PATREON EXCLUSIVE | Crime Is A Construct (feat. Natasha Bedingfield) | The Joe Budden Podcast
Quick Read
Summary
Takeaways
- ❖Breaking into the US market was exceptionally difficult for British artists, with 'Unwritten' experiencing a rare 6-month slow build to success.
- ❖Natasha Bedingfield intentionally kept her personal fame secondary to her song's popularity to maintain privacy and authenticity.
- ❖Record labels actively controlled artist image, dictating clothing choices and public persona.
- ❖Collaborative songwriting thrives on equal splits, ensuring the best creative ideas prevail over individual ego.
- ❖AI in music is viewed as a form of 'stealing' but also as a potential helpful tool, with concerns about its impact on human connection in art and social media.
- ❖A personal family health crisis profoundly shifted Natasha's perspective, highlighting that the music industry is not the 'be-all and end-all'.
- ❖The evolution of media, from radio's 'don't talk, just play music' era to podcasts, validates the audience's desire for artists' opinions and authentic conversation.
Insights
1Difficult US Market Penetration for British Artists
Natasha Bedingfield described the immense difficulty for British artists to break into the US market, citing examples like Robbie Williams and Kylie Minogue who failed despite huge success in England. Her hit 'Unwritten' had an unusually slow, six-month build to popularity, contrasting with typical hits that emerge within the first month.
Robbie Williams, Kylie Manugg who couldn't break it here. Um, and then um my label's like don't I don't think just don't get your hopes up. that that's a very English kind of way to think about things like don't you know it's probably impossible but you just just kind of put your time in and um with unwritten it was like 6 months it was a very slow build.
2Label Control Over Artist Image and Autonomy
Bedingfield recounted how her record label pushed a 'girl next door' image, specifically wanting her to wear jeans like Dido, their previous successful artist. She only realized the extent of this control later when her stylist informed her that the label was dictating what she was 'not allowed' to wear, leading her to eventually rebel and assert her own style.
That was from the label because their their artist before me that their most successful artist before me was Daido. They really really wanted me to wear jeans. I really hated jeans. So yeah, it was it's interesting. I found out when the stylist told me that they were like going in there and telling her like I'm not allowed to wear certain things.
3Prioritizing Song Fame Over Personal Celebrity
Natasha Bedingfield expressed contentment that her song 'Unwritten' became more famous than she did personally. This allowed her to maintain a degree of privacy and avoid the intense personal scrutiny often associated with extreme celebrity, which she found preferable to being the most known person.
So for me like the f that's why the song became more famous than me, which I'm very happy. That's so awesome to have a song be that big and yet can still be some places where the song is bigger than you. Maybe some artists hate that. For me, I would love I would love that and loved it when it applied to me cuz I wasn't I didn't get past me.
4Collaborative Songwriting and Fair Splits
Bedingfield emphasized her preference for writing with a team, describing it as a dynamic, comedic process where the 'best idea should win'. She advocates for equal splits among collaborators in pop music, arguing that this approach fosters creativity and prevents greed from overshadowing artistry, a contrast to the often complex and unequal split sheets in hip-hop and R&B.
I always write with a team. Yeah. I I love um it feels like being in SNL. Like I feel like a comedy writer and you just kind of like tease each other and you end up with a song at the end, you know? I love it. No, but you just have to have exactly equal splits. Pop splits. Pops. Anyone who's in the room, unless they're an engineer, is a writer.
5AI's Dual Nature: Stealing and Tool
Natasha Bedingfield views AI in music as 'stealing' when it replicates human voices or compositions without consent, but also acknowledges its potential as a helpful tool. She cites Imogen Heap as someone hopeful about AI's creative applications, but expresses concern that an oversaturation of non-human content could lead to 'fatigue' and diminish the value of human-created art and social interaction.
I think it's stealing. Yeah. I think AI is going to do amazing stuff. Some people are using AI um and then getting the musicians to play what the AI did? Yeah, I think it could there are there's interesting tools um some called image and heap. She's like really talks about how how it can actually be helpful AI. I think AI is a great tool. I do also think that has potential to ruin things like social media, like podcast, like music because if people aren't invested, which they won't be because it's not a human. They it ceases to exist.
6Life Events Reshape Industry Perspective
A personal crisis involving her son's brain surgery at age two profoundly altered Bedingfield's perspective. The five weeks spent in the hospital made her realize that the music industry, which often feels all-consuming, is not 'everything', and real-life challenges provide crucial perspective, influencing subsequent decisions.
Well, he was two and he had a brain surgery. Um and it was like never explained what it was but it got completely fixed. Um so it was an amazing experience to see uh in be in a hospital for 5 weeks and to see just like how amazing doctors can be um nurses and every it was just that's definitely life-changing. Um and it puts perspective on things cuz I think music industry people we think that music is everything.
Bottom Line
The music industry's historical resistance to artists speaking or releasing unpolished work (e.g., radio DJs, unmixed music) inadvertently paved the way for the current podcast and DIY music landscape, where authenticity and opinion are highly valued.
This highlights a cyclical nature of industry control versus artist autonomy. What was once forbidden (talking on radio, unmixed tracks) is now a mainstream, successful format, demonstrating that consumer demand for authenticity can eventually override traditional gatekeepers.
Artists and content creators should identify current 'forbidden' or unconventional practices that resonate with niche audiences, as these could become the next mainstream trends once industry barriers fall. Investing in platforms that prioritize raw, unedited content could yield significant future returns.
Natasha Bedingfield's songwriting process involves initially crafting 'dirty versions' of lyrics before cleaning them up for pop consumption, and she advised Nicki Minaj to rap about her butt, which proved successful.
This suggests that tapping into raw, unfiltered, or even 'taboo' ideas can be a powerful creative catalyst, even if the final product needs to be polished or adapted for a broader audience. The initial 'dirty' concept can hold the core energy.
Songwriters and creative teams could implement a 'dirty draft' phase, encouraging unfiltered expression without immediate censorship, then strategically refine for market appeal. This could unlock more innovative and impactful content.
Key Concepts
Athlete's Visualization
Natasha Bedingfield pictured her success like an athlete visualizes winning, which prepared her mentally for the reality of achieving her goals, even if not fully for all aspects of fame.
The Cracks Let the Light Through
This metaphor suggests that personal brokenness or difficult experiences can lead to deeper artistic expression and more profound connection with an audience, often resulting in the best performances or creative output.
Lessons
- Cultivate a clear intention for your career: decide whether you aim for widespread personal fame or for your work to transcend your individual persona, as this dictates how you navigate industry pressures.
- When collaborating on creative projects, establish clear, equitable split sheets from the outset to foster a meritocratic environment where the best ideas, rather than loudest voices, win.
- Actively seek to maintain a degree of personal privacy, even with success, by allowing your work to be more famous than you, enabling a more grounded and authentic personal life.
- Leverage personal life experiences, especially challenging ones, as they can provide invaluable perspective and deepen your artistic expression, shifting focus from industry pressures to core values.
- For those supporting individuals in crisis (e.g., hospital stays), proactively bring practical support like food or necessities without asking, as the person may be too overwhelmed to articulate their needs.
Notable Moments
Natasha Bedingfield's son underwent brain surgery at age two, an experience that profoundly shifted her life perspective.
This personal crisis made her realize the music industry wasn't 'everything', providing a grounding perspective that influenced her decisions and priorities moving forward, highlighting the impact of real-life events on an artist's career and outlook.
Joe Budden recounts how his record label president in 2003 told him he couldn't do both music and talk on radio.
This illustrates the historical limitations placed on artists by the industry, contrasting sharply with the current podcast era where artists' opinions and conversations are highly valued, validating Joe's current career path and the evolution of media consumption.
Quotes
"So for me like the f that's why the song became more famous than me, which I'm very happy."
"If your intention is to be known to make great art or if your intention is to be the most known person."
"I found out when the stylist told me that they were like going in there and telling her like I'm not allowed to wear certain things."
"I think AI is a great tool. I do also think that has potential to ruin things like social media, like podcast, like music because if people aren't invested, which they won't be because it's not a human. They it ceases to exist."
"But if I'm like how do I connect with people? How do I make them feel moved? How do I make them feel something? that changes everything for me. Um, and makes the whole experience so fun."
"I tell the story all the time that the president of my record label when I was on radio just talking in 2003 was like, 'No, you can't do both. You can't do music and talk.'"
Q&A
Recent Questions
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