Billy Joel is getting honest about what he does — and doesn’t — like about being an artist ahead of the annual 2024 Grammys.
The “Piano Man” singer, 74, confessed he is not a fan of songwriting when asked about his process by Amanda Kloots and Alina Vission on the GRAMMY Live! from the Red Carpet show. He said his songwriting routine can be grueling, but he is always proud of the finished product.
“I’m going to go into my cave and become a caveman,” Joel said. “It’s not a fun process for me — it’s very self-centered, very lonely. And sometimes it’s torture.”
He added, “But afterwards, I love having written.”
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In an interview earlier this week, Joel admitted that loneliness was one of the reason it took him 17 years to write new music.
He credited Freddy Wexler, his songwriting partner on the new original song “Turn the Lights Back On,” as the person who got the ball rolling bringing him back into the music scene.
“I have this high bar that I set for myself. If I don't reach that bar, I beat myself up and I punch myself and I hate myself. So I stopped doing [music] because I got tired of feeling like that,” Joel admitted on the Audacy Check-In podcast.
On the Grammys red carpet, Joel revealed another taxing consequence of being a singer-songwriter: touring. Joel said that while he enjoys performing, that “can get a little tiresome too.”
When reflecting on his decades-long career, the legend said, “I always wanted to be a teacher and I used to go around the country and do lectures about songwriting at colleges."
When reflecting on his decades-long career, the legend said, “I always wanted to be a teacher and I used to go around the country and do lectures about songwriting at colleges."
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His advice to the emerging stars is to draw from their own experiences and emotions to truly connect with their music.
“You’ve got to go through things to write about things. Write what you know.”
Joel added he is most excited to see Miley Cyrus perform, along with Olivia Rodrigo and Billie Eilish.
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See PEOPLE's full coverage of the 66th annual Grammy Awards as they're broadcasting live on CBS from the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. (edited)
