Check out this excellent interview with Ryan Tedder, lead singer and songwriter of OneRepublic and an hugely successful record producer. It’s straightforward, useful information on everything from songwriting to producing to arranging. If you got my recent newsletter and tried the top-line writing exercise, you were writing to a track by Ryan Tedder.
Here are a few short excerpts from the excellent interview by Tom Cole for NPR. (A link to the complete interview below.)
On the importance of melody: “Melody is the single most important thing to any song, period. I don’t care what anybody says, it trumps everything. Not because that’s my opinion but because I think it’s actually indisputable fact. The human brain retains melody easier than it retains words. It’s that simple.”
I love this quote on the difference between Indie and Commercial artists: “I think the best songs are being written by the very under-stated, under-appreciated indie artists. The thing that separates them from mainstream success is they either consciously or unknowingly refuse to deliver on a big chorus.”
On instrumental hooks: “I think a riff can be complementary but when you go from complimentary to primary, then it becomes the hook to me.”
Don’t miss this. It’s worth your time. Here’s the complete interview by Tom Cole on NPR’s “The Record”: Ryan Tedder Interview: A Fan of Music Talks About the Craft of Songwriting