Andy Grammer

“I really wanted to write a song like Eric Clapton's 'Wonderful Tonight.' It's just such a sweet sentiment. It's so simple but so genuine.”

“If I write a sad song, at the end it's gotta be like, 'Dude, things are looking up!'”

“I don't really connect with super-sad, somber songs.”

“When you're spending eight to 10 hours out there, the homeless guy is no longer homeless; it's Dave. They become people to you. I think we're really good in this country about saying that they're homeless and, therefore, they don't exist.”

“I always try to find things worth saying, things that are supposed to be said instead of being contrived. I do a ton of writing.”

“We all need songs that bring out our inner swagger just listening to it.”

“I've been surfing several times, and I'm terrible at it. But what I found was that you're usually waiting on the board, hanging out, watching the waves come in. And one that you think is a big wave is not actually one.”

“One of my favorite things is to have a three-hour conversation over coffee with someone.”

“I don't know how to dance, and I don't have any extra flexible skills.”

“You either create something there on the street, or nothing happens. It's brutal. But if you go through that for two or three years, it really toughens you up.”

“My dad is a children's singer. His name is Red Grammer. He's literally one of the happiest people on the planet.”

“You want to hit people's ears to make them want to dance in their kitchen. So that is what a hit is to me.”

“You get way better from playing to the passing public. You learn how to entertain. But it took me a good three years out on the promenade to figure that out. You also learn what makes them stop dead in their tracks and what doesn't.”

“Sure, yes, there are smoking-hot girls. But my girlfriend's smoking hot, my wife, whatever.”

“I love songs, and I love to tell stories, and so a lot of times, if you really want a good story, you got to flip the radio dial over to country.”

“The first song that I had that went platinum was 'Keep Your Head Up,' which was a long time ago. Then, you get 'one-hit wonder' with that.”

“Album 1 is proving that you're worth listening to, album 2 is proving that it wasn't a fluke, and album 3 is the most authentic thing I've ever done.”

“I do radio gigs, three-minute spots, solo shows, so I still get plenty of practice at the sniper attack - me at a piano or with a guitar, having to win people over fast.”

“You know when you hear a lyric and you can tell that the person means it? That is really hard; that is so much harder than it seems: to find the topics that you're passionate about and have it come across as like, 'Yeah, that guy needed to sing that song.'”

“You need to be growing and getting better, and in L.A., it's so hard to get bookings. You literally have to pay clubs to book you. It's pay to play, and then you only get 30 minutes. That's no way to get good.”