How to Capitalize Song Titles Correctly
Learn how to capitalize song titles with title case rules for articles, prepositions, conjunctions, subtitles, featured artists, acronyms, and style guide differences.
Song titles often look informal, but writing about music still requires consistent capitalization. A streaming service, artist, record label, music journalist, academic paper, and fan website may display the same song title differently because typography, branding, and editorial style are not always the same thing.
When you are reproducing an official title, respect intentional artist styling when it is clearly part of the name. When you are formatting a song title according to APA, MLA, Chicago, AP, or another editorial style, follow the rules required by that context.
General Song Title Capitalization
In ordinary title case, capitalize:
- The first word
- The last word
- Nouns
- Pronouns
- Verbs
- Adjectives
- Adverbs
- The first word of a subtitle
- Proper names
Articles, conjunctions, and some prepositions may remain lowercase in the middle.
Example:
Dancing in the Rain
“Dancing” and “Rain” are major words. “in” and “the” remain lowercase in many title styles.
Do Not Capitalize Every Word Automatically
A naive converter might produce:
Dancing In The Rain
That is not the same as editorial title case.
Words such as “in” and “the” are often minor.
The correct output depends on the selected style, especially for longer prepositions.
First and Last Words
The first word should be capitalized:
A Song for Tomorrow
“A” is capitalized because it begins the title.
Many title styles also capitalize the last word even when it would normally be minor:
What We Came For
“For” can receive a capital because it is last.
Prepositions in Song Titles
Style differences appear clearly with prepositions.
Input:
walking with you
APA:
Walking With You
AP:
Walking With You
Chicago:
Walking with You
MLA:
Walking with You
“With” has four letters. APA and AP capitalize it. Chicago and MLA generally do not when it functions as a preposition in the middle.
Input:
thinking about you
APA:
Thinking About You
AP:
Thinking About You
Chicago:
Thinking About You
MLA:
Thinking about You
The five letter word “about” is capitalized by current Chicago but generally lowercase in MLA.
Conjunctions in Song Titles
Common coordinating conjunctions usually remain lowercase:
You and Me
Run but Never Hide
Stay or Go
However, short words can function differently in different phrases. Use the style guide rather than one permanent lowercase list.
“To” in Song Titles
“To” is common in song names:
How to Say Goodbye
Chicago and MLA generally lowercase infinitive “to.”
AP composition title style can capitalize the infinitive “To.”
This is another reason title capitalization can legitimately differ across publications.
Song Titles With Parentheses
Artists sometimes use parentheses to add an alternative title or clarifying phrase.
Example:
Midnight Lights (A Song for Home)
The parenthetical phrase can function like part of the title. Capitalize it according to the official styling or the governing editorial style.
Do not automatically treat parentheses as ordinary sentence punctuation.
Song Titles With Colons
A colon can introduce a subtitle:
After the Rain: A Song for Tomorrow
“A” is capitalized because it begins the subtitle.
The remaining words follow title case.
Featured Artist Text
Titles can include a feature notation such as:
Song Title (feat. Artist Name)
or:
Song Title featuring Artist Name
The exact presentation often follows the music platform or label metadata rather than ordinary title case.
If you are citing or cataloging the song, preserve the official artist and track metadata where the style requires it.
Do not treat “feat.” as a major title word unless it is genuinely part of the official title.
Artist Stylization
Artists sometimes use unusual case intentionally.
A title may appear:
all lowercase
ALL CAPS
or with unusual internal capitalization.
There are two different goals:
- Reproduce the artist's official stylization.
- Normalize the title to an editorial style.
Those goals can conflict.
A music database may preserve official casing. An academic paper may apply a style manual. A publication should decide which objective controls.
Acronyms in Song Titles
Acronyms usually preserve their established form:
USA
DNA
NYC
A title converter should not turn them into Usa, Dna, or Nyc simply because it is applying initial capitals.
Proper Names
Names of people, places, brands, and organizations keep their required capitalization.
Examples:
London
California
YouTube
NASA
If a title includes a name with unusual internal capitals, preserve it when that styling is conventional.
APA Song Title Capitalization
When a song title is mentioned in the text of an APA paper, title case can be used for the title.
In a reference entry, the capitalization can depend on the type of source and APA's sentence case conventions.
The lesson is the same as for books: do not apply one APA title case algorithm to every location.
MLA Song Title Capitalization
MLA uses title style for English language work titles. Song titles are generally placed in quotation marks in MLA writing, while albums are standalone works and are typically italicized.
Capitalization and typography are separate tasks.
MLA generally lowercases prepositions in the middle, which can create differences from APA, AP, and current Chicago.
Chicago Song Title Capitalization
Chicago title case follows its current 18th edition rules, including the new treatment of longer prepositions.
A title such as:
Thinking About You
capitalizes “About” under Chicago 18.
Older Chicago based music guides may show the word lowercase.
AP Song Title Capitalization
AP treats song titles as composition titles in news writing. Composition title capitalization follows AP rules, while quotation marks and other presentation details are separate parts of AP style.
If a newsroom has a house style for digital headlines or music listings, follow that house rule.
Album Titles vs Song Titles
The capitalization principles can be similar, but typography often differs.
A song title is commonly placed in quotation marks in editorial writing.
An album title is commonly italicized in academic and publishing styles.
The tool can handle capitalization, but the final document should apply the correct quotation or italics rule.
Do Streaming Platforms Determine Correct Capitalization?
Not always.
Streaming metadata can reflect artist preference, label data, platform normalization, or errors. It is useful evidence for official styling, but it is not automatically the authority for APA, MLA, Chicago, or AP formatting.
If you are reproducing the official release name, check the artist or label. If you are formatting academic writing, follow the required style guide.
A Song Title Checklist
- Decide whether to preserve official styling or apply a style guide.
- Capitalize the first word.
- Capitalize major words.
- Apply the correct rule to prepositions.
- Keep articles and minor conjunctions lowercase where required.
- Preserve artist and place names.
- Preserve acronyms.
- Capitalize subtitle openings.
- Apply quotation marks separately if required.
- Confirm unusual stylization from a reliable source.
Related Resources
- Use the Title Case Converter
- How to Capitalize a Book Title: Rules and Examples
- How to Capitalize Movie and TV Show Titles
- How to Capitalize Subtitles: Colons and Punctuation Explained
Frequently Asked Questions
Is “in” capitalized in a song title?
Usually not in the middle because it is a short preposition.
Is “with” capitalized?
APA and AP title case capitalize “With.” Chicago and MLA generally lowercase it when it functions as a preposition in the middle.
Should song titles be in quotation marks?
Many editorial and academic styles use quotation marks for song titles, but typography is separate from capitalization and depends on the style.
Should I preserve an artist's all lowercase song title?
If your goal is to reproduce official stylization, yes. If you are writing under a formal style guide, follow that guide's instructions on whether stylization should be preserved.