Sir Mix-A-Lot says he's earned over $100 million from "Baby Got Back." He wrote the song and owns the publishing rights, so he can authorize its use in movies, TV shows and commercials, which he often does.
"Renegade" by Styx wasn't a big hit when it was released in 1978, but it became one of their most popular songs thanks in part to the Pittsburgh Steelers, who started playing it at home games in 2001 to fire up the team and fans.
Iggy Pop wrote "Lust For Life" with David Bowie, who came up with the music on a ukulele.
Brian May wrote Queen's "We Will Rock You" so the crowds could participate in the song. They didn't have instruments, but they could clap their hands and stomp their feet.
Eminem sampled a song by Labi Siffre on "My Name Is." Siffre, a gay activist, made Em take out some gay humor in the lyric before allowing it.
At the end of "Radar Love," the driver dies in a crash but maintains a psychic bond with the woman he was racing to see. The song's lyricist was inspired by stories of extrasensory perception (ESP).
Since emerging from MySpace with her hit "Bubbly," Colbie has become a top songwriter, even crafting a hit with Taylor Swift.
Our chat with Barney Hoskyns, who covers the wild years of Woodstock - the town, not the festival - in his book Small Town Talk.
When he was asked to write a song for the Singles soundtrack, Mark thought the Seattle grunge scene was already overblown, so that's what he wrote about.
Tom stopped performing Thompson Twins songs in 1987, in part because of their personal nature: "Hold Me Now" came after an argument with his bandmate/girlfriend Alannah Currie.
Billy Joel and Hall & Oates hated making videos, so they chose a director with similar contempt for the medium. That was Jay Dubin, and he has a lot to say on the subject.
A selection of songs made to be terrible - some clearly achieved that goal.