Natasha Bedingfield recalls being inspired by the Beatles
Natasha Bedingfield's 'Unwritten' was inspired by the Beatles.
The 42-year-old pop star enjoyed huge success with her 2004 single, and she's now revealed the inspirations behind her chart-topping track.
Natasha told the Guardian newspaper: "I was whisked off to Los Angeles to work with songwriting mentors, which upped my game but meant I missed my younger brother Joshua’s 14th birthday. I hadn’t had a moment to send him a gift, so I decided to write him a song. 'Unwritten' was written with a 14-year-old in mind.
"At that age, you’re desperate to be taken seriously but at the same time everyone is asking what you’re going to do. There’s this huge pressure to map out your future.
"'Unwritten' started as a poem. Then I found the right songwriter in Danielle Brisebois - who’d had amazing experiences as a child actor and in the band New Radicals. She helped me with the idea that every child is a blank page and can write their own future.
"We recorded it in Venice Beach. For the verse, I had the Beatles’ Indian period in my mind."
'Unwritten' has been revived at various times over the last 20 years, and Natasha has been amazed by the song's enduring popularity.
The pop star - who is the younger sister of fellow singer Daniel Bedingfield - said: "'Unwritten' went top ten initially. It wasn’t my biggest hit at the time but it’s been a grower, used to motivate sports teams and such.
"Last year, the director Will Gluck wrote it into the script of the rom-com 'Anyone But You' as the character Ben’s 'serenity song'.
"That started a TikTok phenomenon. I never expected it to go back into the top 20 in its 20th anniversary year, but it’s a very positive song, so maybe you don’t get sick of it."