Source link : https://las-vegas-news.com/8-massive-pop-hits-that-were-secretly-written-by-other-famous-artists/
Most of us picture a songwriter alone with a guitar, pouring their own heartbreak directly into lyrics that will eventually carry their name. That image is comforting, but it’s also often wrong. The pop music business has always run on collaboration, backroom deals, and the quiet transfer of songs between artists who never share a stage together.
Some of the most recognizable tracks in music history were born in studios by people who never performed them publicly. The singer on the cover gets the glory, but the pen behind the song belongs to someone else entirely. Here are eight of the most surprising examples.
“Nothing Compares 2 U” by Sinéad O’Connor – Written by Prince

The Irish singer is best remembered for her 1990 cover of Prince’s “Nothing Compares 2 U,” a wounded ballad Prince wrote in 1984 and first gave to his funk-pop offshoot band The Family, who recorded it for their self-titled 1985 debut album. The Family version was never released as a single, and the song might have been completely forgotten had it not been for O’Connor.
Prince headed to the recording studio as soon as he stepped off the plane after a trip, and with only his studio engineer Susan Rogers present, he wrote and recorded an early version of the song in just a few hours. O’Connor’s version won three Moonmen at the 1990 MTV Video Music Awards, including Video of the Year,…
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Author : Matthias Binder
Publish date : 2026-06-01 10:13:00
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