Bonnie McKee

“I was discovered out of nowhere. I didn't have family that was in the industry. I didn't know anyone in L.A.; I didn't have any reason to have been discovered. Nowadays, you have YouTube, and people are scouting more, but I really was plucked out of obscurity.”

“People like hearing songs that sound like something they've heard before, that's reminiscent of their childhood and of what their parents listened to.”

“Try to say something familiar in a unique way so that it's sing-alongable, even if you don't speak English.”

“I've had a lot of successes as a songwriter, and I really have nothing to prove in that arena, so I'm just excited about the next challenge of pursuing this artist thing.”

“I thought back to my middle-school experience of having slumber parties and watching Romeo + Juliet and staring at Leo and thinking about my first kiss and what I wanted it to be like. And when you have your first real love, it's an epiphany, you know? It's like a whole new world.”

“I wanted to make a video for the holidays, but none of the traditional holiday songs were moving me.”

“I'm visually stimulated, so I watch TV, movies, even Pinterest. A song could come from something as simple as being words splashed across a billboard or changing everyday turns of phrases.”

“I had never really co-written. I thought it was weak or something if I needed to collaborate.”

“I wish I wrote 'Don't Speak' by No Doubt. I mean, that is a classic heartbreak song; it gets me every time.”

“One thing I'd tell an up-and-coming singer is to never rely on other people for anything. The more self-sufficient you can be, the better off you'll be.”

“In my mind, I imagined L.A. to be skyscrapers on the beach. Of course, that's not what it actually looks like. And growing up watching 'Beverly Hills 90210' and 'Melrose Place,' I always had an obsession with L.A. and California in general.”

“When I'm writing for other people, I have to play it safe.”

“A lot of times, if you're not getting inspiration right away, we'll listen to stuff to get inspired.”

“When I get an artistic itch, I have to scratch it.”

“When I'm dealing with Britney Spears and Katy Perry, these massive brands, like, really, very Coca-Cola, you know what I mean? There are certain kinds of standards. There are risks you can take, and there's risks that you don't. And I think I'm interested in taking a little more risk in my own music.”

“I was always super, super musical. So my parents recognized that and put me in choirs, piano lessons, and all that.”

“I like to think of myself as the people's pop star a little bit. I respect Lady Gaga so much, and I love what she does, but she has this kind of mysterious, out-of-reach thing. I'm just not that - as much as I'd love to have that sort of mystique, I think I'm kind of an open book.”

“It's great to just reach out and give something to the fans when they're hungry for it.”

“I know 'Hallelujah' isn't actually a Christmas song, but it has that cozy, haunting vibe that sounds like a winter's night and belongs by a fire.”

“I think the key to writing hit songs is simplicity.”