LRC (file format)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Filename extension
.lrc
Magic numberNone formally
Developed byNone
Type of formatTimed text
Container forLyrics with their orderings and timings
Open format?Yes
Free format?Yes

LRC (short for LyRiCs) is a computer file format that synchronizes song lyrics with an audio file, such as MP3, Vorbis, or MIDI. When an audio file is played with certain music players on a computer or on modern digital audio players, the song lyrics are displayed. The lyrics file generally has the same name as the audio file, with a different filename extension. For example, song.mp3 and song.lrc. The LRC format is text-based and similar to subtitle files.

File format[edit]

Simple format[edit]

Simple LRC format was introduced by Taiwan-based Kuo (Djohan) Shiang-shiang's Lyrics Displayer. It was one of the first programs, if not the first, that attempted to simulate Karaoke performance[citation needed]. It usually displays a whole line of lyrics, but it is possible to display a word at a time, such as one would see in modern Karaoke machines, by creating a time tag for each word rather than each line. Kuo's Lyrics Displayer was created in 1998 and was accompanied with a plug-in for Winamp.[1]

The Line Time Tags are in the format [mm:ss.xx] where mm is minutes, ss is seconds and xx is hundredths of a second.

Basic example: 

[00:12.00]Line 1 lyrics
[00:17.20]Line 2 lyrics

[00:21.10][00:45.10]Repeating lyrics (e.g. chorus)
...
[mm:ss.xx]last lyrics line

ID tags may appear before the lyrics,[2] although some players may not recognize or simply ignore this. [citation needed] 

[ar:Lyrics artist]

[al:Album where the song is from]

[ti:Lyrics (song) title]

[au:Creator of the Songtext]
[length:How long the song is]
[by:Creator of the LRC file]

[offset:+/- Overall timestamp adjustment in milliseconds, + shifts time up, - shifts down i.e. a positive value causes lyrics to appear sooner, a negative value causes them to appear later]
 
[re:The player or editor that created the LRC file]

[ve:version of program]

Example with ID tags: 

[ar:Chubby Checker oppure  Beatles, The]
[al:Hits Of The 60's - Vol. 2 – Oldies]
[ti:Let's Twist Again]
[au:Written by Kal Mann / Dave Appell, 1961]
[length: 2:23]

[00:12.00]Naku Penda Piya-Naku Taka Piya-Mpenziwe
[00:15.30]Some more lyrics ...
...

Walaoke extension: gender[edit]

Available only in Walaoke from Walasoft. The ability to change and specify the gender of the lyrics by using M: Male, F: Female, D: Duet.

Example: 

[00:12.00]Line 1 lyrics
[00:17.20]F: Line 2 lyrics
[00:21.10]M: Line 3 lyrics
[00:24.00]Line 4 lyrics
[00:28.25]D: Line 5 lyrics
[00:29.02]Line 6 lyrics

Let's say we use blue for male, red for female and pink for Duet.

  1. Line 1 will use the default color (blue) when no tag is found.
  2. Line 2 lyrics start with red when F: is found.
  3. Line 3 lyrics start with blue when M: is found.
  4. Line 4 lyrics stays blue when no tag is found.
  5. Line 5 lyrics start with pink when D: is found.
  6. Line 6 lyrics stays pink when no tag is found.

A2 extension: word time tag[edit]

Enhanced LRC format is an extension of Simple LRC Format developed by the designer of A2 Media Player.

The differences:

  • The line timestamp is the end of the previous word.
    • This allows LRC players to determine the duration of the previous word, and when to display the next line.
  • Adds a Word Time Tag in the format: <mm:ss.xx>.

Format example[edit]

[mm:ss.xx] <mm:ss.xx> line 1 word 1 <mm:ss.xx> line 1 word 2 <mm:ss.xx> ... line 1 last word <mm:ss.xx>
[mm:ss.xx] <mm:ss.xx> line 2 word 1 <mm:ss.xx> line 2 word 2 <mm:ss.xx> ... line 2 last word <mm:ss.xx>
...
[mm:ss.xx] <mm:ss.xx> last line word 1 <mm:ss.xx> last line word 2 <mm:ss.xx> ...  last line last word <mm:ss.xx>

Example of an Enhanced LRC file[edit]

[ti: Somebody to Love]
[ar: Jefferson Airplane]
[al: Surrealistic Pillow]
[lr: Lyricists of that song]
[length: 2:58]
[by: Person/organization that authored the LRC file]
[tool: Software used to create LRC file https://example.com/lrc-maker-pro]
[#: Some comment]


[00:00.00] <00:00.04> When <00:00.16> the <00:00.82> truth <00:01.29> is <00:01.63> found <00:03.09> to <00:03.37> be <00:05.92> lies 
[00:06.47] <00:07.67> And <00:07.94> all <00:08.36> the <00:08.63> joy <00:10.28> within <00:10.53> you <00:13.09> dies 
[00:13.34] <00:14.32> Don't <00:14.73> you <00:15.14> want <00:15.57> somebody <00:16.09> to <00:16.46> love
Remarks[edit]
  • May contain metadata lines on top.
  • Common tags, in their common order:
    • ti — Title
    • ar — Artist
    • al — Album
    • lr — Lyricist. Unclear whether that's part of
    • length — Stated as m:ss or mm:ss (runtime 10min+) or sometimes also sss,ms (hours and minutes factored all into the seconds amount)
    • by — Person/organization that authored the LRC file
    • tool — Software used to create LRC file, sometimes also with the software version number and/or a URL
    • # — Pure comment lines. Sometimes linking to the URL of that LRC file entry in an online lyrics service.
  • Timestamp for a whole line
    • Plus timestamps per word along the line.

Support[edit]

Hardware or OEM Software[edit]

  • Huawei's, Samsung's, and Xiaomi's smartphone built-in Music Player
  • Meizu's M3 Music Card[3] and M6 Mini Player
  • Creative Labs' MuVo V100
  • Archos 5, when LRC file found with the same name as the song
  • Rockbox compatible devices. See Manual entry
  • Nokia's Symbian devices: "Music Player with lyrics available for selected software versions of Nokia 5800XM, X6 and 5230"
  • Sony NWZ-E350 Series/E450 Series/E460 Series/E470 Series/A15/A17 Walkman; Sony Tablet S (With an embedded music player based on Android)
  • Caanoo, when LRC file found with the same name as the song
  • GP2X Wiz, when LRC file found with the same name as the song
  • TEAC MP-222, when LRC file found with the same name as the song
  • Transcend's MP330,[4] when LRC file found with the same name as the song
  • Cocktail Audio X40, X50 when LRC file found with the same name as the song

Software[edit]

Modern Applications:

Other:

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "Kuo's Lyrics Displayer for Winamp". www.fortunecity.com. Archived from the original on 29 January 1999. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
  2. ^ "How to get or make LRC for your favorite songs". mobile-mir.com. Archived from the original on 27 April 2016.
  3. ^ Meizu: M3 Music Card
  4. ^ "Lyrics Sync; Sleep Timer; Auto Power off; Date / Time Settings - Transcend MP330 User Manual [Page 26] | ManualsLib".
  5. ^ Musicolet's Play Store page.
  6. ^ "lrcShow-X in Launchpad". launchpad.net. 27 September 2009.
  7. ^ "Song Lyrics - LRC Format". StepMania. Archived from the original on 6 September 2013.
  8. ^ Display Song Lyrics On Desktop In Ubuntu 14.04
  9. ^ "Karaoke support has been completely removed as it wasn't functional. 2016". Archived from the original on 2017-02-10. Retrieved 2016-12-11.
  10. ^ "Adding Local Lyrics".
  11. ^ "MediaBox Media Center". mediabox.garage.maemo.org. Retrieved 2023-12-07.
  12. ^ "LineSpec". ctuser.net. Archived from the original on 3 May 2018.
  13. ^ "YouTube Movie Maker". makeyoutubevideo.com.
  14. ^ "Lyrimer". Google Play Store.
  15. ^ "Neutron Music Player". www.neutronmp.com. Retrieved 2017-02-22.
  16. ^ "AutoLyric is one of the best Lyric Tool". autolyric.com. Retrieved 2023-12-07.
  17. ^ "Vanilla Music". github.com. Retrieved 2020-04-14.
  18. ^ "OnStagePlayer".
  19. ^ "SubtitleEdit".
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