Bonnie McKee chats about co-writing hits with Katy Perry, including "California Gurls" and "Roar," as well as her own artist career that has resulted in successful singles such as "American Girl."

PART ONE:
Scott and Paul share a little preview of what's to come as they prepare to celebrate Songcraft's 10 anniversary

PART TWO
Our in-depth conversation with Bonnie McKee

ABOUT BONNIE McKEE:

Bonnie McKee grew up as a classically trained singer and pianist, but began pursuing a pop music career while still a teen. In 2004 she released her debut album, Trouble, with Reprise Records, but soon switched her focus to working as a behind-the-scenes songwriter. She has written ten songs that have hit #1 in either the US or UK, and is best known for her work with Katy Perry, which began with the Diamond-certified and international chart-topping album, Teenage Daydream. Bonnie contributed to three songs on the album, all of which became chart-topping singles: “California Gurls,” “Teenage Dream,” and “Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.).” When the deluxe Complete Confection version of the album was released, Bonnie landed two more chart-topping singles with “Part of Me” and “Wide Awake.” She went on to collaborate with Katy Perry on four songs on the follow-up album, Prism, including the Top 20 single “Birthday” and the #1 hit “Roar.” Other successful singles from the Bonnie McKee songbook include “Dynamite” for Taio Cruz, “Hold it Against Me” for Britney Spears, “C’Mon” for Kesha, and the UK chart toppers “How We Do (Party)” by Rita Ora and “I Don’t Care” by Cheryl. Additionally, she’s written songs for Cher, Christina Aguilera, Kelly Clarkson, Avril Lavigne, Bebe Rexha, Jason Derulo, Kygo, and Adam Lambert, among others.

In 2013, Bonnie reemerged as an artist with the single “American Girl” on Epic Records. She recorded an entire album, but parted ways with the label and it was shelved. Enough tracks and demos leaked online over the years, however, that fans were clamoring for it. Now, more than ten years later, Bonnie has re-recorded the album. She combined the re-recorded tracks with the original release of “American Girl,” which has now been streamed 23 million times on Spotify. The end result is Hot City, an album more than a decade in the making.

Grammy nominee and four-time ASCAP Christian Songwriter of the Year Jeremy Camp dives deep with Songcraft on creativity, loss, honesty, and following the right path.

PART ONE
Paul and Scott get in the weeds on Billboard magazine's recent "100 Greatest Country Artists of All Time" list. Plus, we preview the remaining episodes for 2024 and offer a sneak peek at what's ahead for our 10th anniversary year.

PART TWO
Our in-depth interview with Jeremy Camp

ABOUT JEREMY CAMP
Between 2002 and 2024, Christian artist Jeremy Camp released fifteen studio albums, four of which have been certified Gold by the RIAA. Additionally, his 2005 album Live Unplugged has been certified double Platinum. Fourteen of Jeremy’s singles as an artist have hit #1 on Billboard’s Christian charts, including the Gold-certified “Walk by Faith,” “There Will be a Day,” “Overcome,” “Same Power,” “Christ in Me,” “Dead Man Walking,” and “Keep Me in the Moment.” Other highlights of his catalog include “Give You Glory,” “Lay Down My Pride,” “Stay,” and “I Still Believe,” which he wrote after the death of his first wife when he was just 23 years old. Jeremy has earned a Grammy nomination, five GMA Dove Awards, three American Music Award nominations, and four awards for ASCAP Christian Songwriter of the Year. In addition, Billboard magazine named him the #2 Christian artist of the decade. Jeremy’s most recent album, Deeper Waters, was released in 2024.

Three-time Grammy nominee and pop songwriting powerhouse Justin Tranter joins us to talk about his process and his remarkable lists of hits for Chappell Roan, Fall Out Boy, Imagine Dragons, Selena Gomez, Justin Bieber, and many others.

PART ONE:
Scott and Paul nerd out on this year's Grammy nominations

PART TWO:
Our in-depth interview with Justin Tranter

ABOUT JUSTIN TRANTER:
Nominated for Songwriter of the Year at the Grammy Awards in 2024, Justin Tranter is one of the most successful writers in pop music. The recognition capped off a ten year streak of success that includes hits such as “Centuries” by Fall Out Boy, the Selena Gomez hits “Good for You,” “Hands to Myself,” and “Lose You to Love Me,” DNCE’s “Cake By the Ocean,” “Sorry” by Justin Bieber, “Close” by Nick Jonas, “Issues” by Julia Michaels, the Imagine Dragons singles “Believer,” “Natural,” and “Enemy,” Maroon 5’s “Cold,” “Bad at Love” by Halsey, and “Good Luck, Babe!” by Chappell Roan, which is nominated for Song of the Year at the upcoming Grammy Awards in 2025.

Tranter has additionally contributed to singles by artists such as Gwen Stefani, Britney Spears, Linkin Park, 5 Seconds of Summer, Bebe Rexha, Dua Lipa, Ariana Grande, Lady Gaga, and Miley Cyrus. Others who’ve drawn from the Justin Tranter songbook include Kelly Clarkson, Kacey Musgraves, John Legend, Shakira, Kesha, Christina Aguilera, Tori Kelly, Meghan Trainor, Tom Morello, The Chicks, Billy Porter, and Demi Lovato. In addition to a close songwriting partnership with Julia Michaels, Tranter’s regular collaborators include some of the biggest names in music, such as Cardi B, Sam Smith, Janelle Monae, Leon Bridges, and others.

Justin’s impressive list of accolades includes multiple GRAMMY and Golden Globe nominations, 16 BMI pop awards, including two consecutive BMI Songwriter of the Year awards, and being named a U.S. Global Music Ambassador as part of the U.S. Department of State and YouTube’s Global Music Partnership alongside Chuck D, Grace Bowers, Kane Brown, Herbie Hancock, Jelly Roll and others.