# Describe your favourite song: IELTS Speaking sample answers Speaking Part 2 - Media Describe your favourite song. You should say: - what the song is called and who sings it - when you first heard it - what the song is about - and explain why it is your favourite song Source: Sample answers and examiner notes are written by Testmigo. ## Band 6 sample My favourite song is 'What a Wonderful World' by Louis Armstrong. It is quite old song, I think it came out in the 1960s, but I still listen it almost every week. The first time I heard this song was in my grandfather's house when I was maybe ten years old. He had an old radio and every Sunday morning he listened to English songs while he was drinking his tea. One day this song came on and he stopped talking and closed his eyes. I asked him why, and he said this is the most beautiful song in the world. At that time I didn't understand the English words, but I liked the voice because it was very deep and a little bit rough. The song is about simple things in nature and life, like trees, the sky, the colours of the rainbow and people saying hello to each other. The singer is telling that even normal things are very beautiful if we look carefully. It is not a complicated song, the music is slow and very peaceful. There are two reasons why it is my favourite. First one is it reminds me of my grandfather. He passed away four years ago, so when I listen this song I feel he is near to me. Second, it makes me calm. When I am worried about exams or my job, I play it on my phone and after three minutes I feel more positive about the life. So for me this song is not only music, it is also a very special memory. **Examiner notes.** This Band 6 answer is well structured and genuinely personal, and the grandfather story keeps it moving without long pauses. The language, though, stays fairly plain ("very deep", "very peaceful", "very special"), and the reasons are introduced mechanically with "First one is" and "Second". Errors recur without blocking meaning: "quite old song", "listen it", "The singer is telling that" and "the life". To reach Band 7, the speaker would vary the linking, use precise phrases such as "it never fails to calm me down", and fix verb patterns like "listen to". ## Band 7 sample The song I'd like to talk about is 'Here Comes the Sun' by the Beatles. It was written by George Harrison and came out on the Abbey Road album in 1969, so it's far older than I am, but it's been my favourite for as long as I can remember. I first heard it on a long family road trip when I was about twelve. My dad had made a playlist for the journey, and this was the one song that nobody in the car complained about. I remember we were driving along the coast early in the morning just as the sun was coming up, so the timing was almost perfect. As far as I know, Harrison wrote it at the end of a long English winter, at a point when he was feeling quite stressed by business problems within the band. So the song is basically about relief, the feeling that a difficult period is finally coming to an end. The lyrics are very simple, and the guitar part at the beginning is bright and catchy, so it doesn't take long to get stuck in your head. The main reason it's my favourite is that it never fails to cheer me up. Whenever I've had a rough week, I put it on and it reminds me that bad patches don't last forever. On top of that, it's tied up with happy memories of that trip, which makes it even more meaningful to me. I've probably listened to it hundreds of times by now, and somehow I still haven't got tired of it. **Examiner notes.** This answer is fluent and logically developed, with the background of the song leading neatly into its meaning. The speaker uses natural, less common expressions such as "never fails to cheer me up", "bad patches" and "tied up with happy memories", and controls tenses well, from "had made a playlist" to "I've probably listened". That is solid Band 7. For Band 8, the speaker would need more precise and individual word choices instead of familiar phrases like "bright and catchy", and a more analytical comment on why the song works. The Band 8 sample is free with an account on the [topic page](https://testmigo.com/ielts/speaking/topics/describe-your-favourite-song). ## Part 3 follow-up questions 1. Why do people of different ages often prefer different kinds of music? 2. Should music be a compulsory subject at school? 3. How has the way people listen to music changed in recent years? 4. Do you think songs can influence how people think or behave? 5. Why do some songs stay popular for decades while others are quickly forgotten? ## Common questions ### How long should an IELTS Speaking Part 2 answer be? You get one minute to prepare and then speak for up to two minutes; the examiner stops you at two. Aim to keep talking for the full time, which is usually 220 to 300 words. ### Can I use these sample answers in my test? No. Examiners are trained to spot memorised answers, and a learned script is marked down. Use the samples to see what each band does, then answer in your own words.