So I have been seeing in a LOT of threads people either shading artists for their lack of songwriting or using songwriting credits as some kind of end-all crown for their faves. And my question to you all is...who cares?

Is writing your own song a good thing? Yes
Does it help the artist take increased control over their music? Of course
Can an artist have artistic integrity and control over their musical impact without writing the songs?
YES

I feel like the stan warring has made us lose sight of the musical legends of the past like Ella Fitzgerald, Donna Summer, Judy Garland, Barbra Streisand, Whitney, Celine etc etc etc who rarely if ever wrote their own songs (or at least their biggest hits). Yet I doubt anyone was on some soapbox claiming they were bad artists for not penning their songs.

Any chance we can all agree that lack of songwriting does not diminish an artist's credibility, as long as they also have some kind of artistic control?

I think it is great that some artist can write their own songs but songwriting is a difficult business (working on it myself) so I also respect those who do not song write but can still perform great.

People just relate and have more respect when the artists do it. And it should be done, for every single song, of course not. But at least 15-20% of your work.

I honestly don't see why people makes a big deal because an artist doesn't write them own songgss.
Of course it would be nice to see our fave/s sing a song wrote by him/her but still is not a big deal.
I love the idea of a singer teaming with a group of people to make his/her magic (singer, producer/s, song writters,...) is like a team work

It's not. It's only a excuse for Britney haters to hate.

I agree but just to correct you, Mariah has written 99.9% of her material. She's a great songwriter.

It's makes the song(s) more meaningful and personal to me at least. I can enjoying the song more knowing what the artist was feeling & where their head was at. Especially if its something i can relate to.

Because we see the real artist. Plus, the artist proves that he is not a manufactured act.

Write your own **** or your just an image to me. Bye.

But I can relate to a lot of songs VERY VERY personally that I don't write. It's probably the same for the artist when they record the song. They can still relate to it even if they didn't write it.

It shows creativity, emotion, & makes them a true artist, no matter how bad it is. To me, it's big, because if not, it's basically just singing & performing. I'm okay with it, but the writing makes me see how they are a true artist

Writing is a TALENT. People respect talent.

& another note, If the artist shows enough emotion when they record the song, I feel more connected, whether they wrote it or not

Why do you always use Mariah as an example for not writing her songs? Cause she writes all of her material apart from covers....


Anyway to answer the question.
Because it's a talent. Singers do not have to do it..
.But it's nice when they do && they gain respect from it.
I don't mind that Britney doesn't write all her songs, but the ones that she does write I appreciate.
As I also love Mariah i do REALLY Appreciate that she writes her songs. I like that.

because it shows the involvement and creativity of the artists to their music instead of being just a puppet.


err.....Mariah writes and produces all her hits!!!she was even nominated at the Grammys for it!!

Bingo.

I dont get it either, there are plenty of singers that dont write their own songs and are considered legends. I just want good music, i really dont care who writes it.

Part of the reason everyone thinks songwriting is such a huge deal is because ignorant people think singing is easy. It takes real talent to bring a song to life, but since some people don't realize that, they think that singers who don't write are good-for-nothing, no-talent bimbos.

Idiots...

I honestly agree. I'm mostly about the end product, so if a particular artist happens to put out a lot of songs I like, I'll have a particular preference for them, even if I can recognize that they don't get all the creative credit. I think with the singer-songwriter there is that additional respect you ascribe to people with a wider range of talents, but at the end of the day I won't make that a bare minimum standard for all singers.