{"id":241548,"date":"2025-10-02T15:14:33","date_gmt":"2025-10-02T14:14:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/?p=241548"},"modified":"2025-10-03T09:10:28","modified_gmt":"2025-10-03T08:10:28","slug":"there-are-so-many-distractions-but-when-you-write-a-magic-song-it-opens-doors-and-thats-all-i-can-really-control","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.musicbusinessworldwide.com\/there-are-so-many-distractions-but-when-you-write-a-magic-song-it-opens-doors-and-thats-all-i-can-really-control\/","title":{"rendered":"‘There are so many distractions, but when you write a magic song it opens doors and that\u2019s all I can really control’"},"content":{"rendered":"

MBW\u2019s World\u2019s Greatest Songwriters series celebrates the composers behind the globe\u2019s biggest hits. Here we talk to Julian Bunetta about his start in the business, what he’s learned, AI, TikTok and his recent huge hits with Sabrina Carpenter and Teddy Swims. World\u2019s Greatest Songwriters is supported by AMRA<\/a> \u2013 the global digital music collection society which strives to maximize value for songwriters and publishers in the digital age.<\/p>\n

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Never mind the algorithm. Forget the focus groups. Chuck the AI models in the bin. If you really want to know whether a song is a game-changer, just keep your eyes trained on Julian Bunetta\u2019s<\/strong> arm hair.<\/p>\n

Because, across a remarkable 25-year career in songwriting and production, the thing that Bunetta calls his \u201cspidey sense\u201d has indicated the imminent success of anthems from One Direction\u2019s<\/strong> Best Song Ever<\/em> and Story Of My Life<\/em> to Sabrina Carpenter\u2019s<\/strong> Espresso<\/em> and Teddy Swims\u2019<\/strong> Lose Control<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you\u2019re driving around listening to those songs before they come out, the only barometer you have is if the hair on your own arms stands up,\u201d he chuckles. \u201cAnd if you continuously put them on and then your friends and your parents request to hear them\u2026 It doesn\u2019t necessarily mean it\u2019s going to be a hit, but it means it\u2019s going to stand out amongst the rest of that person\u2019s repertoire and put them on the next step for their career.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bunetta\u2019s arms have been working overtime of late. As well as multiple cuts with Sabrina and Teddy, he produced Gracie Abrams<\/strong>\u2019 all-conquering That\u2019s So True<\/em> and has worked with everyone from country stars Thomas Rhett and Kelsea Ballerini to returning superstars 5 Seconds Of Summer.<\/p>\n

He sees his current hot streak as a sort of second wind to his stellar body of work (\u201cIt\u2019s nice to get this type of success at this stage of my career\u201d) but, in truth, he has rarely been out of the charts since he signed his first publishing deal, aged 19, at the start of the new millennium.<\/p>\n

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He was immersed in the business even before that. His father Peter is a producer, while his uncle Al is a manager and label exec. Bunetta keeps his own career in the family as well. He\u2019s managed by his brother Damon, and his Big Family Music company \u2013 which recently partnered with Stem to extend its artist services capabilities \u2013 works across records, publishing and management.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy happy place has always been in the studio, with a couple of other people, figuring out a puzzle.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t think of music as a family business, I just loved being around it,\u201d Bunetta says. \u201cMy happy place has always been in the studio, with a couple of other people, figuring out a puzzle.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bunetta started as a drummer and, over the years, occasionally toyed with starting his own artist career. But when a friend introduced him to Logic software, he became obsessed with production and then, after that first deal through publisher Judy Stakee, \u201cI focused all of my energies on songwriting\u201d.<\/p>\n

That paid off big time; he worked closely with his regular collaborator John Ryan (\u201cThe yin to my yang\u201d) and Simon Cowell on helping One Direction transcend their early reality TV stardom by writing more mature songs with wider appeal.<\/p>\n

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