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The Music of Her Heart

© Megan Drummond

In the early 1970’s, an insurance salesman from the San Fernando Valley brought home a guitar for his daughter and sparked the beginnings of the career of one of America’s most popular and prolific songwriters.

Diane Warren is not a household name. Some people may not have even heard her name, but they have almost definitely heard her work. Diane Warren’s songs have appeared in over 50 motion pictures and been recorded by such varied artists as Joe Cocker and Celine Dion.

“I grew up on Top 40 radio; it's what I was exposed to and attracted me," she says. "I loved listening to my older sisters' records, people like Buddy Holly and the Beatles. But believe it or not, I was more fascinated by the songwriters: Carole King, Leiber and Stoller, Burt Bacharach. Those were my idols," she recalls.

Her mother voiced clear opposition to Diane’s chose career path, worrying about her pre-teen daughter’s ability to succeed in such a competitive field. Her father, on the other hand, constantly encouraged his daughter, never doubting her abilities as a songwriter. By the time Warren was in her early teens, her father was taking her to appointments with music publishers all over Los Angeles. Diane’s father, however, was the only one to see his daughter’s abilities.

A decade or so later, while working as a staff writer for one of Laura Branigan’s producers, Warren was asked to put English lyrics to a French song. Twenty-four hours later, she turned in Solitaire. The song went on to chart later in 1983 and gave Diane Warren her first Top 10 hit. To date, Warren has had over 75 songs charted in the Top 10.

Nearly twenty years after her first songwriting success, Diane Warren remains virtually unchanged by her success. “From the time I met Diane until the last time I saw her, she was a nut and still is...and to be such a wonderful songwriter, that's a true gift from God," says James DeBarge, leader of El DeBarge, for whom Warren penned the 1986 hit Rhythm of the Night.

Diane has never had the desire to perform the music she writes, the way other singer/songwriters do. "Of course, I sing while I'm writing, but I've never wanted to perform. It's not my habitat," she explains. Her ability to step out of the spotlight and not perform her own work is more than simple modesty. It is based on her desire to be known as a songwriter – above all else.

The copyright of the article The Music of Her Heart in Women Writers is owned by Megan Drummond. Permission to republish The Music of Her Heart in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.