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Song Stories

“A Thousand Years”

Christina Perri | 2011

Christina Perri was such a fan of the Twilight movies and series, she got a Twilight-themed tattoo. And after watching an early version of Breaking Dawn, from The Twilight Saga -- during which she cried the entire time -- she went home and wrote a song about the characters Edward and Bella and their love affair. When she learned her song had made the movie's soundtrack, she told Rolling Stone, "I really had to contain myself. I was sweating. I was so excited." The franchise’s huge fan base guaranteed massive exposure for Perri’s love song.

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Song Stories

“I'm Yours”

Jason Mraz | 2008

Jason Mraz re-emerged after his disappointing second album with this lead single, a Jack Johnson-esque ditty about giving yourself fully to someone else. The success of the reggae-tinged song (it earned two Grammy nods and a spot on the Billboard singles chart for well over a year) was something the folk-pop singer never predicted when he wrote it in 15 minutes at home. "I played a happy-hippie chord progression that would probably work without 50 different Bob Marley songs," he told Rolling Stone. "I thought, 'It's too novelty. This is a nursery rhyme,'" concluding that "you can never guess what's gonna be a hit."

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