Jay-Z's "Hard Knock Life (Ghetto Anthem)" is based on the song "It's A Hard Knock Life" from the Broadway play Annie.
Paul McCartney based the "Eleanor Rigby" story on old ladies he met at his housing estate. He saw how sometimes when they died, nobody really noticed.
The video for Iggy Azalea's "Fancy" pays homage to the classic 1995 film Clueless with the rapper playing Cher and featured singer Charli XCX portraying Tai. It was filmed at some of the same locations used in the movie.
"Walking In Memphis" isn't so much about Memphis as it is The Hollywood Cafe in Mississippi, where Marc Cohn encountered an older woman named Murial playing piano.
"Izzo (H.O.V.A.)" refers to "Hova," which is what Jay-Z calls his God Name. Jay-Hova, as in Jehovah.
"Torn" by Natalie Imbruglia was first recorded by the group Ednaswap in 1993. It was written by Ednaswap's Anne Previn and Scott Cutler, who went on to write some hits for Miley Cyrus.
With Bernie Taupin, Martin co-wrote the #1 hits "We Built This City" and "These Dreams." After writing the Pretty Woman song for Go West, he had his own hit with "In the House of Stone and Light."
The powerhouse producer behind Janet Jackson's hits talks about his Boyz II Men ballads and regrouping The Time.
"Great songwriters don't necessarily have hit songs," says Chris. He's written a bunch, but his fans are more interested in the intricate jams.
The Guns N' Roses rhythm guitarist in the early '90s, Gilby talks about the band's implosion and the side projects it spawned.
Gary Lewis and the Playboys had seven Top 10 hits despite competition from The Beatles. Gary talks about the hits, his famous father, and getting drafted.
Kristian talks songwriting technique, like how the chorus should redefine the story, and how to write a song backwards.