Some of the best songs that artists perform year after year are ones they hated.

I've never been fired in my life.

The thing that's tricky is sometimes the best voices - just because someone hits the big notes and sounds amazing - it doesn't necessarily mean they make the greatest artists.

Listen to the Bee Gees and you can learn to be a great writer.

I'm a native New Yorker, so I'm edgier; I kind of tell it like it is.

A great song should make you stop everything that you're doing. You should be so into it that you just can't imagine doing anything else for that moment. You wouldn't even dream of picking up the phone.

You need to understand that a skilled professional songwriter can accelerate your success as an already talented musician. These people are writing every single day, so their craft is really sharp, and it's the best songwriters who consistently get on the radio.