5 Unexpected Songs That Became Massive Money Makers – The Stories Behind the Hits episode artwork

EPISODE · Mar 13, 2025 · 28 MIN

5 Unexpected Songs That Became Massive Money Makers – The Stories Behind the Hits

from Professor of Rock

Some songs were always destined to make millions, usually through chart dominance and endless airplay. But sometimes, the biggest paydays come from the most unexpected places. Some songs have made their creators absolute fortunes in ways no one saw coming or could ever predict, including the artists themselves. Today we’re counting down five songs no one expected to win the lottery… including the story of one songwriter who unwittingly missed millions in royalties because he thought the song Happy Together was dumb and rejected a writing credit. And another that was a forgotten album cut by Devo until it hit pay dirt and now the author of it makes a million a year off it and it’s become the most played song in MTV history... even though the song has no actual music video! Their stories are coming up… NEXT on the Professor of Rock. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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5 Unexpected Songs That Became Massive Money Makers – The Stories Behind the Hits

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