Finneas Shares His Hit Writing Process and The Stories Behind His Smashes
And The Writer Is...
98,215 views
Today’s guest didn’t just enter the music industry — he grew up inside it.
He isn’t just a Grammy-winning producer or a respected solo artist. He’s one of the rare creatives who’s built a career rooted in loyalty, advocacy, and taste — while learning in public and evolving in real time.
And The Writer Is… FINNEAS!
In this episode, he breaks down:
🎯 Growing up in the industry without losing your footing
🎯 The quiet flaw baked into today’s music industry — and the one trait he’s seen in every truly exceptional artist
🎯 Loyalty over leverage — and why relationships still matter
🎯 Advocating for artists when you already have a seat at the table
🎯 Learning as you go without pretending you have it all figured out
This one is grounded and essential for anyone trying to build something that actually lasts.
A special thank you to our sponsors...
Our lead sponsor, NMPA aka the National Music Publisher's Association.
Your support means the world to us!
And @splice the best sample library on the market, period.
Chapters
0:00:00 Teaser
0:02:37 What FINNEAS Would Change About the Music Industr
0:07:40 “What Do You Do?” Identity & Being Multihyphenate
0:08:54 Why taste beats momentum
0:10:51 FINNEAS & Ashe
0:12:51 From Workaholism to Efficiency
0:14:17 Tools, Shortcuts & Speed in the Studio
0:16:13 Him and Billie and Their Creative Differences
0:20:11 Stage Fright, SNL & Performing Under Pressure
0:24:23 Writing Songs for Film vs Albums
0:27:49 Writing “What Was I Made For?
0:30:46 Writing Honest Lyrics in LA:
0:32:48 Parenting, Legacy & Keeping Ego Out of the House
0:36:42 Creativity and Parenting
0:38:47 Homeschooling, Childhood & Creative Freedom
0:41:46 Make your kids work with adults
0:44:42 When You're Inspired... Collaborate With Your Influences
0:46:30 Artists FINNEAS Would Love to Work With
0:48:46 How Not to Chase Trends: Why reference points should be old, weird, and far away
0:50:02 NMPA Ad
0:50:42 Splice Ad
0:51:30 Favorite Albums to Listen to Deeply
0:53:06 Writing with Billie, Honesty, Family & Creative Trust
0:55:55 Claudia, Love, Partnership & Sustaining Ambition
1:00:37 The 20% Rule
1:02:00 The 'Lowest Point of His Career' and His Personal Victory From It
1:04:57 Separating Your Work From Your Worth
1:06:00 The Barometer of Success For A Solo Artist
1:06:40 Doing The Apple TV Sound
1:08:14 Not Comparing His Success With Billie, New Album, Knowing When to Pivot
1:11:04 Repeating Success... Birds of a Feather, Taste as a Long-Term Advantage
1:15:00 Signing Writers
1:17:55 Why Some Artists Plateau
1:21:11 Publishing Deals, Reversion, and Leverage.. Bad Deals with Good People and Good Deals with Bad People
1:24:33 Avoiding burnout in a high-output career
1:28:01 Writing 'Lonely' for Justin Bieber with Benny Blanco
1:31:14 Aging in the Industry... Collaborating with Ashe
1:39:08 Big Songs On Deluxe Albums
1:42:50 Writing for Prompts and Film
1:45:01 What Still Excites Him About Music
1:43:41 Are You Happy?
1:52:37 Separating The Art From The Artist
Hosted by Ross Golan
Produced by Joe London and Jad Saad
Edit by Jad Saad
Post Production by Pratik Karki
Art by Michael White
20 Comments
i think pretty often about him saying most of his fans are just mega fans of billies...
i feel great joy in the fact i found them seperately, not too far apart from each other with no knowledge they were siblings.
my senior year of highschool I found billies song my boy, then later found by break my heart again by finneas <3
so emotional thinking aboout my. connection to their music.
I usually stay away from the mianstream and pide myself in finding underground songs... but i will forever stream all of their songs on repeat!! for infinity!!
😆
Stoked to hear what he has to say
Finneas Shares His Hit Writing Process and The Stories Behind His Smashes
And The Writer Is...
98,215 views
Today’s guest didn’t just enter the music industry — he grew up inside it.
He isn’t just a Grammy-winning producer or a respected solo artist. He’s one of the rare creatives who’s built a career rooted in loyalty, advocacy, and taste — while learning in public and evolving in real time.
And The Writer Is… FINNEAS!
In this episode, he breaks down:
🎯 Growing up in the industry without losing your footing
🎯 The quiet flaw baked into today’s music industry — and the one trait he’s seen in every truly exceptional artist
🎯 Loyalty over leverage — and why relationships still matter
🎯 Advocating for artists when you already have a seat at the table
🎯 Learning as you go without pretending you have it all figured out
This one is grounded and essential for anyone trying to build something that actually lasts.
A special thank you to our sponsors...
Our lead sponsor, NMPA aka the National Music Publisher's Association.
Your support means the world to us!
And @splice the best sample library on the market, period.
Chapters
0:00:00 Teaser
0:02:37 What FINNEAS Would Change About the Music Industr
0:07:40 “What Do You Do?” Identity & Being Multihyphenate
0:08:54 Why taste beats momentum
0:10:51 FINNEAS & Ashe
0:12:51 From Workaholism to Efficiency
0:14:17 Tools, Shortcuts & Speed in the Studio
0:16:13 Him and Billie and Their Creative Differences
0:20:11 Stage Fright, SNL & Performing Under Pressure
0:24:23 Writing Songs for Film vs Albums
0:27:49 Writing “What Was I Made For?
0:30:46 Writing Honest Lyrics in LA:
0:32:48 Parenting, Legacy & Keeping Ego Out of the House
0:36:42 Creativity and Parenting
0:38:47 Homeschooling, Childhood & Creative Freedom
0:41:46 Make your kids work with adults
0:44:42 When You're Inspired... Collaborate With Your Influences
0:46:30 Artists FINNEAS Would Love to Work With
0:48:46 How Not to Chase Trends: Why reference points should be old, weird, and far away
0:50:02 NMPA Ad
0:50:42 Splice Ad
0:51:30 Favorite Albums to Listen to Deeply
0:53:06 Writing with Billie, Honesty, Family & Creative Trust
0:55:55 Claudia, Love, Partnership & Sustaining Ambition
1:00:37 The 20% Rule
1:02:00 The 'Lowest Point of His Career' and His Personal Victory From It
1:04:57 Separating Your Work From Your Worth
1:06:00 The Barometer of Success For A Solo Artist
1:06:40 Doing The Apple TV Sound
1:08:14 Not Comparing His Success With Billie, New Album, Knowing When to Pivot
1:11:04 Repeating Success... Birds of a Feather, Taste as a Long-Term Advantage
1:15:00 Signing Writers
1:17:55 Why Some Artists Plateau
1:21:11 Publishing Deals, Reversion, and Leverage.. Bad Deals with Good People and Good Deals with Bad People
1:24:33 Avoiding burnout in a high-output career
1:28:01 Writing 'Lonely' for Justin Bieber with Benny Blanco
1:31:14 Aging in the Industry... Collaborating with Ashe
1:39:08 Big Songs On Deluxe Albums
1:42:50 Writing for Prompts and Film
1:45:01 What Still Excites Him About Music
1:43:41 Are You Happy?
1:52:37 Separating The Art From The Artist
Hosted by Ross Golan
Produced by Joe London and Jad Saad
Edit by Jad Saad
Post Production by Pratik Karki
Art by Michael White