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Most of what you love in pop culture didn’t happen the way you think it did. Unfamous goes deep with the people who were actually there.
Hosted by Grammy-nominated hit songwriter Justin Tranter, whose credits include Chappell Roan’s “Good Luck, Babe!” and some of the biggest pop songs of the past decade, Unfamous takes you inside the rooms where culture gets made.
Artists, writers, producers, executives and collaborators reveal the decisions, disagreements, false starts, rewrites, rejections and breakthroughs behind the songs, performances, careers and cultural moments you know.
Because the finished product is only part of the story.
New episodes every Wednesday.
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Are We Optimizing the Art Out of Music?
Does understanding what works make the art stronger, or can knowing too much flatten the feeling? In this Unfamous minisode, Grammy-nominated hit songwriter Justin Tranter and co-creator Morgan T. Stuart dig deeper into some of the debates
The Temper Trap Tried to Recreate “Sweet Disposition.” Here’s What Happened.
“Sweet Disposition” started with someone practicing scales in a tiny rehearsal room. The music came together almost immediately. The lyrics were finished the next day. In this episode of Unfamous, The Temper Trap join Justin Tranter to brea
The Songwriting Math Behind "Good Luck, Babe" and "Sorry"
Why do “Good Luck, Babe!” and “Sorry” feel so immediately satisfying?In this Unfamous recap, Justin Tranter breaks down the songwriting math behind both songs — from where each section enters in the phrase to how verse, pre-chorus and choru
Who Gets The Final Say? Inside The Hollywood Reporter
The best-looking photo can still be the wrong cover. And one bad compromise can turn a bold creative idea beige. The Hollywood Reporter’s Maer Roshan and Alison Edmond join Justin Tranter to reveal what actually happens behind some of Holly
Why Troye Sivan Refuses to Make the Same Album Twice
An Instagram DM became “Rush.” “Bloom” started with Troye Sivan thinking it wasn’t working. And after more than a decade of writing together, Troye and Leland are still trying to surprise themselves. On Unfamous, they break down their creat
The Lost Boys Was “The Hardest Thing We’ve Ever Done”: The Rescues on 60 Songs + Band Therapy
The Rescues spent five years writing The Lost Boys for Broadway. They wrote nearly 60 songs, rewrote lyrics again and again, cut a song they loved after watching it stop the show cold in front of an audience, and reached a point where they
When "Pushing Through" Stops Working: Rainbow Kitten Surprise on Reinvention
What happens when pushing through stops making you stronger and starts getting in the way of the art? Justin Tranter sits down with Rainbow Kitten Surprise's lead singer/songwriter Ela Melo and her partner and movement director Cat Cogliand
Inside Pop Songwriting: Hits, Failure, Fear + What Actually Makes a Song Work
What makes a great song when everyone is trying to reverse-engineer hits, virality and the “right” way to be an artist? Justin Tranter sits down with friends and collaborators Sasha Alex Sloan and Amelia Moore, two artist-songwriters whose
Why Some Songs Work Onscreen and Others Don’t: Pitch Perfect, The Devil Wears Prada + Wednesday
What makes one song perfect for a scene while another, even a great one, just doesn’t work? Justin Tranter sits down with music supervisor Julia Michels and songwriter, producer and arranger Alana Da Fonseca to break down the judgment behin
How Music Gets Into Hit TV Shows | The Hidden Process Behind Prime's "Off Campus" + More
How does a song actually make it into a hit TV show, and what makes the right placement capable of changing an artist’s career? Live from the GMS Conference, Justin Tranter sits down with Emmy-nominated music supervisors Amanda Krieg Thomas
Bella Kay + Alexis Idarose Kesselman | “iloveitiloveitiloveit”+ How Great Collaborators Disagree
Bella Kay and songwriter-producer Alexis Idarose Kesselman break down the creative partnership behind Bella’s debut album, from meeting during one of Bella’s first-ever writing sessions to making “I Love It, I Love It, I Love It,” “Stop,” “
Ruth B + Cole MGN | What Happens After Your First Song Becomes a Massive Hit
Ruth B’s career exploded with her very first song. Then came the harder question: how do you do it again? Ruth and producer Cole MGN join Justin Tranter to unpack the pressure that followed “Lost Boy,” why “Dandelions” unexpectedly going vi
Recap | How Artists Rebuild, Find Their Identity + Build the Right Team
Host and co-creator Justin Tranter and co-creator Morgan Stuart revisit their conversation with artist Valencia Grace and manager Kyle Stuart to unpack what it really takes to build an artist from the ground up. They break down why getting
Bea Miller | Child Stardom on The X Factor, Depression and the Wild Stories Behind Her Songs
Bea Miller joins longtime collaborator Justin Tranter to unpack growing up as a child star, surviving The X Factor, and finding her confidence as a songwriter. They break down how real conversations about depression, relationships, insecuri
Recap: Kid Cudi on Creative Trust, Criticism, and the Meaning of "Pursuit of Happiness"
Unfamous host Justin Tranter and his co-creator Morgan Stuart revisit Justin’s conversation with Kid Cudi, unpacking what it reveals about trust, creative risk, criticism, and longevity. From the chaotic first session that helped unlock “Sa
Recap: Caleb Hearon + Caitie Delaney on TV Writing, Ego, and Bad Notes
Unfamous host Justin Tranter is joined by his co-creator Morgan Stuart to revisit their episode with comedian, actor, and writer Caleb Hearon and TV writer Caitie Delaney, whose credits include Big Mouth and Rick and Morty. Together, they u
How a Legendary A&R Decides What Works
A hit isn't just a great song. Wendy Goldstein breaks down the decisions that shaped career-defining moments for The Roots, DNCE and Ariana Grande. Republic Records Chairwoman and CCO Wendy Goldstein joins Justin Tranter to break down how s
Claire + Ragnar Rosinkranz | The Viral Hit, the Health Scare, and the Comeback
Claire Rosinkranz and Ragnar Rosinkranz join Justin Tranter for a funny, intimate, and deeply honest conversation about making music as father and daughter. They look back on the musical home that shaped Claire, the unexpected rise of “Back
Emei + Ricky Reed | How Radical Honesty Builds Great Artists
Singer-songwriter Emei joins Grammy-winning producer, songwriter and Nice Life founder Ricky Reed for a conversation about the creative partnership behind her latest project, Night at the Opera, and what it really takes to build a lasting c
“Chains.” Two Days Later, “Jealous.” The Week Everything Changed.
Nick Jonas recorded “Chains.” Two days later, he wrote “Jealous.” It was the breakthrough week that helped redefine his career. With longtime collaborator Justin Tranter, Nick reveals what came before it: being underestimated as a Jonas Bro
Rose Gray’s "Club to Your Arms" Started as a Completely Different Song
Rose Gray and Justin Tranter spent hours writing a completely different version of "Club to Your Arms." Here's how they found the song it needed to be. Before "Club to Your Arms" became a dance-pop anthem, it was a song called "The Great St
Katy Perry + Christian Breslauer | Watch It Burn, Feminine Fire, and Why It’s Okay to Be Angry
Katy Perry, Christian Breslauer and Justin Tranter make bold, emotionally driven work. But more importantly, they know what it means to feel something fully and still let it be seen. In this episode of Unfamous, Katy sits down with Justin t
Skylar Grey + Elliott Taylor | Eminem Hits, Bubble Grunge and WASTED POTENTIAL
Skylar Grey and Elliott Taylor collaborate on making music. But more importantly, they’ve built a creative life together. In this episode of Unfamous, Skylar opens up about writing Love The Way You Lie for Eminem and Rihanna alone in a cabi
Bongo ByTheWay + Ant Clemons | Songwriting math, producer psychology + Ye hits
Bongo ByTheWay and Ant Clemons break down the creative chemistry that turned their first session into 11 songs in a single day and eventually led to collaborations with artists like Justin Timberlake, Kanye West, Beyoncé, and more. The conv
Linda Perry + Don Hardy | Music, filmmaking, grief, and the power of vulnerability
Linda Perry, the songwriter and producer behind songs like Christina Aguilera's “Beautiful” and Four Non Blondes’ “What’s Up?” joins Unfamous alongside documentary filmmaker Don Hardy to talk about the deeply personal documentary about Lind
Valencia Grace's Label Dropped Them. Then They Used the Exit Money to Rebuild.
When Valencia Grace’s label dropped them, their lawyers negotiated enough money for Valencia to move to New York and fund the next project independently—turning what felt like the end into the beginning of a much more specific artistic worl
Valencia Grace performs “Picture Frames” live on Unfamous
Valencia Grace performs a live rendition of “Picture Frames” on this special episode of Unfamous. Stripped down to just voice and piano, the performance highlights the theatrical emotion, intimacy, and storytelling at the core of Valencia’s
Bonus: Valencia Grace performs “Picture Frames” live on Unfamous
Valencia Grace performs a live rendition of “Picture Frames” on this special episode of Unfamous. Stripped down to just voice and piano, the performance highlights the theatrical emotion, intimacy, and storytelling at the core of Valencia’s
Yadim Carranza + Darian Darling | Building beauty culture from the underground
Yadim Carranza and Darian Darling shape beauty culture from behind the scenes. But more importantly, they’ve spent years helping each other survive and evolve through nightlife, fashion, addiction, transphobia, and the chaos of creative amb
Debbie Gibson | Youngest artist to write, produce, and perform a Billboard #1 hit
On this episode of Unfamous, Justin Tranter sits down with pop icon Debbie Gibson for a candid conversation about songwriting, producing, and building a career before adulthood. Debbie breaks down how she taught herself production, became t
