\
I wrote this specially for you\\
Although the rhyming's not that hot\\
It's quite a catchy little tune''
** The second verse makes things perfectly clear:
--->''So what d'you think of it so far?\\
You know I'm feeling rather proud\\
My words have never been that strong\\
Things really are improving now\\
I never wrote a middle eight\\
So we'll just have to do without\\
But there's an instrumental break\\
Just after this...''
Suffice to say it was released on Stiff Records.
* Insane Ian's "Shortest Song" and "Second Shortest Song" have as their entire lyrics "This is the shortest song that I have ever written" and "This is the second shortest song that I have ever written", respectively.
* Music/TallyHall:
** "Good Day", the AlbumIntroTrack to ''Marvin's Marvelous Mechanical Museum''. The song welcomes its listeners and suggests things they can do together, only to veer off with describing some mysterious creature that has no name and yet insists it exists. It then suggests that the listener come up with the own interpretation as to what the song means as a whole.
** "The Whole World and You" is a sarcasm-laden song that's supposedly written to someone (presumably the ruler of a kingdom), while not actually saying anything about what they do and praising everybody else instead. The singer passive-aggressively suggests that "I've even written this whole song about you, and not about me. ''And not about me.''"
* "Leider geil" by German rap group Deichkind. The last lines of the last verse translate to this:
-->''In this song\\
Nothing rhymed at all\\
Nobody noticed''
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Theatre]]
* ''Theatre/SomethingRotten'' does this a lot in "A Musical".
-->'''Nick Bottom''' ''[speaking]'': So an actor is just saying his lines, and then out of nowhere he just starts singing?-- Well, that's the ''[singing]'' stupidest thing that I have ever heard!
* Several songs in ''Theatre/{{Spamalot}}'' fall under this, most notably "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tldP-seoQX8 The Song That Goes Like This]]".
* "Poppa's Blues" from ''Theatre/StarlightExpress''.
-->''The first line of the blues is always sung a second time\\
First line of the blues is always sung a second time\\
So by the time you get to the third line you've had time to think up a rhyme.''
* Similarly, the reworked-with-vocals version of the Overture for Groovelily's ''Striking 12'', with such lines as "Welcome to the overture..." and "This is an important theme / You will hear it later on..."
* "Untitled Opening Number" from ''Theatre/TitleOfShow'' is mostly one of these.
-->''It's the opening song\\
It doesn't have a title, no\\
And it's not very long\\
But it's the starting point for our musical''
* The dancing portion of the Yule Ball scene in ''Theatre/PuffsThePlay'' has "A Really Short Slow Dance Song", which consists of a few seconds of music and the title words being sung once before it ends. Oliver TitleDrop[=s=] it, mildly surprised at its briefness.
* Mischa Bachinski's first number in ''Theatre/RideTheCyclone'', "This Song is Awesome," which stylistically parodies the {{AutoTune}}-heavy "[[BoastfulRap self-aggrandizing commercialized hiphop]]" of the 2000's. The chorus includes such lines as "this hook is awesome," "this beat is awesome," and of course "this song is awesome."

[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Animation]]
* ''WebAnimation/HomestarRunner'' has "Secret Song", the secret song on the CD ''Music/StrongBadSingsAndOtherTypeHits'', which is a love song sung by Homestar directed toward... the secret song.
* [[http://www.weebls-stuff.com/songs/annoying/ Oh my word! This Tune is annoying!]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Comics]]
* In ''Webcomic/ElGoonishShive'', Sarah's cellphone has [[http://www.egscomics.com/?date=2008-12-03 this]] little gem:
--> * this is a ringtone song... ringing all the--*
* [[DiscussedTrope Discussed]] in ''Webcomic/{{Xkcd}}'' strip [[http://xkcd.com/70/ "Guitar Hero"]], in which Randall plots to write a song and insert lyrics about playing the song in VideoGame/GuitarHero:
-->''When I'm in a rock band, I'm gonna do a cool, mellow song. Then in the middle I'll stop, announce "this part is just to be an [[{{Troll}} asshole]] to people playing ''VideoGame/GuitarHero''," and then [[SurpriseDifficulty flail wildly on the strings]] [[ThatOneAttack for 30 seconds]].''
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Web Videos]]
* Half the songs on ''WebVideo/CommentaryTheMusical'', but particularly ''Ten Dollar Solo'', as seen in the page quote.
* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNzjQPI14eQ A snippet of Deadpool's ringtone]] from ''WebVideo/ImAMarvelAndImADC''
-->''This is a ringtone!\\
So pick up the phone!''
* Website/ChannelAwesome:
** ''WebVideo/TheNostalgiaCritic'' replaces the Shining Time song in ''WesternAnimation/ThomasAndTheMagicRailroad'' with something [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovcUgFxV_GQ along these lines]]:
--->''Here's our generic song\\
It sounds like hundreds of other songs\\
Things are always nice in this song\\
That's why no-one remembers it
** ''WebVideo/AskThatGuyWithTheGlasses'' has "The Most Annoying Song In the World", which goes simply:
--->''THIS IS THE MOST ANNOYING SONG IN THE WORLD!''
* WebVideo/WheezyWaiter did one like this:
-->''[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDD0JcHj40g This is a song,]] [[CaptainObvious this is a song]]. Everybody knows the words 'cause I just said them all.''
* WebVideo/TheKeyOfAwesome's take on "You Don't Know You're Beautiful" by Music/OneDirection has this for its bridge:
-->This is the part where we na-na-na-na\\
Every hit song needs a "na-na-na-na"\\
You'll wake up at night screaming "na-na-na-na"\\
My grandmother's nickname is "Nana"
* ''WebVideo/FundayPawpetShow''[='s=] birthday song goes as follows (to the tune of "Ta-ra-ra Boom-de-ay"):
-->''This is your birthday song\\
It isn't very long''
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Western Animation]]
* In the episode "What Was Missing" from ''WesternAnimation/AdventureTime'', Finn's song "My Best Friends in the World (What Am I to You?)" explicitly states his motives for singing it in the lyrics.
--> '' I wanna sing a song to you and I refuse to make it fake ... I'm gonna sing a song that feels so real it'll make this door break!''
* The final line of the TitleThemeTune of ''WesternAnimation/TheAdventuresOfJimmyNeutronBoyGenius'' is:
-->''This is the theme song for Jimmy Neutron.''
* In its {{Mister Sandman Sequence}}s, ''WesternAnimation/BoJackHorseman'' has a "Generic [Time Period and Genre]" song playing on a car radio. As can be assumed by the titles, these songs have some very meta lyrics. For example:
-->''Generic '80s New Wave, be bop be bop be bop''\\
''This is a song from the '80s''\\
''The decade that you're currently in!''
* [[WesternAnimation/{{Histeria}} I know a song that gets on everybody's nerves, and this is how it goes...]]
** [[WesternAnimation/RobotBoy I know a song that gets on everybody's nerves, and this is how it goes...]]
*** [[RuleOfThree I know a song that gets on everybody's nerves, and this is how it goes...]]
*** [[OverlyLongGag I know a song that gets on everybody's nerves, and this is how it goes...]]
*** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Blld6o0D2gs I know a song that gets on everybody's nerves, and this is how it goes...]]
*** [[OverlyLongGag This is the song that never ends/ And it goes on and on my friends/ Some people started singing it not knowing what it was/ and now they keep on singing it forever just because...]]
*** [[StopHavingFunGuys I know a song that gets on everybody's nerves, and this is how it goes...]]
*** [[PlaygroundSong I know a song that gets on everybody's nerves, and this is how it goes...]]
* ''WesternAnimation/MyLifeAsATeenageRobot'' has "This is the Song That Goes On Forever", in a parody of the aforementioned "Song That Doesn't End".
* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' has the yak song, which is about how it's not very long.
* ''WesternAnimation/PhineasAndFerb'':
** "Isabella and the Temple of Sap" has the closing lines of the Fireside Girls' theme song:
--->''This is the Fireside Girls song!''\\
''And it's not too terribly long.''
** Also, "Super Computer" from "Ask a Foolish Question"
---> ''We're buildin' a supercomputer in the backyard\\
And singing about it in G\\
We worked up the plans so it can't be that hard\\
To make a trillion-terabyte memory\\
Our song is synchronic, not the least bit ironic\\
What you hear is exactly what you see\\\
We're buildin' a supercomputer\\
And singing just what we're doin'\\
[[DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment Which is buildin' a supercomputer]]\\
And overexplaining just what you're viewin'!''
* Bubbles intones these lyrics from ''WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls''' "Love Makes The World Go 'Round":
-->''Everyone's got a special song deep inside their heart,''\\
''If you want you can sing with us, it's a perfect place to start.''
* ''WesternAnimation/RazzberryJazzberryJam'': The lyrics of the Forever Song (featured in the episode of the same name) are entirely about the Forever Song and its lack of an ending.
--> ''That old Forever Song\\
It just goes on and on\\
It lasts all night and day\\
You can’t help sing away\\
To the Forever Song\\
It goes forever long\\
And you can’t do anything\\
Until someone else sings\\
[[LoopedLyrics (Loop back to the beginning)]]''
* "Let's Fighting Love" from ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'' has the Japanese parts not only acknowledging that it's a song but mocking the fact that the English sections make no sense.
* ''WesternAnimation/SpongeBobSquarePants''
** "The Camping Episode" has Spongebob singing "The Campfire Song Song".
** Also, Patrick's song "I Wrote This" from "Sing a Song of Patrick".
--->''This song is over, except for this line\\
[[WordSaladLyrics You win this round, broccoli!]]''
[[/folder]]
----