The Indie Sound With Jimmy Star - Desmond Child
12 min
•Nov 12, 20257 months agoSummary
Jimmy Star features Desmond Child, a legendary songwriter and producer inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, discussing his career writing hits for major artists like Bon Jovi, Cher, and Ricky Martin. The episode highlights Child's own music catalog, particularly his romantic ballads 'You're the Story of My Life' and 'Love on a Rooftop,' showcasing his talents as both a performer and songwriter.
Insights
- Successful songwriters often transition from performing to behind-the-scenes production, leveraging their artistic credibility to write for major commercial acts
- Romantic ballads remain a timeless format in popular music, with emotional storytelling as a core driver of listener connection
- Cross-genre songwriting (pop, rock, Latin, dance) demonstrates the versatility required of top-tier music producers in the modern industry
- Independent artists with major industry credentials can maintain relevance by releasing retrospective catalogs and reinterpretations of their own work
Trends
Songwriter-producer hybrid careers as dominant model in modern music industryRomantic ballad resurgence in streaming era despite genre fragmentationLatin Grammy recognition expanding influence of Latin music in mainstream songwritingCatalog reissues and deep cuts gaining listener interest through podcast discoveryMulti-genre songwriting as competitive advantage for top producers
Topics
Songwriting and compositionMusic productionRomantic balladsCareer transitions in musicSongwriter Hall of Fame recognitionLatin music influenceAlbum retrospectivesIndependent music careersGrammy and Emmy nominationsMusic catalog management
Companies
Elektra Records
Released Desmond Child's 1991 solo album featuring 'You're the Story of My Life'
People
Desmond Child
Legendary songwriter and producer, Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee (2008), wrote hits for Bon Jovi, Cher, Kiss, Joa...
Bon Jovi
Major artist for whom Desmond Child wrote and produced songs
Cher
Major artist for whom Desmond Child wrote and produced songs
Ricky Martin
Major artist for whom Desmond Child wrote and produced songs
Kiss
Rock band for whom Desmond Child wrote songs
Joan Jett
Rock artist for whom Desmond Child wrote songs
Alice Cooper
Rock artist for whom Desmond Child wrote songs
Ronnie Spector
Artist who recorded 'Love on a Rooftop' written by Desmond Child on 1987 album 'Unfinished Business'
Quotes
"Many of you probably know him as a songwriter and record producer. He was inducted into the songwriters Hall of Fame in 2008. He's been nominated for four Grammys and Emmy. And he won a Latin Grammy."
Jimmy Star
"I think he's done songs for Kiss, Joan Jett, Bon Jovi, Eros Smith, Cher, JoJo Siwa, Alice Cooper, Ricky Martin. So he's done stuff for a lot of people."
Jimmy Star
"I think it is literally the most romantic song, Ballad I've ever heard ever."
Jimmy Star•Regarding 'You're the Story of My Life'
"You're the Story of My Life. You're the one that got me through the night."
Desmond Child•From song 'You're the Story of My Life'
Full Transcript