the TrueFans AMP— Magazine Issue 128

Editor’s Note

You may notice a not-so-subtle shift in what we're calling the TrueFans AMP™.

We now say it's a monthly magazine— delivered in thoughtful weekly sections—  designed to go deeper without asking for more of your time.

Same values. Same editorial voice. Same commitment to Music Artists building real Artist-First careers.

Just a clearer rhythm— and a continued respect for your time and attention.

“I was gifted with a life that was full of adventure. I’ve always believed that if you’re gifted, it’s incumbent to think about giving something back.”
— Bob Weir, the Grateful Dead.

Bob passed away on January 10^th. We'll feature him in the next issue.

You could call this week’s TrueFans AMP™ the Diane Warren issue. It is— on purpose. We start with the moment (Recommend: Relentless), honor the legacy (the Greatest Music Artists of All Time), then complete the trilogy with a Coffee With… because how great would it be to have Diane as a mentor and a friend— three golden 'Easter' eggs in one AMP™ basket— with recycled grass of course. And • Your BIZ about Music Artist's Analytics, to keep our noses clean.  

In This Issue... 18 pages (about 27ish minutes to read) You'll Get... 

• Recommends— Relentless: Diane Warren

• Your BIZ— Music Artist's Analytics

in partnership with Jason Blume

• the Greatest Music Artists of All Time— Diane Warren: Relentless by Design.

• a Coffee with Diane Warren 

• P.S. from PS— Across the Universe

Here’s the playlist

Diane Warren: Relentless is not a film about celebrity.
It’s a film about what it actually takes to last.

• Recommends— Diane Warren: Relentless on Amazon Prime, Apple TV and... 

If you’re a Music Artist— especially a Songwriter— this documentary doesn’t just inspire. It clarifies. It strips away the mythology and leaves you face-to-face with the quiet truth behind a real, multi-decades-long creative life.

Diane Warren has written the emotional backbone of modern popular music. Her songs have been recorded by hundreds of artists and embedded in millions of lives—  weddings, breakups, movies, moments of grief and triumph. And yet, remarkably, Relentless isn’t interested in bragging.

It’s interested in her work.

What makes this documentary so powerful is that it refuses the usual arc. There’s no “overnight success” narrative. No dramatic reinvention. No carefully packaged brand story.

Instead, we see a woman who has done one thing— write songs— over and over and over again, for more than forty years.

Same room.
Same routine.
Same devotion.

That’s the revelation.

Praise From Those Who Know 
One of the most grounding aspects of Relentless is hearing how other great artists speak about Diane Warren— not as a legend, but as a peer whose standard is unmistakable.

• Lady Gaga calls her “one of the greatest songwriters alive— fearless and emotionally honest.”

• Elton John praises her as “a real Songwriter’s Songwriter— melody, emotion, discipline.”

• Cher said, “Diane writes from a place most people are afraid to go.”

• Brandi Carlile describes her as “a standard-bearer for what it means to show up for the song.”

That word— show up— runs through the entire film.

The Personal Story that Matters 
Relentless doesn’t shy away from Diane Warren’s interior life.

She grew up feeling separate, misunderstood, often alone. Music wasn’t a career plan—  it was refuge. Songwriting became the place where she could tell the truth safely, without having to perform for approval.

That sense of being an outsider never left her. And rather than “fixing” it, she built a life around it.

She writes alone.
She protects her solitude.
She works without spectacle.

The film makes something clear that many Music Artists struggle to accept:

Solitude isn’t a flaw. It’s the process and it’s required

What This Film Really Teaches 
This isn’t a how-to.
It’s a how-it-is.

Diane Warren doesn’t wait for inspiration. She works.
She doesn’t chase relevance. She serves the song.
She doesn’t confuse fame with fulfillment.

There’s a moment in the film where you realize she hasn’t been trying to “arrive” at anything. There is no finish line— only today’s song, today’s effort, today’s honesty.

For Music Artists watching, that can feel confronting and deeply relieving— both at the same time.

Why We Recommend It 
Diane Warren: Relentless is essential viewing because it reframes success around something sturdier than attention. It reminds you that:

• real careers are built quietly
• devotion outlasts trends
• craft matters
• showing up matters more
• the work itself is the reward

This isn’t inspiration porn.
It’s a mirror.

If you’ve ever wondered whether the long road is worth it— or whether staying true to your nature can actually sustain a life in music— this film answers without speeches or slogans.

It simply shows you someone who did the work.

Every day.

And kept going.

Highly recommended.
Especially for those Music Artists who plan to be around a while. ❤️

Before choosing tools, subscriptions, or dashboards, there’s a more fundamental business question to answer: What role— if any— should analytics play in your career right now?

• Your BIZ— Music Artist's Analytics

What they are. How to know if they’re a fit. And 
the leading options Music Artists actually use.

Music analytics have become part of the landscape— whether artists ask for them or not.

Every platform tracks something.
Every dashboard promises insight.
Every number seems to suggest meaning.

But before choosing tools, subscriptions, or dashboards, there’s a more fundamental business question to answer:

What role— if any— should analytics 
play in my career right now?

The music analytics actually are
At their simplest, analytics are feedback systems

They observe behavior— listening, saving, sharing, following— and report patterns over time. 

Used well, they help Music Artists notice changes that matter and respond intelligently. 
Used poorly, they become distractions, anxiety machines, or false scoreboards.

Analytics do not measure:
• Talent
• Meaning
• Artistic value
• Long-term impact

They measure activity— nothing more.
And that distinction matters. A lot.

What analytics are good for
When aligned with purpose, analytics help Music Artists:
• Notice when something changes
• Understand where traction is happening
• Decide when to engage fans
• Allocate limited time and energy more wisely
• Reduce guesswork

Analytics are useful only when they support decisions, such as:

• Did something just happen?
• Where should I focus this week?
• Is this song gaining traction quietly?
• Which platform deserves attention right now?

If the data doesn’t inform a next step, it isn’t helping.

What analytics are not good for
Analytics are not:

• Creative validation
• A measure of worth
• A replacement for relationships
• A growth strategy by themselves

They don’t tell you what to create.
They don’t tell you who you are.
They don’t tell you what matters.

They only tell you what already happened.

Do you need analytics now?
That depends on where you are.

If you have no releases out, analytics won’t help much yet.
If your music is in the world, analytics can help you pay attention.

A simple test: If you’re asking questions like:

• Is anything happening?
• Where is it happening?
• Should I respond— or wait?

You’re already in analytics territory.

The real decision isn’t whether to use analytics— 
it’s how much, how often, and for what purpose.

How to know if an analytics tool is a fit
Before choosing a platform, ask yourself:

• What decision do I need help making right now?
• How often will I realistically look at this?
• Will this reduce guesswork— or add noise?
• Do I want alerts or deep research?
• Am I working solo or with a team?

A useful rule:

If a metric doesn’t change what you 
do next... stop tracking it.

Analytics should lower cognitive load, not increase it.

The leading music analytics platforms (Orientation, not recommendation.)
These are the major analytics tools Music Artists most often encounter— each built for different needs and stages.

Real-time awareness & momentum tracking
Designed to surface movement quickly and prompt timely response.
• Songstats

Deep analytics, trends & industry context
Built for historical analysis, playlist ecosystems, and market comparisons.
• Chartmetric

Radio, charting & global monitoring
Focused on airplay, territory tracking, and media verification.
• Soundcharts

Social visibility, discovery & ranking metrics
Centered on reach, growth signals, and comparative visibility.
• Viberate

No single platform does everything well.
And no Music Artist needs all of them at once.

The TrueFans  AMP takeaway
There is no “best” analytics platform.
There is only the best fit for where you are right now.

Early stage artists benefit from awareness.
Working artists benefit from patterns.
Scaling artists benefit from depth and context.
Analytics are tools— not judges.

Used intentionally, they help you make clearer decisions and move forward with confidence. Used carelessly, they pull attention away from the very work that creates the data in the first place.

You and your business get to decide. And given the way the music biz is going and growing... it won't be the last time you do.

• in partnership with Jason Blume

“I don’t write songs to be famous. I write songs because I have to.”
— Diane Warren

Some Music Artists build careers by being seen.
Some build them by being felt.

Diane Warren belongs squarely in the second category— and that’s precisely why her name doesn’t always come up first in casual conversations about greatness. Yet once you look at the emotional architecture of modern popular music— the songs people turn to when something really matters— she is everywhere.

Not loudly.
Not performatively.
But unmistakably.

Diane Warren didn’t chase the spotlight.
She built something far more durable: respect.

the Songs You Know— Even If You Dont Know Her Name
Before analysis, before accolades, before myth-making, let’s ground this in lived experience.

“Her songs don’t chase moments. They become moments.”
— Faith Hill

You already know Diane Warren’s work.
You’ve carried it through your life.

• Because You Loved Me— Céline Dion
• Un-Break My Heart— Toni Braxton
• I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing— Aerosmith
• If I Could Turn Back Time— Cher
• How Do I Live— LeAnn Rimes
• Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now— Starship
• There You’ll Be— Faith Hill
• When I See You Smile— Bad English
• Rhythm of the Night— DeBarge
• Don’t Want to Lose You Now— Gloria Estefan

These aren’t clever songs.
They’re not ironic.
They don’t posture.

They stay.

That staying power is Diane Warren’s signature— and it didn’t come from strategy. It came from obsession, solitude, and an almost stubborn loyalty to emotional truth.

the Outsider Who Found a Home In Songs 
Diane Warren’s personal journey matters because it explains everything about her work.

She grew up feeling separate— socially awkward, emotionally guarded, often misunderstood. Music wasn’t an interest. It was refuge. Songs were the place where she could say what she couldn’t say anywhere else.

“She understands heartbreak in a way that feels personal, not performed.”
— Toni Braxton

She has spoken openly about being bullied, about feeling like she didn’t fit, about learning early that solitude wasn’t a weakness— it was survival. Songwriting became her language for belonging.

Not applause.
Not approval.
Expression.

That distinction shaped her entire life.

Not a Career Choice— an Identity 
Diane Warren didn’t “decide” to become a Songwriter.

She was one.

She wrote obsessively as a teenager, long before there was any reason to believe it would lead anywhere. Not because she wanted a career— but because not writing wasn’t an option. That compulsion never went away.

Even after success.
Even after awards.
Even after decades.

This is why she never chased celebrity. 
Fame was never the fuel. Writing was.

a Songwriter’s Songwriter
Inside the industry, Diane Warren’s reputation is unimpeachable.

“Diane writes songs that ask you to be brave enough to feel them all the way through.”
— Alicia Keys

“Her songs carry strength without hardness— they let vulnerability be powerful.”
— Beyoncé

“When you sing a Diane Warren song, you can’t hide. You have to tell the truth.”
— Céline Dion

“That song didn’t just fit us— it lifted us. Diane knows how to write something bigger than the band.”
— Steven Tyler

This kind of praise doesn’t come from nostalgia.
It comes from craft recognition.

Her songs demand presence— from the singer and the listener. They require vulnerability. They don’t flatter. They tell the truth.

That’s why artists keep coming back.

the Power of Working Alone 
One of the most revealing aspects of Diane Warren’s career is her commitment to solitude.

She writes alone.
Same room.
Same piano.
Same daily ritual.

No entourage.
No scene.
No noise.

This isn’t mystique. It’s protection.

Her inner life is where the songs live— and guarding that space has been her most important professional decision, whether she ever framed it that way or not.

In an industry obsessed with collaboration-as-branding, Diane Warren reminds us that solitude can be a superpower.

Relentless Is Not a Fault— It's a Practice 
The word relentless gets used loosely. In Diane Warren’s case, it’s literal.

She writes whether she’s inspired or not.
She shows up whether she’s celebrated or not.
She keeps going— not out of ambition, but out of devotion.

Brandi Carlile once put it simply: “Diane doesn’t write to impress. She writes to tell the truth.”

Cher was more blunt: “She doesn’t bullshit songs.”

That honesty is why her work lasts.

the Personal Cost and the Conscious Choice
Here’s the part most profiles skip.

Diane Warren has paid a price for her devotion to the work.

She has chosen songwriting over many conventional life paths. She has prioritized craft over comfort, solitude over social ease, depth over distraction.

And she has no regrets.

Because for her, the alternative— not writing— would have been worse.

This isn’t a romantic sacrifice story. It’s a clear-eyed choice. One many Music Artists recognize, even if they don’t talk about it out loud.

Respect Over Relevance 
Perhaps the quiet miracle of Diane Warren’s career is this:

She has never been trendy— and 
she has never been irrelevant.

That’s because her loyalty has always been to the song, not the moment.

Lady Gaga summed it up perfectly: “Diane writes songs that require courage— from the writer and the performer.”

In an industry addicted to novelty, Diane Warren represents something quietly radical.

Endurance.

Why Diana Warren Belongs with the Greatest of All Time 
Not because she won everything.
Not because she was everywhere.

But because she changed what was possible for Songwriters who choose the long road.

She proves that:
• you can build a career without chasing attention
• you can prioritize craft over image
• you can remain independent inside a massive industry
• you can be respected without being fashionable
• you can make a life by serving the work

That’s not just greatness.
That’s guidance.

the Big Finish— a Relentless Gold Standard 
Diane Warren didn’t build her career by asking, How do I win?
She built it by asking, How do I serve the song— again— today?

That question— asked daily, quietly, without applause— has carried her further than any strategy ever could.

Which is why, decades in, the greatest artists in the world are still lining up to sing her words.

Not because she’s famous.
Not because she’s fashionable.
But because she’s faithful— to the work, to the truth, to the song.

Relentless isn’t who Diane Warren is.
It’s how she lives... and works.

And that’s why she belongs— without debate— among the Greatest Music Artists of All Time.

• Feature— a Coffee With… Diane Warren
an imaginary conversation with the songwriting legend and… Diane is a woman of few words— especially advise. So…
__________  

We’re sitting across from each other.
No rush. No pitch. No performance.
I start with the thing that’s been circling since watching Relentless.

Me: The film’s called Relentless, but what I kept hearing was obsession. Does that word fit for you?
She thinks for a moment.

Relentless sounds like effort, Diane says. Obsession is quieter. You don’t really choose it. You just do the thing. The thing that feels right.

Me:  So you don’t wait to feel like writing.

She almost laughs. 

If I waited to feel like it, nothing would get written.

Me: I offer a definition I’ve been carrying around. 

A professional is someone who does whatever it takes to get the job done— whether they feel like it or not.

She nods. Yeah. That’s it.

No elaboration. No branding. Just recognition.

Me: I tell her she doesn’t strike me as someone who gives advice.

I don’t, she says. Because everyone’s different.

Instead, she talks about what she does. For herself.

She shows up.
She works.
She finishes songs.

Not because it’s romantic— because it’s necessary.

Me: You’re often described as anti-trend. But your songs never feel dated. How does that work?

I don’t think about trends. I think about whether the song’s honest.

She talks about clarity— saying one thing clearly instead of ten things cleverly. About melody not as decoration, but as delivery system.

If people can’t sing it, it doesn’t work.

Me: What are you listening for when you’re writing?

Whether I believe it. You can feel when a song’s lying.

That’s as technical as she gets.

I ask about the business— because she’s clearly mastered it without ever sounding like a businessperson.

You have to understand it. But I don’t want that in the room with me when I’m writing.

Respect the business.
Protect the work.

She doesn’t phrase it that way, but that’s her principle.

Me: You write alone. Always have.

Yeah.

the AMP: Why?

Too many voices ruin the song.

Solitude isn’t loneliness for Diane. It’s quality control.
Same room.
Same setup.
Same ritual.

I ask the question people always ask— the one that assumes there’s a finish line.

Me:  Do you ever feel like you’ve arrived?
She looks genuinely puzzled.

No. Why would I?

Tomorrow’s song is already waiting. That seems to be enough for her.

The coffee’s gone cold. Neither of us notices.

A small footnote— worth keeping
I don’t have decades inside the music business— though I’ve been playing my ears as far back as I can remember— so perhaps I can be forgiven for not fully knowing Diane Warren’s work... Until I watched Relentless. Still...

She’s sold 125+ million records.
Her songs appear on 50 platinum albums.
She’s had nine #1 hits and 33 Top-10 singles on the Billboard Hot 100.

And I just discovered her.

That’s not so much shame on me as it is a reminder for Music Artists of how vast the songwriting universe really is— how much extraordinary work happens quietly, without demanding attention.

So much possibility.
So much room.
So many ways to build a real career.

You just have to be good enough— and noticed.

Diane handled the first part... Relentlessly. Obsessively.
The rest followed.

• P.S. from PS — Across the Universe

Unlike AMP Editor Fogg, I do have decades inside the music business— and I land in exactly the same place. The songwriting universe is vast. The Music Artist universe is even bigger. There is more possibility, more room, and more viable paths to success than most people realize.

Which brings us to the part that actually matters.

Our work at the TrueFans AMP™ exists for one reason: to help you learn what it really takes to make a life and a living in music— as much your way as possible. Like Diane Warren, that means honoring your wiring, your craft, your pace, and your truth— not chasing someone else’s version of success.

Yes, you have to be good enough.
Yes, you have to get noticed.
Yes, you have to be relentless— maybe even a little obsessed.

But you also need clarity.
You need context.
You need practical knowledge— not theory, not hype.

That’s our lane.

The TrueFans AMP™ is here to help Music Artists generate Right Now Money while building Fans Forever— at least 1,000 True ones— through real-world insight, trusted resources, smart ideas, and proven, practical techniques (some of which do feel like secrets if no one ever taught you).

As our friend and partner Jason Blume often reminds us:

Success is not easy— but it is possible.

We believe that.
We build for that.
And every issue of the AMP is designed to move you one step closer— informed, equipped, and still fully yourself.

Until we speak again…

Thanks for reading. Give us your feedback.

And PLEASE, if you've got any Music Artist friends, pass the AMP on, because... It’s Time... for a Change. Big Time. Past Time...