Serato has announced an exciting new feature called “Word Sync”, that lets DJs transition between tracks based upon the software spotting matching words in song lyrics. The new “Word Sync” feature in the software automatically spots when the same word occurs in each track, and performs a clean “cut” at that point.
“We first had Beat Sync, then Key Sync, and now Word Sync adds a new dimension to how our software helps DJs to construct exciting mixes.” says the company.
Example transitions & workflow
For example, let’s say you are playing “Sometimes It Snows In April” by Prince. Hit “Word Sync” and you may be suggested “April Showers” by Sugarland, and “April in Paris” by Ella Fitzgerald.
Or, imagine you’re playing “Fool’s Gold” by the Stone Roses; you may be suggested “Why Do Fools Fall In Love?” by Frankie Lymon, and “Chain of Fools” Aretha Franklin – ultimately, it all depends what’s in your collection.
Anyway, once you’ve chosen the one you want, hitting the button will then automix between the songs when the first song reaches that exact word, starting the new song playing from that word. This keeps the flow going on the dancefloor, while letting DJs enact huge BPM and genre changes.
How it works
Just as DJs use the concept of word play already, this feature uses Windows and macOS built-in speech recognition to isolate and listen to the lyrics, looking for potential matches, and to automate that process.
From now on, when you analyse your collection, the software will also analyse the lyrics, making a database of possible word play transitions. Hit the new “Word Sync” button in compatible hardware, and it auto-populates your Prepare window with matching tracks, so you can choose the one you want, and the software then performs the mix.
• The feature is in the latest Serato beta and is available as of today via this link.
Phil Morse
