In the third episode of the vlog series “About A Week Ago,” The Chainsmokers‘ singer Drew Taggart opens up about the inner workings of some of the duo’s biggest hits.
It starts with an intimate clip of singer Drew Taggart at the piano, telling of how he first got into electronic dance music. He was about 15 when he first heard David Guetta and The Egg‘s of “Don’t Let Me Go (Walking Away).” Being an avid rock and hip hop fan, it’s fat electro beat was unlike anything he had heard before.
He tells more about his history learning to drum at five years old, and how jealous he is of today’s youth who have YouTube tutorials to teach them the ins and outs of Ableton.
It all leads to an exciting moment where Taggart explains the backstory of “Closer.” The song’s foundational chords were a product of his limited abilities on a 25-note midi keyboard. He absent-mindedly played those chords for about a decade before The Chainsmokers’ breadkout hit was ever written. It also explains why so many of their songs have similar chord progressions. As fans know, the song was co-written by Freddy Kennett of Louis the Child in the back of a tour bus. The rest is something you’ll have to hear from his mouth to believe.
He tells a bit about the backstory of “Paris,” and it’s nothing like what you’d expect. You also get the nitty gritty on the duo’s recent single “Beach House.”