Amanda Ghost

British songwriter-producer Amanda Ghost took her cues directly from superstar Beyonce Knowles -- and no one else -- when it came to co-writing "Once in a Lifetime" for the "Cadillac Records" movie soundtrack.

"Beyonce felt that the song should reflect where she is at today, as an artist," says Ghost, known for co-writing James Blunt's "You're Beautiful." "Obviously it had to relate to the story of the movie, but it also had to relate to her."

Rather than chaining themselves to a period-specific blues sound, the kind that would have been embraced by Knowles' Etta James in the film, the two birthed a distinctly contemporary love song -- a silky, polished pop number fits easily in today's hit parade. "It's not a token song in a movie, it's the kind of track that could get airplay on the radio today and be a hit," says Ghost. "Once in a Lifetime" was the lone original song by Knowles on the soundtrack.

Ghost, who wrote three songs for Knowles' third solo album "I Am ... Sasha Fierce," met with the singer in New York shortly after the film wrapped, whereupon Knowles gave her a broad story synopsis and described her vision for the song. "She wanted something really personal," says Ghost.

Ghost and her songwriting partner Ian Dench (guitarist and principal songwriter for '90s band EMF) recorded a demo with The rural, a U.K. production team comprising James Dring and Jody Street. They enlisted the help of British songwriter Scott McFarnon for additional lyrics. Ghost took the demo to Knowles in New York, and they completed the recording in one day.

While the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn., which nominated the song for a Golden Globe, lists all six artists as co-writers, the Academy might not be as generous, having limited the category to three songwriters in the past. If it sticks with this rule, the potential honorees will be listed at the discretion of Sony Pictures Entertainment, the studio behind "Cadillac Records."

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117997978?refCatId=2773

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You're Beautiful was written by Londoner Amanda Ghost, and her writing credit can also be found under three tracks on Beyoncé's new album. Ghost says she was amazed to be contacted by her: 'She approached me through her husband, Jay, because we had been introduced and were talking about working together. He arranged a meeting and she said would I write a song for her. And I said I don't know anything about urban music. But she likes so many different styles, as does Jay-Z. The reason they wanted me was because I wasn't from that world. And we started a friendship up. We spent three weeks together in New York working on the new record and we had the most incredible time. She has a complete, almost laser-like focus on what she is and what she can do.'

When I told Amanda Ghost that Beyoncé professed to have had little life experience she laughed: 'I think she's selling herself a bit short there. I think she's had huge experiences - but they've been bizarre ones that you or I couldn't imagine. The challenge of being a songwriter is to take your life experience and make it universal, so that everybody else relates. She keeps the Jay-Z references ambiguous, but music is the one place she can be incredibly expressive - look at the lyrics to the track Ave Maria. We were talking about how much we loved the Schubert Ave Maria. We had both recently got married, and it turned out we had both come up the aisle to that song. So I said wouldn't it be great to try and rewrite it. And the lyric is very much about her. She talks about being surrounded by friends but she's alone: "How can the silence seem so loud?" and then "There's only us when the lights go down". I think that's probably the most personal line on the whole album about her and Jay, because they are very real, and they're very much in love, and it must be pretty tough to have that love when you're incredibly famous.'

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/3563004/Beyonce-dream-girl.html

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AG: "I was like, 'Are you crazy? I'm a folky, pop-y singer-songwriter. I don't know anything about rap or R&B and the artists at Def Jam.' And he said, 'Good. I don't want you to know anything about that. I just want you to do what you do and we'll worry about the beats.' The next day, I walk into his office and Beyoncé is sitting there, saying, 'I've got this backing track and I'm gonna do a duet with Shakira on it, so would you write a song on top of it?' So we talked about what we wanted the song to be about.

AG: "No, and it's very important that you don't. I'm not a conveyor belt, and I can't come up with lyrics and melodies on demand. I've written songs over a period of three weeks that have been huge. But then again, I had 24 hours to write 'Beautiful Liar' and Beyoncé was coming in the next day to vocal it, so I was writing it in taxis, lawyers' meetings everywhere. Songs are written in the shower, in the car, walking around, feeding my kid, so they're going around in my head the whole time.

http://www.performing-musician.com/pm/apr08/articles/amandaghost.htm
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"One of the most enjoyable parts of my job is when I get to hear someone as incredible as Beyonce and Shakira... sing my words," she says.

"Beyonce [and I] were put together by the people that work around her, she just asked me if I would write something that would be a duet for herself and Shakira that would express female empowerment."

The result, Beautiful Liar, was written in just a few days, largely in the back of New York cabs, according to Amanda.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8178076.stm