Will.I.am, literally dreamt up "I Gotta Feelin'." Said the Black Eyed Pea: "Have you ever had a dream where there's a melody in your dream? I'll wake up out of my sleep and record that! 'I Gotta Feelin' was one of those songs."
"Mr. Roboto" by Styx was written by their keyboard player, Dennis DeYoung, who used Japanese words and imagery to create an allegory about censorship.
Cher had a habit of calling people "babe," which her husband, Sonny Bono, picked up. That's how "babe" landed in the 1965 Sonny & Cher megahit "I Got You Babe."
Until December 5, 1998, a song had to be issued as a single to make the Hot 100. Aaliyah's "Try Again" was the first tune to top the chart based on airplay alone, without any sales figures being included.
The first Good Charlotte hit, "Lifestyles Of The Rich And Famous," is a send-up of celebrity culture, but the group's leaders, Joel and Benji Madden, both married celebrities: Nicole Richie and Cameron Diaz, respectively.
The most intense song we know that deploys a cowbell is "Killing In The Name," the most popular song by Rage Against The Machine. Their drummer kept a cowbell on his kit and used it in some of their recordings.
One of the most popular classical vocalists in the land is lining up a trip to space, which is the inspiration for many of her songs.
Stage urinals, flute devices, and the real Aqualung in this Fact or Fiction.
How well do you know your protest songs (including the one that went to #1)?
The Kiss rocker covers a lot of ground in this interview, including why there are no Kiss collaborations, and why the Rock Hall has "become a sham."
Inspired by his dear friend, "Seasons in the Sun" paid for Terry's boat, which led him away from music and into a battle with Canadian paper mills.
Oliver Leiber talks about writing and producing hits for Paula Abdul, and explains his complicated relationship with his father, the songwriter Jerry Leiber.