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

I listen to the far left which informs the far right. Somewhere in the middle is where we end up.

I'm just a regular guy, but if you cross me it will get physical.

I live in Los Angeles, which is the second most polluted city in the world, and I wake up in the morning to dirt all over my window.

I'm a sucker for pop melodies, things you can't get out of your head.

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.

If you're talking to an architect, he can look at a blank piece of paper, and once the initial design is there, the formula kicks in. Each room should have something unique and different about it - much the same way that in a song, every eight bars or so, a new piece of information should be introduced.