The Great Creators with Guy Raz

Latest Episodes:

Rob Thomas on Writing the #3 Most Successful Song of All Time Nov 07, 2023

Show notes

Rob Thomas is best known as the frontman and songwriter for rock band Matchbox Twenty. He initially dropped out of high school and considered joining the army before forming Matchbox Twenty with some friends in Orlando, Florida. They quickly were offered a record deal, but the very day they released their debut album, the label went bust and they only sold 600 copies. In this episode, Rob talks with Guy about the marketing tactic that made them global superstars, writing Matchbox Twenty's hit song "3AM", and joining forces with Carlos Santana on the smash hit "Smooth."

Links from the show:

Push by Matchbox Twenty

3AM by Matchbox Twenty

3AM original recording by Tabitha's Secret

America by Simon and Garfunkel

Smooth by Santana (feat. Rob Thomas)

Rob and his wife Marisol

Where the Light Goes full album

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Jason Derulo: 11x Platinum (!) Singer Who Used to Hand Out CD’s in Strip Clubs for Free Oct 31, 2023

Show notes

It's hard to say Jason Derulo's name without singing his famous tagline too. Since 2009, Jason's 11 platinum singles have gotten a ton of radio air time, and he's recently played a huge part in transforming the music industry on TikTok. In this episode, Jason talks with Guy about his early beginnings in musical theater, how he willed his debut song "Whatcha Say" to number 1 on the charts, and the secret to blowing up on social media.

Links from the show:

Jason Derulo singing his name for 1 minute

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Alex Gaskarth: How All Time Low Captured the Pop-Punk Zeitgeist by Staying True to Themselves Oct 24, 2023

Show notes

Alex Gaskarth is the frontman of pop punk band All Time Low. He formed the band with his friends when he was just a freshman in high school, and by the time he was a senior, the band already had a record deal. In time, All Time Low joined bands like Fall Out Boy and My Chemical Romance to define the emo-pop sound of the 2000s. In this episode, Alex talks with Guy about All Time Low's sleeper hit, “Dear Maria, Count Me In”, the band's secret to staying together after 20 years, and how a grueling tour schedule inspired their biggest chart topper "Monsters".

Links from the show:

Eleanor Rigby

Brain Stew by Green Day

All Time Low's first album The Party Scene

Dear Maria Count Me In

Monsters

Head on Collision by New Found Glory

All Time Low's Spotify

Alex's Instagram

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Johnny Marr: The Smiths Legend on His Creative Chemistry with Morrissey, Playing with Modest Mouse, and Changing Guitar Music Forever Oct 17, 2023

Show notes

Johnny Marr of The Smiths went from working in a clothes shop to founding one of the most influential bands of the past 40 years... as a teenager! Widely regarded as one of the world's greatest guitarists, Johnny sits down with Guy to discuss his fruitful but short partnership with Morrissey, how he wound up joining Modest Mouse and making a #1 album, where he finds inspiration, and why he's done some of his best creative work when his back was against the wall. Johnny's new is book is called Marr's Guitars.

The Smiths - This Charming Man

The Smiths - How Soon Is Now?

The Smiths - The Headmaster Ritual

The Smiths - The Boy with the Thorn in His Side

Electronic - Getting Away with It

Modest Mouse - Dashboard

Johnny's book - Marr's Guitars

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Melissa Etheridge: Her Scrappy Start, Coming Out as a Rockstar in the 90's, and How Cancer Changed the Way She Sees Everything Oct 10, 2023

Show notes

Melissa Etheridge is one of the most prolific singer/songwriters of the past three decades. She sits down with Guy to talk about her incredible career and life – opening up about her decision to come out as gay at the height of her fame, the reason she calls her 2004 cancer diagnosis "the best thing that's happened to me," and how, in her early 60's, she's still getting better at her craft every day. Melissa's new memoir, Talking to My Angels, is out now. And her autobiographical show Melissa Etheridge: My Window is currently on Broadway, starring, of course, Melissa.

Links from the show:

Like the Way I Do" music video

Melissa performing "Piece of My Heart" between chemotherapy treatments at the 2005 Grammy Awards

Etheridge Foundation for opioid abuse relief

Melissa's new book: Talking to My Angels

Melissa's autobiographical Broadway show Melissa Etheridge: My Window

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Bobby Berk: His Journey from Small-town Missouri to Queer Eye Design Guru, His Approach to Interior Design, and How He Turns Doubt into Drive Oct 03, 2023

Show notes

Bobby Berk is an interior designer, author, and co-host of the hit Netflix original Queer Eye. In this episode, Bobby tells Guy about the challenges of growing up gay in a small, conservative town, how he left home at a young age and bounced around the country before ending up in New York City, and how he went from retail management to owning his own design firm. Bobby and Guy also discuss his unique approach to interior design and why he thinks your home is like…your phone charger. Bobby's new book is called "Right at Home: How Good Design is Good for the Mind".

Links from the show:

Michael Graves’ Target Collection

Bobby Berk Home

Queer Eye

Queer Eye Reveals

Inside Bobby’s Home

Bobby's New Book

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Lainey Wilson: The Reigning CMA Entertainer of the Year Who "Felt Like a Complete Outsider Moving to Nashville to Chase My Dreams" Sep 26, 2023

Show notes

Lainey Wilson burst onto the country music scene in 2022 with her album Sayin’ What I’m Thinkin’. That year, she won Female Vocalist of the Year and Best New Artist at the CMA’s. But for seven years before that, she struggled to make it in the high-pressure Nashville music scene. And before that, she was a kid from a tiny town in rural Louisiana with a dream of being a country star. She joins Guy to talk about how she handled the hard times, what she’s learned about the art of collaboration during the making of two acclaimed albums, and what defines her unique style, which she calls Bell Bottom Country.

Links from the show:

Tougher Music Video

Things A Man Oughta Know Music Video

Lainey’s French Bulldog Hippie Mae’s Instagram

Hillbilly Hippie Official Lyrics Video

Lainey’s Female Vocalist (2022) Acceptance Speech

Lainey’s New Artist of the Year (2022) Acceptance Speech

Tougher (2016)

Sayin’ What I’m Thinkin’(2021)

Bell Bottom Country (2022)

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Carly Rae Jepsen: How The Pop Superstar Handled her Meteoric Rise to Fame, Learned the Art of Collaboration, and Why She Says Friendship Is the Key to a Great Song Sep 19, 2023

Show notes

At the beginning of 2012, Carly Rae Jepsen was working as a waitress in Vancouver, BC, dropping off demo tapes and playing coffeeshops in her free time. By the end of that year, she was a global superstar thanks to her hit song "Call Me Maybe". Since then, Carly has become a pop fixture with four chart-topping albums. She joins Guy to talk about how she handled the pressure of her sudden rise to fame and built a career, her secret to good collaboration, and the inspiration behind her latest albums: "The Loneliest Time" and "The Loveliest Time".

Links from the show:

Nothing Compares 2 U by Sinead O’Connor

Carly’s Canadian Idol Audition

Call Me Maybe Music Video

Carly as Cinderella on Broadway

The Loneliest Time

Bends Official Lyric Video

The Loveliest Time

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Mark Ronson on His Instant Connection with Amy Winehouse, Producing the Music for "Barbie", and Staying Relevant Sep 12, 2023

Show notes

Mark Ronson’s work has found its way into tons of the biggest pop hits in the world over the past two decades. And in that time he became a new kind of artist: a producer whose style is so distinct that his name became the marquee name. In this episode, Guy talks with Mark about his start DJing in New York, his instant connection with Amy Winehouse while producing "Back to Black", and working with Greta Gerwig to produce the music for "Barbie".

Links from the show:

Here Comes the Fuzz

Everybody Got Their Something - Nikka Costa

Back to Black

Valerie

Uptown Funk

Nothing Breaks Like a Heart

Barbie Soundtrack

Barbie Score

Mark's TED Talk on the history of sampling

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Kelly Clarkson: The Pop Music Megastar Opens Up about American Idol, Her Latest Album “Chemistry”, and the Drive to Host her Emmy Award-winning TV Talk Show Sep 05, 2023

Show notes

Kelly Clarkson won the first season of American Idol in 2002, released her chart-topping single “A Moment Like This” the same year, and instantly became a music megastar. Kelly talks to Guy about the hardships of her early life, and how they helped motivate her towards success, the personal story of heartbreak while making her latest album “Chemistry”, hosting her award-winning TV talk show, and how her busy production schedule keeps her creativity flowing. (EDITOR'S NOTE: Kelly's conversation with Guy was recorded before the announcement of the SAG-AFTRA strike.)

Links from the show:

Kelly sings “A Moment Like This” on American Idol Season 1 Finale in 2022

Kelly's acceptance speech at the 48th GRAMMY Awards in 2006

Anne Hathaway’s LIVE Remix with Kelly on The Kelly Clarkson Show

Kelly sings with Pink on The Kelly Clarkson Show in February 2023

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