So over the years, a lot of people have asked me
To sort of describe my song writing process
From beginning to end
How long does it take
Where do you write
What are the circumstances
Do you start with music,
Do you start with lyrics,
And you know
My answer is always that
It happens differently every time,
And that's why I'm still
So in love with song writing.
So what I've done here is shown you
Three different examples of the beginning stages of these songs
And how they each started, different ways.
So I'll explain them to you
And maybe that will help you understand kind of how I put songs together

I sent this voice memo to Ryan Tedder
Because I'd always wanted to work with him,
And finally we scheduled some studio time.
So I always wanna be prepared.
I wanted to send him the idea that
I was working on before we went into the studio
Just in case he wrote back and said
"I can't stand that,
I wanna work on something else,
Think of something else".
So I just sat down with the piano,
Put my phone on top of the piano
And just kind of explained to him
Where I wanted to go with the song,
How I saw the melody sitting in
And we ended up recording the song the next day
And it ended up being on the record called
"I Know Places".
So this was the voice memo
That I sent to him the night before we ended up finishing the song

"Okay so this is kind of this rough idea thing:

Oh, oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh
I
Oh, oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh,
I
Oh, oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh,
I
I
I

Na na na na waiting at the back door
They're around and the vultures come around
And you know that they, they want us
Say what they want 'bout, say what they want 'bout us
And you come and sing not listen
I would not think about it but I'm not done
Every know that a thing or two about it,
Thing or two about it,
I
Cause they got the cages,
They got the boxes
And guns
They are the hunters we are the foxes
And we run

Baby,
I know some places we won't be found
And they'll be chasing their tails trying to track us down cause
I...
I know places we can
Hide...
I know places,
I know places

Oh, oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh, oh
Oh, oh, oh, I

Oh, oh, oh, oh
I know places
Or whatever I don't know,
But that's basically just like a dark, really dark,
Like, lyric like bridge thing
And it's about like everyone is trying to get into
And ruin a love or whatever
And it's like you just,
Whatever, you know,
And the chorus would just go to that major
And just be like say that "oooh" of course.
So I hope you like it, it wouldn't be a piano thing like...