Sia planned to quit her solo career after her 2014 album 1000 Forms of Fear, but the "Chandelier" video proved so popular it drew her back in.
The first big hit by an X Factor winner was "Bleeding Love" by Leona Lewis, who won the British version of the show in 2008. The song was intended for Jesse McCartney, who wrote it with Ryan Tedder.
"Slow Hand" was a #1 Country hit for Conway Twitty in 1982, a year after The Pointer Sisters recorded it.
"Are You Gonna Go My Way" by Lenny Kravitz is from the perspective of Jesus Christ: "I am the chosen I'm the one."
Avril Lavigne's 2011 song "Darlin" was written much earlier; she says it's the second song she ever wrote, composed when she was an unsigned 15-year-old living in Napanee, Ontario. The song reflects those years when she was "trying to figure it all out."
"Ain't No Sunshine" by Bill Withers was inspired by the Jack Lemmon movie Days of Wine and Roses.
When televangelists like Jimmy Swaggart took on rockers like Ozzy Osbourne and Metallica, the rockers retaliated. Bono could even be seen mocking the preachers.
As Procol Harum's lyricist, Keith wrote the words to "A Whiter Shade Of Pale." We delve into that song and find out how you can form a band when you don't sing or play an instrument.
The top Contemporary Christian artist of all time on song inspirations and what she learned from Johnny Carson.
The renown rock singer talks about "The House of the Rising Sun" and "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood."
Joe talks about the challenges of of making a Duke Ellington tribute album, and tells the stories behind some of his hits.
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.