Suno’s Two Boxes: The Difference Between Success and Failure

Opening Suno’s Custom Mode and facing two blank input boxes can be overwhelming—how exactly should you fill in the style description and lyrics, what should you write, and what is the relationship between the two boxes?

Once you understand these, the same idea can produce results of an entirely different caliber. This article explains how to do just that.

First, open Custom Mode

Suno defaults to Simple Mode, where you enter a single sentence and the AI handles everything. It’s convenient, but the results are essentially a blind box.

After switching to Custom Mode, two independent input boxes will appear:

Style of Music — Tells the AI what the song should sound like.

Lyrics — Tells the AI what the lyrics are and how the song structure should progress.

One controls the sound, the other controls the content. Many people’s problem is stuffing everything into one box; the AI can’t distinguish between style descriptions and lyrics, so the result is naturally a mess.

Style Box: Write 4-7 Keywords

The purpose of the style box is to tell the AI "what this song should sound like." Writing just "pop" or "a nice happy song" provides too little information, leaving the AI to guess blindly.

A reliable style description generally includes these dimensions:

Formula

Genre + Mood + Instruments + Vocals + Tempo + Texture

Here is a practical example:

Indie pop, bittersweet, acoustic guitar and soft synth pads, breathy female vocals, 105 BPM, lo-fi production, intimate

Translated, this means: Indie pop style, bittersweet mood, using acoustic guitar and soft synth pads for the backing, breathy female vocals, 105 BPM, lo-fi production style, with an intimate feel. Once the AI receives this information, the direction is very clear.

Let’s look at some negative examples:

A nice happy song

Too vague; it’s like saying nothing at all.

aggressive, gentle, calm, intense

Contradictory; the AI doesn't know which direction to take.

(A long description exceeding 30 words)

Too long; the AI often only looks at the first half and ignores the rest.

In practice, 4-7 words is the most effective range.

Lyrics Box: Add Structural Tags

In addition to writing lyrics, you can use structural tags in the lyrics box to control the song's progression. The method is to insert English square bracket tags in the middle of the lyrics, such as [Verse] or [Chorus]. The AI will then understand that this section is a verse and that one is a chorus, arranging the music according to standard song logic.

If you don't add tags, the AI will decide the structure itself, which often results in a chaotic arrangement.

The commonly used tags are just these few:

[Intro] — The opening, instrumental start to set the tone.

[Verse] — The storytelling section, usually with a flatter melody.

[Pre-Chorus] — The build-up section before the chorus, letting the mood slowly rise.

[Chorus] — The core of the song, the catchiest melody, repeated the most.

[Bridge] — A new melody used to break the sense of repetition.

[Outro] — The ending to wrap up the song.

In practice, it looks like this:

[Intro] [Verse 1] Raindrops fall on the windowsill, memories surge like the tide [Pre-Chorus] Longing can no longer be hidden [Chorus] Hope tomorrow will be better, the sun will shine in [Verse 2] Streetlights turn on and off, the story isn't finished yet [Chorus] Hope tomorrow will be better, the sun will shine in [Outro]

Tags should occupy their own line, followed immediately by the lyrics. With these tags, the AI’s arrangement has a clear skeleton.

Below is a piece of music I generated in Suno using a fragment of Bai Juyi’s "Pipa Xing" as lyrics, after editing a detailed structure. From this example, you can hear that because you specified the different structural segments in detail, Suno naturally understood where the verses, choruses, and bridge were, making the vocal intensity, melody, and drum strength of the generated music better align with our expectations for a good song.

From this example, you can also feel that Suno’s current vocal imitation and Chinese-related generation capabilities are already very impressive.

You can't write artist names, but there are alternatives

Suno does not allow the use of any artist or band names in the style box. Writing "Taylor Swift style" or "Jay Chou style" will be rejected immediately.

The alternative is to use style descriptive words to convey the same feeling:

The feeling of Taylor Swift

Confessional pop, catchy melodic hooks, emotional narratives, polished studio sound, female vocals

The feeling of Jay Chou

C-pop, R&B influenced, piano-driven, rhythmic flow, Mandarin rap elements, nostalgic melody

The feeling of Billie Eilish

Dark pop, whispered vocals, minimalist bass, ASMR-like intimacy, eerie atmosphere

The feeling of Adele

Power ballad, soulful female vocals, piano and orchestra, emotional crescendo, dramatic

The feeling of Ed Sheeran

Acoustic pop, loop-pedal style, warm male vocals, guitar-driven, storytelling

Essentially, this means breaking down "I want the style of a certain singer" into specific musical characteristics. This is actually the usage Suno recommends—using style words rather than names.

A complete Prompt example

You can copy and paste the following directly into Suno:

Style of Music box

Indie folk, acoustic guitar, warm female vocals, fingerpicking, 100 BPM, nostalgic, intimate production

Lyrics box

[Intro] [Verse 1] Morning sunlight passes through the curtains, the aroma of coffee fills the room, opening my phone to see your message, the corners of my mouth lift involuntarily [Pre-Chorus] Longing can no longer be hidden [Chorus] Hope tomorrow will be better, the sun will shine in [Verse 2] Streetlights turn on and off, the story isn't finished yet [Chorus] Hope tomorrow will be better, the sun will shine in [Outro]

Final thoughts

To summarize, this article covered three things:

1. Open Custom Mode. Fill the two boxes separately; keep style as style and lyrics as lyrics.

2. Write 4-7 keywords in the style box. Cover genre, mood, instruments, vocals, tempo, and texture; avoid contradictions.

3. Add structural tags to the lyrics box. [Intro], [Verse], [Chorus], [Outro]—these tags give the AI’s arrangement a clear structure.