Uploaded May 2023 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
Today, I chat with guitar gear YouTube icon Henning Pauly about all things songwriting and the music that inspired him to take the journey he has in life.
Most of you will know Henning from his thousands of guitar gear reviews and demos he’s done over the years here on YouTube – but he’s about more than just that!
Obviously an excellent musician, Henning is an accomplished songwriter, arranger and producer too, and he’s worked on hundreds of recording projects over the years with everyone from local hobby musicians to award-winning international touring stars like James LeBrie and Sebastian Bach.
Now, as he and his co-teacher Rafael unleash their first songwriting course on the world – the 52-hour beast that is the “Almost But Not Quite Complete Guide To Songwriting!” – I sat down with Henning to hear his story.
In the interview, we cover topics like where Henning first caught the songwriting bug, which musicians and bands inspire him, how he approaches writing alone and with others, the importance of music theory to songwriters, the power of Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain and Bon Jovi as songwriters, and more. You can click through to the chapters below to find the parts that interest you!
And, should you be interested in Henning’s new songwriting course, you can click here for more info: spectreacademy.net/courses/complete-guide-to-songwriting/?sld=richwordsmusic
Here are the links to the different parts of the conversation:
00:00 Hello and intro
01:48 How Henning first got into music and songwriting
03:47 Songwriting vs arranging vs producing
08:02 Who inspired Henning as songwriters and why?
14:08 What makes a ‘perfect’ song?
16:09 Lyrics and phrasing
20:43 Kurt Cobain’s songwriting and artistry
22:35 The importance of music theory and intuition as a songwriter
26:50 The IV-V-I progression and evolving it
31:18 Synthesis and songwriting: knowing what’s going to work
36:47 Why songwriters like Max Martin are so successful
39:00 The Axis Of Awesome and why it’s awesome
41:26 The importance of rhythm and the 3-3-2
46:54 Why do modern pop songs often have so many writers?
48:19 Writing songs alone vs in a group setting: Bon Jovi case study
53:23 How to get inspired to get songs finished
55:05 Why Henning thinks you should buy his course
1:00:15 How important is guitar gear in the songwriting process?
1:04:57 Final conclusions and goodbye
And don’t forget to sub to Henning here: youtube.com/@EytschPi42
Enjoy!
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Backing music from the YouTube Audio Library: Controlled Distress – Biz Baz Studio.
#Songwriting #SongwritingTips #HenningPauly
*Note: certain links in the description are affiliate links. If you click said links and purchase anything as a result, I will receive a small commission. This doesn’t cost you anything extra, but it does help to support the channel. So, if you do that, thank you very much!*
@eytschpi42
@spectredigital
Today, I chat with guitar gear YouTube icon Henning Pauly about all things songwriting and the music that inspired him to take the journey he has in life.
Most of you will know Henning from his thousands of guitar gear reviews and demos he’s done over the years here on YouTube – but he’s about more than just that!
Obviously an excellent musician, Henning is an accomplished songwriter, arranger and producer too, and he’s worked on hundreds of recording projects over the years with everyone from local hobby musicians to award-winning international touring stars like James LeBrie and Sebastian Bach.
Now, as he and his co-teacher Rafael unleash their first songwriting course on the world – the 52-hour beast that is the “Almost But Not Quite Complete Guide To Songwriting!” – I sat down with Henning to hear his story.
In the interview, we cover topics like where Henning first caught the songwriting bug, which musicians and bands inspire him, how he approaches writing alone and with others, the importance of music theory to songwriters, the power of Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain and Bon Jovi as songwriters, and more. You can click through to the chapters below to find the parts that interest you!
And, should you be interested in Henning’s new songwriting course, you can click here for more info: spectreacademy.net/courses/complete-guide-to-songwriting/?sld=richwordsmusic
Here are the links to the different parts of the conversation:
00:00 Hello and intro
01:48 How Henning first got into music and songwriting
03:47 Songwriting vs arranging vs producing
08:02 Who inspired Henning as songwriters and why?
14:08 What makes a ‘perfect’ song?
16:09 Lyrics and phrasing
20:43 Kurt Cobain’s songwriting and artistry
22:35 The importance of music theory and intuition as a songwriter
26:50 The IV-V-I progression and evolving it
31:18 Synthesis and songwriting: knowing what’s going to work
36:47 Why songwriters like Max Martin are so successful
39:00 The Axis Of Awesome and why it’s awesome
41:26 The importance of rhythm and the 3-3-2
46:54 Why do modern pop songs often have so many writers?
48:19 Writing songs alone vs in a group setting: Bon Jovi case study
53:23 How to get inspired to get songs finished
55:05 Why Henning thinks you should buy his course
1:00:15 How important is guitar gear in the songwriting process?
1:04:57 Final conclusions and goodbye
And don’t forget to sub to Henning here: youtube.com/@EytschPi42
Enjoy!
-----
Backing music from the YouTube Audio Library: Controlled Distress – Biz Baz Studio.
#Songwriting #SongwritingTips #HenningPauly
*Note: certain links in the description are affiliate links. If you click said links and purchase anything as a result, I will receive a small commission. This doesn’t cost you anything extra, but it does help to support the channel. So, if you do that, thank you very much!*
@eytschpi42
@spectredigital
