Act One: Dr.Phil Collins
It was really interesting to see Kine’s approach on her breakup because even though she wrote a breakup song to help her get through her past relationship, she used a different methodology to get there. In other words, instead of directly writing a breakup song, she created a process and did a lot of research to help her to get to the point of making a song. For example, she began to reflect on her relationship with Anthony and gather what she liked doing with him the most, which was listening to songs. Therefore, she started to listen to breakup songs, specifically by Phil Collins and Magnetic Fields, and realized that Collins really conveyed her feelings of pain and heartbreak so well that she got inspired to write a breakup song for herself. She realized that writing and recording a song about her mixed emotions will comfort her. However, it was really surprising to me because she didn’t even have any knowledge or background on writing music, but she was still able to write a song and record it with well-known people to get her message through. Kine’s process was very well-planned out because she connected with the right people like Phil Collins, Julia Greenberg, and Joe McGinty and did her own research on herself and her relationship, which created a successful song.
Notes:
- in the car and decided to be an exclusive relationship on a specific street, took some walks in the park- there was “us”
- she was forced to live through the breakup, but thinks everybody goes through a breakup
- she didn’t want him to call and she kind of wanted him
- she calculated the day she was would be over him and onto another person
- you put so much energy into something and then it just stops- she doesn’t understand what went wrong
- He never liked taking the pictures of or with his girlfriends
- She had a crush on him since day one but he had a girlfriend in Canada, but eventually they broke up, so she and Anthony got together and said to her that she was the one
- According to her, this was Sterlee’s corniest/bravest relationship- listening to music for hours, smiling a lot, lip-syncing to john’s music really made them interested in each other
- While listening to the music- honest, sad tears running down his face
- Anthony broke up with her on New Year’s Eve- he said “you’re going to be ok”
- But she was not ok and said how can you just let me walk away if I was the only person who knew you so well
- Phil Collins conveyed what she was feeling perfectly because she realized listening to break-up songs helped with the pain- listening to them was satisfying, understanding, and tells you what you want to hear
- She would turn off her phone and turn up the music- listened to Magnetic Fields (band she listened to)
- The lyrics portrayed the feeling you didn’t even know you had
- Listened to Bonnie Ray- “can’t make a woman love you if you don’t”
- Once you’re heartbroken, you see and hear it everywhere and realize it is so true
- Sterlee wanted/had to write a breakup song for herself to help herself- even though she didn’t have any musical knowledge
- She wanted to be the song, the pain, and the feeling
- A torch song- that shows a lonely part of yourself, a part that no one knows about yourself, words that you can’t say, but sing only
- Sterlee asked Phil Collins how to write a breakup song by sending him an email and he agreed for a meeting (45 minutes)
- Phil and her talked about Anthony, Phil’s breakup songs, and how Phil had been through a similar situation when he got divorced on his birthday, which he didn’t even want
- “They are various people in life that you never get over.”-Phil Collins
- Sterlee wanted Anthony to hear her song and come back to her- she wanted to capture the whole range of human emotions without any clichés
- It was terrifying to start writing at first, but one day she was waiting for the train and it made her remember Anthony and how their relationship was like a runaway train
- Joe McGinty and Julia Greenberg- Sterlee took advice from them because they understand heartbreak and she had six song drafts
- The long song she wrote was good but needed to keep it simple (like Phil Collins told her). Also changed “like” from “love”
- Hypothetically- Anthony goes back to his ex and Sterlee acts as a third wheel because she still wants to see him while Anthony and his ex are dating
- Julia worked on a melody immediately and Sterlee saw the words come off the page, recorded the song with Julia and Joe
- The song ended up being about all three of them and the first person who listened to it was Phil Collins
- Collins thought it was great stuff because “it does me good,” said really smart song because actually showed how she felt
- Sterlee doesn’t want to get over him because he felt so much to her
- Is it better to have the relationship or the song? Collins says the song because you don’t have a choice
- Sterlee wanted to know if Anthony heard it- he probably will keep the song but won’t listen to it right now, but in the future will play it again and again until he is crying
