Diane Warren: Relentless documentary

[Nekujak]

Just watched this and thoroughly enjoyed it. An inspiring and intimate portrait of someone whose entire being is unwaveringly focused on just one thing and one thing only: songwriting. The level of success and consistency Warren has attained is unprecedented and awe-inspiring, and she's done it all on her own terms. Highly recommended

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[Spirit Groove]

Where did you see this?

 

[Nekujak]

Where did you see this?

Saw it at a friend's house, I think we streamed it on Amazon. He might've paid for it.

I think it's also available on Apple TV and a couple of other streaming services.

 

[Spirit Groove]

Thanks I'll look around for it!

 

[David Cuny]

This was some time ago, so I don't recall the source or even how true the memory is. I suspect it was from a songwriting book explaining how one doesn't have to draw from personal experience in order to write a successful song.

Here's a quote from a recent People magazine article that captures that:

But the woman who helped write pop radio's book on love and romance doesn't necessarily write from first-hand experience. Warren, 68, has been single for most of her adult life — and that's the way she wants to keep it. Her first (and only) love is music.

"I don't want to be in a relationship. It's not for me. It never was," she says in her new documentary, Diane Warren: Relentless, which premiered at the DOC NYC festival on Nov. 18 and will hit cinemas on Jan. 10, ahead of its streaming premiere Jan. 16 on Master Class.

"I don't think you have to be in love to write a great love song," she continues. "To me, it's like Method acting. When I'm writing these songs, I'm the character. I feel everything."

I found that singular focus on songwriting a bit depressing, and the trailer for the movie hints that autism may help account for that. (She's a songwriting machine. )

But she's living her best life, so awesome for her.

I thought this was a useful interview: https://www.tcolerachel.com/diane-warren

 

[Nekujak]

I found that singular focus on songwriting a bit depressing, and the trailer for the movie hints that autism may help account for that. (She's a songwriting machine. )

But she's living her best life, so awesome for her.

Yes, the movie is very direct about Warren being diagnosed with aspergers, and goes on to attribute her obsessive desire for routine, intense focus on songwriting, and disregard for certain social boundaries (she unabashedly hounds artists and superstars with her songs) to the fact that she's on the spectrum. She also has some heavy childhood emotional trauma that informs her behavior.

It's very clear that songwriting is what she loves most in life (besides her cat ), and her ability to consistently channel songwriting gold for all these decades is nothing short of remarkable. In the movie, David Foster emphasizes with amazement, that in an era where hit pop songs are often crafted by teams of co-writers, Warren has only ever written alone.

And yeah, I never believed that you need to experience something personally to be able to write about it effectively. Many great novelists are prime examples of that. The artist's job is to reflect on the world around them, and there's no shortage of inspiration all around us all the time