# Lyrics URL relationships with no lyrics **URL:** \ **Category:** Style\ **Tags:** url-relationships, lyrics, instrumental, works\ **Created:** [May 17, 2026, 6:20pm UTC](https://community.metabrainz.org/t/lyrics-url-relationships-with-no-lyrics/814880 "2026-05-17T18:20:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![jesus2099](https://community.metabrainz.org/user_avatar/community.metabrainz.org/jesus2099/32/36_2.png) [@jesus2099](https://community.metabrainz.org/u/jesus2099)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2026, 6:20pm UTC](https://community.metabrainz.org/t/lyrics-url-relationships-with-no-lyrics/814880/1 "2026-05-17T18:20:20Z")
I suggest to add a guideline forbidding the addition of lyrics URL with no lyrics inside (be they placeholders, or instrumental / _no lyrics_). I’ve already seen both: - Placeholder lyrics pages might never be filled - Language: [No lyrics] works don’t need third party site empty page URL ---
**Author:** ![tigerman325](https://community.metabrainz.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/t/b9bd4f/32.png) [@tigerman325](https://community.metabrainz.org/u/tigerman325)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2026, 7:26pm UTC](https://community.metabrainz.org/t/lyrics-url-relationships-with-no-lyrics/814880/2 "2026-05-17T19:26:45Z")
What’s wrong with adding a link to Genius on instrumentals? I see nothing wrong with that at all. ---
**Author:** ![jesus2099](https://community.metabrainz.org/user_avatar/community.metabrainz.org/jesus2099/32/36_2.png) [@jesus2099](https://community.metabrainz.org/u/jesus2099)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2026, 8:24pm UTC](https://community.metabrainz.org/t/lyrics-url-relationships-with-no-lyrics/814880/3 "2026-05-17T20:24:59Z")
> [@tigerman325](#): > > What’s wrong with adding a link to Genius on instrumentals? It is cluttering. It contains no data and never will. It occupies resources in MBS for worse than nothing. You get doubts about it really being instrumental or not, so you click, and you waste your time. ---
**Author:** ![Lioncat6](https://community.metabrainz.org/user_avatar/community.metabrainz.org/lioncat6/32/91983_2.png) [@Lioncat6](https://community.metabrainz.org/u/Lioncat6)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2026, 8:43pm UTC](https://community.metabrainz.org/t/lyrics-url-relationships-with-no-lyrics/814880/4 "2026-05-17T20:43:30Z")
For the sake of linking external sites, I think it should be allowed. Instrumental pages on lyrics sites _are_ still the same work, since works can be marked as instrumental on a relationship anyways. Perhaps lyrics site links could have a second relation type allowed for specifically instrumental pages ‘other databases’ or similar. Personally, it’s not a huge issue for me since most instrumentals on genius end up with `-instrumental` in the slug anyways. The links are still valuable to have IMO, since it still links data from one site to another, and it’s not like there’s many other links that be applied to a work. ---
**Author:** ![jesus2099](https://community.metabrainz.org/user_avatar/community.metabrainz.org/jesus2099/32/36_2.png) [@jesus2099](https://community.metabrainz.org/u/jesus2099)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2026, 9:06pm UTC](https://community.metabrainz.org/t/lyrics-url-relationships-with-no-lyrics/814880/5 "2026-05-17T21:06:15Z")
This topic addresses two kinds of apparently useless work-URL relationships: ### Placeholder pages with no lyrics @reosarevok already [requested to not add these](https://musicbrainz.org/edit-note/84988795): > Please do _not_ add empty lyrics pages. Those are entirely useless, and they might never be filled. The pages can be added once the lyrics exist. ### No lyrics pages for [No lyrics] works @tigerman325 and @Lioncat6, thanks for your answers, but I did not read any benefits with these empty pages, yet. ---
**Author:** ![Tiske\_Tisja](https://community.metabrainz.org/user_avatar/community.metabrainz.org/tiske_tisja/32/63405_2.png) [@Tiske\_Tisja](https://community.metabrainz.org/u/Tiske_Tisja)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 3:28am UTC](https://community.metabrainz.org/t/lyrics-url-relationships-with-no-lyrics/814880/6 "2026-05-18T03:28:03Z")
I think every bit of extra information is welcome. (I’m not talking about the empty pages I agree with you there). ---
**Author:** ![jesus2099](https://community.metabrainz.org/user_avatar/community.metabrainz.org/jesus2099/32/36_2.png) [@jesus2099](https://community.metabrainz.org/u/jesus2099)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 6:42am UTC](https://community.metabrainz.org/t/lyrics-url-relationships-with-no-lyrics/814880/7 "2026-05-18T06:42:57Z")
Please elaborate which **extra** information? Extra means additional. The work edit history should already contain proof/reference to back up the visible work [No lyrics] attribute. ---
**Author:** ![Tiske\_Tisja](https://community.metabrainz.org/user_avatar/community.metabrainz.org/tiske_tisja/32/63405_2.png) [@Tiske\_Tisja](https://community.metabrainz.org/u/Tiske_Tisja)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 7:45am UTC](https://community.metabrainz.org/t/lyrics-url-relationships-with-no-lyrics/814880/8 "2026-05-18T07:45:01Z")
The Genius link confirms it’s a instrumental, so that is extra information. So I think it’s worth to put the Genius link there ---
**Author:** ![reosarevok](https://community.metabrainz.org/user_avatar/community.metabrainz.org/reosarevok/32/69228_2.png) [@reosarevok](https://community.metabrainz.org/u/reosarevok)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 8:51am UTC](https://community.metabrainz.org/t/lyrics-url-relationships-with-no-lyrics/814880/9 "2026-05-18T08:51:08Z")
Genius sometimes includes a fair amount of extra information nowadays rather than just the lyrics, so it could potentially be useful in some cases, I guess. ---
**Author:** ![Lioncat6](https://community.metabrainz.org/user_avatar/community.metabrainz.org/lioncat6/32/91983_2.png) [@Lioncat6](https://community.metabrainz.org/u/Lioncat6)\ **Post date:** [May 18, 2026, 12:55pm UTC](https://community.metabrainz.org/t/lyrics-url-relationships-with-no-lyrics/814880/10 "2026-05-18T12:55:47Z")
> Genius sometimes includes a fair amount of extra information nowadays From my experience recently with interacting with a bunch of genius moderators, the site has been attempting to add a lot more metadata, notably with the addition of some basic artist relations and more advanced track and album level relationships. If nothing else, they do provide _some_ additional information for works and it allows linking the two sites which is beneficial for several use cases I’ve come up with. ---
**Author:** ![Anesidora](https://community.metabrainz.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/a/edb3f5/32.png) [@Anesidora](https://community.metabrainz.org/u/Anesidora)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2026, 12:31am UTC](https://community.metabrainz.org/t/lyrics-url-relationships-with-no-lyrics/814880/11 "2026-05-19T00:31:00Z")
Just to clarify, the features and relationships that @Lioncat6 mentioned are already live on the site, not just planned (although I don’t know what un-implemented features remain). Of course, there are also “song bios”, user comments, embedded audio/video, Q&A and such, which have been features for years. The Q&A sometimes includes remarks from the artist about the work or performance. For what it’s worth, I also agree with the point @Tiske_Tisja made about positive assertion that a song is an instrumental. Here’s one of the uses for this: Some EDM tracks are long, and have only a few words in an 8-minute mix. The presence, absence, and placement of sparse vocal samples can be an identifying characteristic if you don’t know the name of the mix you’re looking for. Genius is potentially more precise with the “instrumental” designation. LyricWiki used to label songs “instrumentals” if they were sung entirely in vocables, and they forbade lyrics sung in an unspecified language. Genius has no such restrictions, so if a song is labelled an instrumental, it is more likely to be so. ---
**Author:** ![jesus2099](https://community.metabrainz.org/user_avatar/community.metabrainz.org/jesus2099/32/36_2.png) [@jesus2099](https://community.metabrainz.org/u/jesus2099)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2026, 12:49am UTC](https://community.metabrainz.org/t/lyrics-url-relationships-with-no-lyrics/814880/12 "2026-05-19T00:49:18Z")
Ah… Genius sounds like 🔥 **hot stuff** in this topic. But In my experience, Genius contains no useful info, has many typos in the lyrics (especially in French) and its user comments are mostly dumb. ---
**Author:** ![Tiske\_Tisja](https://community.metabrainz.org/user_avatar/community.metabrainz.org/tiske_tisja/32/63405_2.png) [@Tiske\_Tisja](https://community.metabrainz.org/u/Tiske_Tisja)\ **Post date:** [May 19, 2026, 7:23am UTC](https://community.metabrainz.org/t/lyrics-url-relationships-with-no-lyrics/814880/13 "2026-05-19T07:23:41Z")
Typo’s are no reason, I’m spending days fixing typo’s in MB. No website is without typo’s ---
**Author:** ![jesus2099](https://community.metabrainz.org/user_avatar/community.metabrainz.org/jesus2099/32/36_2.png) [@jesus2099](https://community.metabrainz.org/u/jesus2099)\ **Post date:** [June 22, 2026, 4:42pm UTC](https://community.metabrainz.org/t/lyrics-url-relationships-with-no-lyrics/814880/14 "2026-06-22T16:42:35Z")
> [@Tiske\_Tisja](#): > > The Genius link confirms it’s a instrumental, An instrumental [No lyrics], once proven in edit notes, will remain a verified instrumental in MB. If any doubts, just check out the edit history for reference. > [@reosarevok](#): > > Genius sometimes includes a fair amount of extra information nowadays rather than just the lyrics, so it could potentially be useful in some cases, I guess. ~~I have yet to see an instrumental lyrics page (cough) with any info.~~ But in this case, why not link it, [OK, I found one](https://musicbrainz.org/edit/148158697). Then, how about not linking when there is nothing useful (most of the cases)?