
Brian May wrote Queen's "We Will Rock You" so the crowds could participate in the song. They didn't have instruments, but they could clap their hands and stomp their feet.
Train wrote the 2011 song "Brand New Book" for the TV show The Biggest Loser - part of the song was used in the opening credits.

After 47 visits to the Hot 100, Justin Bieber topped the tally for the first time on September 17, 2015 with "What Do You Mean?"

"How Sweet It Is To Be Loved By You" by Marvin Gaye was inspired by Jackie Gleason's saying, "How Sweet It Is!"

The Goo Goo Dolls got the title for their song "Iris" from a country singer named Iris DeMent. The word doesn't show up in the lyric; lead singer Johnny Rzeznik said he was "trying to be pretentious and arty by calling it that."

The Dixie Chicks got their name from the Little Feat song "Dixie Chicken." In 2020 they became "The Chicks" because Dixie refers to the American South in times of slavery.
The stories behind the biggest hit songs about trucking.
If the name Citizen Dick means anything to you, there's a chance you'll get some of these right.
When Judd Apatow needed under-appreciated rockers for his Knocked Up sequel, he immediately thought of Parker, who just happened to be getting his band The Rumour back together.
Fishbone has always enjoyed much more acclaim than popularity - Angelo might know why.
The "A Thousand Miles" singer on what she thinks of her song being used in White Chicks and how she captured a song from a dream.
Paul Stanley on his soul music project, the Kiss songs with the biggest soul influence, and the non-make-up era of the band.