Quotes About Authenticity

I remember hearing songs from the Mother Love Bone album, and hearing Alice in Chains, and feeling like this is more than just a fad or moment.

The hack songwriter will write the absolute truth every single word, whether it makes a great song or not.

If you aren't already a songwriter, try it. When you can say what you want to say, in your own words, it's incredibly easy to show an audience who you are.

I don't really like to call myself a brand, and I don't like to think of myself as a brand. I'm a singer, a songwriter, a musician and a performer. And an actress, and all the other things that I do. When you add it all together, some might call it a brand, but that's not my focus.

I think people appreciate a songwriter who shows different sides. The whole angst thing is cool, but if that's all you've got, it's just boring. Everything I write, whether it's happy or sad, has a sense of humor to it.

You know, he likes me because I'm his son. I have to go long and far to find someone who knows me just as me, rather than me the songwriter or whatever.

I worked extremely hard at my craft and at being a good songwriter, being a good guitar player, being a good organist, because I didn't think people would take me seriously.

And this whole period of time of gradually working at being a better guitar player and songwriter have gradually led me to the point where I feel I'm doing a clearer representation of the thing that I've been feeling inside me since I was four years old.

When I first started out in this business, it was easy because nobody wanted anything from me. But now everyone wants something from me, so it's hard to break away and just be a songwriter.

As a songwriter, it's very hard to listen to music that's not coming from the heart and soul, personally.

As a songwriter I hate this whole, 'If it's a sad song, it has to sound like a sad song thing.' And that goes all the way back to my days with the Format. I'm an insane narcissist, so if I have to get something off my chest, I'll get something off my chest.

I didn't want to be this four-chord acoustic singer songwriter because that stuff just got so old to me.

I'm more than a songwriter. I'm a creative person. Some people you just always see. I won't allow you to see me unless it makes sense. There's a reason to see me.

The thing about Sheeran is that he is an incredibly real artist and songwriter. He is not trying to be anybody else other than himself.

There's two things that are tough when you're trying to be a songwriter: Number one is, how do I write a great song? The second thing is, how do I write a great song that's right for me?

I'm a songwriter, an artist, and a musician. I do not have to try to be that; I just am.

With pretty much everything that I've done, in terms of going from being a songwriter and producer for other artists to doing my stuff, all the songs that I've kept to myself have always been me writing about my life.

I've retreated to what I was originally, which is an individual songwriter.

Songwriters always reminded me of that kid at school who would go around with his guitar, like, 'Yeah, songwritin' man,' looking wistful. That wasn't me - those kinds of people put me off. In the early days, I'd write a bunch of lyrics and almost look at them as a sort of joke, to make the rest of the boys laugh.

Why can't we actually sing and get respected as good singers and songwriters without having our boobs and butt hanging out?

Songwriters tell the truth.

I'm a writer, first and foremost, and I sort of take my cues from the songwriters of the '70s, who are talking about what's really important to them.

It's been really cool to me to watch someone like Sam Hunt, whose lyrics and roots are in country but you can hear that he listens to Drake and Justin Timberlake - and that's OK. It allows songwriters to be more honest because it's like, 'This is who I'm listening to.'

My favorite songwriters are all solo artists.