3 Hit Songs That Were Initially Written for Other Artists

Songwriters often have artists in mind when penning songs. It helps to imagine a voice in your head while trying to create a hit. However, that initial idea doesn’t always work out. At times, songwriters have to pivot which artists they give their hits to. That was the case with the three songs, below. Learn more about three songs written for other artists.

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1. “…Baby One More Time” (Britney Spears)

It’s hard to imagine anyone else singing “…Baby One More Time.” We can’t imagine any voice other than Britney Spears’ distinctive timbre singing “Oh, baby, baby…” Nevertheless, the songwriters–Max Martin and Rami Yacoub–had this song squared away for TLC in their minds. In the end, Spears won out after the R&B trio declined.

Oh, baby, baby
How was I supposed to know
That somethin’ wasn’t right here?
Oh, baby, baby
I shouldn’t have let you go
And now you’re out of sight, yeah

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2. “Umbrella” (Rihanna)

While Spears benefitted from someone else’s scraps, others have benefitted from Spears’ scraps. Rihanna’s “Umbrella” was originally written with Spears in mind. Although the songwriters had their sights set on the established pop princess, Rihanna certainly did wonders with this track.

When the sun shines, we’ll shine together
Told you I’ll be here forever
Said I’ll always be your friend
Took an oath, I’ma stick it out to the end
Now that it’s raining more than ever
Know that we’ll still have each other
You can stand under my umbrella

3. “I Don’t Want To Miss a Thing” (Aerosmith)

“I Don’t Want To Miss a Thing” isn’t an easy song to sing. In fact, few people other than Steven Tyler could do this song justice. Maybe Celine Dion? At least that was the thought Diane Warren had after she penned this song, originally intended for the Canadian vocalist. Tyler and Aerosmith won this song in the end. They brought it to international fame, so Warren was likely satisfied with the switch.

Don’t wanna close my eyes
I don’t wanna to fall asleep
‘Cause I’d miss you baby
And I don’t wanna miss a thing
‘Cause even when I dream of you (even when I dream)
The sweetest dream would never do
I’d still miss you baby
And I don’t wanna miss a thing

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(Photo by MpiRock/MediaPunch via Getty Images)