What's in a Song

Paula Cole on her writing process, the books that have inspired her and what writing teaches her


Listen Later

Send us a text

Grammy-winning artst Paula Cole has released seven solo albums of original songs. Cole has performed with icons in many genres of music, from Peter Gabriel to Dolly Parton, Herbie Hancock to Emmylou Harris, and Amy Lee of Evanescence to Burt Bacharach. Cole’s emotionally deep performances and her poetic, intelligent writing makes her stand out from the masses of contemporary music. Her compositions have been covered by a diverse range of artists—including Hancock, Annie Lennox, Katherine McPhee, and JoJo—and she has sold approximately 3 million albums. As the first woman in history to solely produce and receive the Best Producer Grammy nomination for her album This Fire, Cole has broken boundaries with a searcher’s spirit. From her top 10 hits of the 1990s to her more recent, critically acclaimed albums, Cole continues to write, produce, record, and perform heartfelt, meaningful, lasting music that defies categorization.

In this episode, Paula shares her writing process, prompts she gives her students and what she's learned from journaling and writing.  She talks about how she found her sound as an artist and the artists who have inspired her.  How walking helps her write.

Singer/songwriter Sam Robbins' song about his father from one of Paula's prompts: https://open.spotify.com/track/6R1NtDvc6i24t7pZROFaED?si=44837935583f449c

https://www.petersykesmusic.com/



Scarlet's website:

https://www.scarletkeys.com

Scarlet's instagram: https://www.instagram.com/scarletkeysofficial/

To purchase Scarlet Keys' book "The Craft of Songwriting:

https://www.amazon.com/Craft-Songwriting-Music-Meaning-Emotion/dp/0876391927/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2PP55NU6E9ST6&keywords=the+craft+of+songwriting&qid=1659573139&sprefix=the+craft+of+songwritin%2Caps%2C153&sr=8-1



...more
View all episodesView all episodes
Download on the App Store

What's in a SongBy Scarlet Keys

  • 5
  • 5
  • 5
  • 5
  • 5

5

98 ratings


More shows like What's in a Song

View all
Radiolab by WNYC Studios

Radiolab

43,907 Listeners

The Moth by The Moth

The Moth

27,162 Listeners

Song Exploder by Hrishikesh Hirway

Song Exploder

5,977 Listeners

Switched on Pop by Vulture

Switched on Pop

2,685 Listeners

The Daily by The New York Times

The Daily

111,863 Listeners

SmartLess by Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, Will Arnett

SmartLess

58,032 Listeners

The Ezra Klein Show by New York Times Opinion

The Ezra Klein Show

15,815 Listeners

We Can Do Hard Things by Treat Media and Glennon Doyle

We Can Do Hard Things

41,527 Listeners

Normal Gossip by Normal Gossip

Normal Gossip

5,811 Listeners

Every Single Album by The Ringer

Every Single Album

765 Listeners

All There Is with Anderson Cooper by CNN Podcasts

All There Is with Anderson Cooper

10,517 Listeners

Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus by Lemonada Media

Wiser Than Me with Julia Louis-Dreyfus

11,420 Listeners

Handsome by Headgum

Handsome

13,480 Listeners

Good Hang with Amy Poehler by The Ringer

Good Hang with Amy Poehler

10,769 Listeners

The Telepathy Tapes by Ky Dickens

The Telepathy Tapes

8,664 Listeners