Singer/songwriter KT Tunstall released her debut album in 2004. It was nominated for a Mercury Prize. The song “Suddenly I See” from that record was a hit on the radio, and it’s been used in the soundtracks of big movies and television shows. But the song was originally written back before KT Tunstall had a record deal, when she was a struggling street musician, living in a small apartment in North London. In this episode, which was recorded live at the Sundance Film Festival, KT breaks down how she made the song, with help from producer Steve Osborne.

You can buy “Suddenly I See” on iTunes.

Watch the music video for the song:

For a transcript of this episode, click here.

footnotes
The album cover of Horses by Patti Smith:

Which features the song Gloria.

Thanks to KT Tunstall for being my guest today, and thank you @sundanceinstitute for hosting our conversation! #Sundance

A photo posted by Song Exploder (@songexploder) on Jan 29, 2016 at 6:41pm PST

Clipping is a trio made up of producers William Hutson and Jonathan Snipes, and rapper Daveed Diggs. You might be familiar with Daveed’s voice from his roles as Thomas Jefferson and the Marquis de Lafayette in the hit Broadway musical Hamilton. But in Clipping, the whole band takes on different roles, playing with different tropes and genres within hip-hop, but setting up these strict overarching rules for how they make their music. In this episode, the three of them break down how they made their song “Work Work,” featuring guest vocals from rapper Cocc Pistol Cree.

“Work Work” is available on iTunes.

Watch the music video for the song:

For a transcript of this episode, click here.

footnotes
Cocc Pistol Cree ft. DJ Mustard – Lady Killa
Jay Z – 99 Problems
Digital Underground – Freaks of the Industry