**LRC**(short for LyRiCs) is a computerfile formatthat synchronizes songlyricswith an audio file. When an audio file is played with certain music players on a computer or on moderndigital audio players, the song lyrics are displayed. The lyrics file generally has the same name as the audio file, with a different filename extension. For example,_**song.mp3**_and_**song.lrc**_. The LRC format is text-based and similar tosubtitlefiles.
## Format
The Line Time Tags are in the format**\[mm:ss.xx]**where**mm**is minutes,**ss**is seconds and**xx**is hundredths of a second.
**ID tags**may appear before the lyrics, although some players may not recognize or simply ignore this.
```lrc
[ar:_Lyrics artist_]
[al:_Album where the song is from_]
[ti:_Lyrics (song) title_]
[au:_Creator of the Songtext_]
[length:_How long the song is_]
[by:_Creator of the LRC file_]
[offset:_+/- Overall timestamp adjustment in milliseconds, + shifts time up, - shifts down i.e. a positive value causes lyrics to appear sooner, a negative value causes them to appear later_]
[re:_The player or editor that created the LRC file_]
[ve:_version of program_]
```
**Example with ID tags:**
```lrc
[ar:Beatles, The]
[al:Hits Of The 60's - Vol. 2]
[ti:Twisted]
[au:Written by Kal Mann / Dave Appell, 1961]
[length: 2:23]
[00:12.00]Naku Penda Piya-Naku Taka Piya-Mpenziwe
[00:15.30]Some more lyrics ...
...
```
## Common tags
-`ti` — Title
-`ar` — Artist
-`al` — Album
-`lr` — Lyricist. Unclear whether that's part of
-`length` — Stated as`m:ss`or`mm:ss`(runtime 10min+) or sometimes also`sss,ms`(hours and minutes factored all into the seconds amount)
-`by` — Person/organization that authored the LRC file
-`tool` — Software used to create LRC file, sometimes also with the software version number and/or a [URL](../internet/URL.md)
