Media that Songwriters Should Consume
In the whacky, wavy, wonderful world of the internet there is a plethora of good (and horrendous) content out there for songwriters to consume. So let’s review five different types of media - outside of songs - that songwriters should be engaging with.
And the Writer is…is an interview style podcast hosted by Ross Golan. In each episode, Golan sits down with a different hit songwriter to discuss their journey in the music industry, their process, and how their hit songs came about. It is a personal look into the people behind the songs. For songwriters in the industry, it can provide insight and inspiration. There are currently more than 160 different archived interviews for you to listen to right now.
Diary of a Song is a YouTube series recorded by the New York Times. When a song transcends boundaries and enters the cultural mainstream Joe Coscarelli interviews the writers and artists behind the song. Over the course of 24 different episodes, Coscarelli has interviewed Lorde, Sam Hunt, Lil Nas X, and dozens of other folks about their work.
Vox’s Earworm is - similarly - a YouTube series run by Vox. There are 27 episodes in which journalist Estelle Caswell discusses far ranging topics like 70’s trucker music, the take over of smooth jazz in the 90’s, and why the US national anthem is TERRIBLE. Nah episode is a studied examination of musical trends well known or forgotten. Academics will love this series.
In the podcast Song Exploder, host Hrishikesh Hirway invites musicians onto the pod to break apart how their songs were made piece by piece. New episodes are released every two weeks and run somewhere between 15-25 minutes each. They’re excellent listening pieces for a car ride or subway trip. Noah Kahan, Muna, and Fiest are all recent interviewees.
NYTimes Podcast is a podcast in which music snobs and journalists get together to discuss varied music topics. Here, the artists and songwriters are removed from the mic and instead academics seek to contextualize how they fit into a greater musical story and lineage. Each episodes runs for about an hour so it’s a bit of investment. But, I always find this one to be joyful, entertaining listen.