Songwriters also use placeholder text when they reach something they need to work on: research, refine, or develop. When I write, I use XXXX (so I can search and highlight it later) and keep the writing flowing. But my XXXX isn’t as snappy as what Earth, Wind & Fire’s leader, Maurice White, used in every song he wrote. He once intentionally kept ‘ba-dee-ya’ (his placeholder bit) in what’s become one of the band’s iconic songs. During a recording session, one vocalist realized, ‘Maurice believed you never let the lyric get in the way of the groove.’

Read a great article at NPR about that iconic song: The Song That Never Ends: Why Earth, Wind & Fire’s ‘September’ Sustains

Keep your groove going…