Meghan Trainor wrote "Lips Are Movin" in just eight minutes with her writing partner Kevin Kadish. Inspiration for the song was frustration with Trainor's record label.
Billy Idol's "Eyes Without A Face" has a gruesome inspiration. It's based on a 1959 French movie about a surgeon who abducts young women and removes their facial features.
Mike Campbell from Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers played the slide guitar on "Sixth Avenue Heartache." There is a connection here - Wallflowers lead singer Jakob's dad, Bob Dylan, played with Tom Petty in The Traveling Wilburys.
It wasn't one of her biggest hits, but "La Isla Bonita" (from 1986) emerged as one of Madonna's top songs in the age of streaming thanks to widespread usage on TikTok. Creators who visit an island or just want that mood often use it as a soundtrack.
"I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues" by Elton John was written for the sister of actress Rene Russo. Bernie Taupin, who wrote the lyrics, was married to Rene's sister, Toni.
Elton John's songwriting partner Bernie Taupin wrote the original lyrics for Starship's "We Built This City." It was the first Hot 100 Top 10 hit Taupin wrote without John.
Do their first three albums have French titles? Is "De Do Do Do, De Da Da Da" really meaningless? See if you can tell in this Fact or Fiction.
The Creed lead singer reveals the "ego and self-fulfillment" he now sees in one of the band's biggest hits.
Brenda talks about the inspiration that drove her to write hit songs like "Get Here" and "Piano in the Dark," and why a lack of formal music training can be a songwriter's best asset.
Here's what happens when an opening act is really out of place with the headliner, like when Beastie Boys opened for Madonna.
Famous songs that lent their titles - and in some cases storylines - to movies.
Shows like Dawson's Creek, Grey's Anatomy and Buffy the Vampire Slayer changed the way songs were heard on TV, and produced some hits in the process.