
"After Midnight" was written by the Oklahoma guitarist J.J. Cale, who was dirt poor until Eric Clapton recorded his song and turned it into a hit.

"Just Dance" was Lady Gaga's first hit, and it also brought the techno-synth sound that had been popular in Europe for the previous decade to the United States.

Jon Bon Jovi earned his first movie credit - Young Guns II - by writing "Blaze Of Glory" for the film.

"The Reason" by Hoobastank took off on TikTok in 2021 when it soundtracked confessional #NotAPerfectPerson videos about mistakes and regrets. The band made one of their own with the caption: "Realizing 20 years later that you named your band Hoobastank."

Miguel wrote "Adorn" about his girlfriend, the model and artist Nazanin Mandi, when he was returning home from a long trip and was anxious to see her.
The man who created Yacht Rock with "Sailing" wrote one of his biggest hits while on acid.
Where words like "email," "thirsty," "Twitter" and "gangsta" first showed up in songs, and which songs popularized them.
She thinks of herself as a "song interpreter," but back in the '80s another country star convinced Emmylou to take a crack at songwriting.
Stone Temple Pilots bass player Robert DeLeo names the songs that have most connected with fans and tells the stories behind tracks from their Tiny Music album.
The evolution of the symbol that was Prince's name from 1993-2000.
The guitarist/songwriter explains how he came up with his signature sound, and deconstructs some classic Fear Factory songs.