Everyone gets songs stuck in their heads that just won’t go away. They sneak into your subconscious. They are epic earworms that you find yourself humming uncontrollably, singing in the shower, or tapping the beat to with your foot or ballpoint pen when you should be working. Sometimes they even keep you awake at night. Whether they are current hits, one-hit wonders, movie soundtrack gems, holiday favorites, or songs from your youth, their catchy vocals, riffs, hooks, and choruses seem to linger for days.
Here, those songs find a home, no matter the genre. Here, those epic earworms are revisited, explained, and celebrated. Here, you may find the song that haunts you tomorrow. Here is today’s unescapable song of the day…and the story behind it.
Today’s Epic Earworm: Aerosmith — “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing”
Aerosmith found their biggest hit in the 1998 ballad “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing.” The song was recorded for the “Armageddon” movie soundtrack and was meant to be a radio-only single. However, the song was popular enough that it was released commercially by the band’s label, Columbia Records. While the band has had numerous songs top the Mainstream Rock chart over the years, “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” became the band’s first (and so far, only) song to top the Billboard Hot 100. The song received five platinum certifications in the U.S. alone, as well as Oscar, Grammy, and MTV Movie and Video Music Award nominations.
Lady Sounds Like a Dude
The epic earworm was written by legendary songwriter Diane Warren for the movie. Warren had been inspired by an interview with Hollywood power couple Barbra Streisand and James Brolin. The award-winning songstress had envisioned the song going to Celine Dion. She definitely intended for it to go to a woman. So, imagine her surprise when the song ended up in the hands of Steven Tyler and his merry band of Boston rockers. However, when she heard it in a man’s voice, it turned out even better than she could have imagined. She decided in the end that it being sung by a man made it even more special.
