Ep. 6 — Grammy-Winner Adam Schlesinger on How To Write a Hit Song

Adam Schlesinger has got it going on. The Grammy and Emmy-winning songwriter and producer has written songs for such luminairies as J Lo, Katy Perry, Josh Groban, Stephen Colbert, and Kermit the Frog. Currently, he's executive producer and songwriter on My Crazy Ex-Girlfriend on the CW. And he's probably best known for his band, Fountains of Wayne, which tore up the charts in 2003 with their power-pop anthem "Stacey's Mom". He wrote the theme for the Tom Hank's movie That Thing You Do, the music for the Broadway musical Cry-Baby, and the viral opening numbers for the Neil Patrick Harris-hosted Tony Awards.

On this episode of Write About Now with Jonathan Small, he shares the secrets behind writing a killer pop song: his process for coming up with lyrics, the story behind some of his most famous song, the best and worst lyrics of all time, and how to break into the the lyric-writing business.