I knew I could make money from songwriting, so how much and when was not really the question.

When life gives you the opportunity to check off a thing on the bucket list, you have to check them.

The only thing contrived is the production - you can over-produce to the point you kill a good idea, you can under-produce so that the song's amazing but you'll have folks at a radio station saying they won't play it, so there's this balance, and it has to be true.

I have to shut down from other artists, because otherwise I end up giving them my stories.

Honest always sells. Always has, always will.

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.

The Beatles are the most credible band in the history of music.