The Hardest Part

"When you're at a low point, there's nowhere to go but up — and when you're down there, you might as well hit record." On this episode of The Hardest Part with Kieron Banerji, Naya Yeira opens up "hit record" — a song written at rock bottom, about refusing to be embarrassed in pursuit of something, with sad lyrics deliberately hidden inside an upbeat beat. It's a conversation about an artist building herself in real time: creating in a vacuum while searching for her sound and her message; writing from a beat up with producer Sean Hamilton, and why uncovering a song with someone feels safer than bringing one in; the Doja Cat-inspired vocal versatility (talking lows, singing highs) and the stacks and stacks of harmonies to listen for; Ed Sheeran's "clearing the tap" and writing through the ideas that don't stick; and a genuinely distinctive vision beyond the music — projector installations, 2am park shoots bathed in red light, fabric and fans on stage — because she wants you to enter a world, not just hear a song. Plus the line of the episode: "If I sing about boys until I'm 40, have I lived?" Then Naya Yeira performs "hit record" live in the studio. 00:00 "You might as well hit record" 00:54 Rock bottom, pointing up 01:48 In the room: a beat, a melody, a vacuum 03:48 Hiding behind upbeat beats 05:16 Doja Cat & vocal versatility 06:33 Clearing the tap: ideas that don't stick 07:51 The multidisciplinary vision 10:09 The nuance: the delicate pre & stacked harmonies 11:21 Projectors, red parks & entering a world 13:21 Live Session: hit record - The Hardest Part dives deep into the most emotionally complex songs ever written. Every two weeks, host Kieron Banerji sits down with artists to unpack the creative process behind their hardest songs—exploring songwriting breakdowns, emotional storytelling, cultural influences, and moments of personal growth. Each episode ends with an intimate, stripped-back performance—raw, real, and sometimes heard this way for the first time. Produced by Palm Tree Island, a London-based creative studio known for standout music documentaries and original voices. Kieron Banerji is a seasoned producer and engineer based in London with extensive experience in music, media, and entertainment. He’s worked with Grammy and Academy Award winners, and has recorded sessions with Portugal. The Man, Jason Isbell, Katie Melua, Rae Morris, Jason Mraz, BROODS, Baio (Vampire Weekend), and more. 🎧 Follow the Podcast: https://linktr.ee/thehardestpart - #NayaYeira #songwriting#musicpodcast See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Saltwater stings a wound... and heals it. On this episode of The Hardest Part with Kieron Banerji, Troy Javelona opens up "SALTWATER" from his two-sided EP No Healing Without Heartbreak: one side written inside a relationship that treated him badly, the other written on the way out, and this song, from the healing side, about the new love that stings with the past even as it mends it. 00:00 "The saltwater that heals me" 01:00 Introducing "SALTWATER" & the two-sided EP 01:57 The saltwater metaphor 02:51 Journaling a breakup into songs 04:30 First collaborations & learning to say no 08:12 Trust: the thing every artist names 09:45 Ocean towns, London & how place shapes sound 13:50 Writing straight to the person 16:45 The intro: a song for the beach 17:44 Full Track The Hardest Part dives deep into the most emotionally complex songs ever written. Every two weeks, host Kieron Banerji sits down with artists to unpack the creative process behind their hardest songs—exploring songwriting breakdowns, emotional storytelling, cultural influences, and moments of personal growth. Each episode ends with an intimate, stripped-back performance—raw, real, and sometimes heard this way for the first time. Produced by Palm Tree Island, a London-based creative studio known for standout music documentaries and original voices. Kieron Banerji is a seasoned producer and engineer based in London with extensive experience in music, media, and entertainment. He’s worked with Grammy and Academy Award winners, and has recorded sessions with Portugal. The Man, Jason Isbell, Katie Melua, Rae Morris, Jason Mraz, BROODS, Baio (Vampire Weekend), and more. - #TroyJavelona #Saltwater #musicpodcast See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dan Croll spent seven years on "Hail Mary," a song about last chances, time running out, and coming to terms with a career that didn't keep the shape it started with. On this episode of The Hardest Part with Kieron Banerji, he opens it up with rare honesty: the early success he feels he squandered, the full-time job he works outside music now, and why everything, ideas, songs, deals, and touring, feels like one more throw of the ball. And why he's still here, still giving it a go. They talk about craft as persistence: the archivist's method of reopening a session every few months for years; a full notebook per song and "murder-map" lyric walls; the voice-notes ritual that makes sure no good idea slips the net; collaborating for the first time in his career; and the influences behind the album Winning Streak — a rekindled Burt Bacharach obsession ("Budget Bacharach": real vibraphone, coffin-sized studio), Frank Sinatra endings, Glen Campbell, and country's unapologetic honesty. Then the nuance that changes the song: the bridge line that surprised him as he wrote it — "and I'm praying you won't forget me." His biggest fear, out loud. Then Dan performs "Hail Mary" live in the studio. 00:00 "Everything's a bit of a Hail Mary" 01:04 Seven years, one song 02:22 Last chance saloon 03:51 Chords first, chorus first 07:46 Voice notes & keeping ideas alive 11:00 Collaborating for the first time 12:38 Budget Bacharach & Sinatra endings 17:12 Country, Cohen & honest simplicity 20:36 "Praying you won't forget me" 22:54 🎸 Live: Hail Mary - The Hardest Part dives deep into the most emotionally complex songs ever written. Every two weeks, host Kieron Banerji sits down with artists to unpack the creative process behind their hardest songs—exploring songwriting breakdowns, emotional storytelling, cultural influences, and moments of personal growth. Each episode ends with an intimate, stripped-back performance—raw, real, and sometimes heard this way for the first time. Produced by Palm Tree Island, a London-based creative studio known for standout music documentaries and original voices. Kieron Banerji is a seasoned producer and engineer based in London with extensive experience in music, media, and entertainment. He’s worked with Grammy and Academy Award winners, and has recorded sessions with Portugal. The Man, Jason Isbell, Katie Melua, Rae Morris, Jason Mraz, BROODS, Baio (Vampire Weekend), and more. 🎧 Follow the Podcast: https://linktr.ee/thehardestpart - #DanCroll #HailMary #MusicPodcast #TheHardestPart #Songwriting #LiveSession See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Luke Hart wrote "Biding" about seeing someone, an infatuation that felt amazing and awful at once. Then he posted it online, people found it, and strangers started messaging him that the song holds their grief, their old cities, their goodbyes. On this episode of The Hardest Part with Kieron Banerji, he opens up the song that's done more than he ever intended. Kieron and Luke talk about the song written on the couch of his old Manchester flat under a salt lamp, the diminished chords he learned from listening to his friends, the inspiration of Adrianne Lenker, and why songwriting is the only way he knows to process anything. Luke also performs an exclusive stripped back version of the track for us live in our studio. 00:00 "It's done so much more than I intended" 01:20 Introducing "Biding" 01:48 An infatuation, in the cold 03:42 The salt lamp & the Manchester flat 05:06 Diminished chords & learning from friends 07:43 Songwriting as the only way to process 11:33 Pinegrove, Laura Marling & peers who push you 14:09 Open D, Chris Smither & Adrianne Lenker 14:42 The song that outgrew him 16:24 Live Session: Biding - The Hardest Part dives deep into the most emotionally complex songs ever written. Every two weeks, host Kieron Banerji sits down with artists to unpack the creative process behind their hardest songs—exploring songwriting breakdowns, emotional storytelling, cultural influences, and moments of personal growth. Each episode ends with an intimate, stripped-back performance—raw, real, and sometimes heard this way for the first time. Produced by Palm Tree Island, a London-based creative studio known for standout music documentaries and original voices. Kieron Banerji is a seasoned producer and engineer based in London with extensive experience in music, media, and entertainment. He’s worked with Grammy and Academy Award winners, and has recorded sessions with Portugal. The Man, Jason Isbell, Katie Melua, Rae Morris, Jason Mraz, BROODS, Baio (Vampire Weekend), and more. - #LukeHart #Biding #MusicPodcast #TheHardestPart #NewMusic #Songwriting #LiveSession See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Maddie Zahm was watching Meryl Streep deliver "that is all" in The Devil Wears Prada when she had a realisation: "that's gay." On this episode of The Hardest Part with Kieron Banerji, she opens up "Meryl," a flirty, joyful, proudly queer song about loving older women. It's a conversation about honesty as a superpower: how she came out through a song she accidentally sent to her mom, why she writes hyper-specifically, as though no one will ever hear it, and why the songs that scare her most always resonate most. At the end of the interview, Maddie performs an exclusive stripped back version of the track. 00:00 "That's gay": the Meryl Streep moment 01:14 Introducing "Meryl" 01:57 Coming out through a song (by accident) 02:55 Writing literally — & the eyelash story 05:00 Writing like throwing up 05:45 Editing on gut instinct 07:39 Griffin, Summer & turning the car around 10:21 Does Meryl know? 11:40 "I've never done a thing that I'm told" 12:20 Live Session: Meryl - The Hardest Part dives deep into the most emotionally complex songs ever written. Every two weeks, host Kieron Banerji sits down with artists to unpack the creative process behind their hardest songs—exploring songwriting breakdowns, emotional storytelling, cultural influences, and moments of personal growth. Each episode ends with an intimate, stripped-back performance—raw, real, and sometimes heard this way for the first time. Produced by Palm Tree Island, a London-based creative studio known for standout music documentaries and original voices. Kieron Banerji is a seasoned producer and engineer based in London with extensive experience in music, media, and entertainment. He’s worked with Grammy and Academy Award winners, and has recorded sessions with Portugal. The Man, Jason Isbell, Katie Melua, Rae Morris, Jason Mraz, BROODS, Baio (Vampire Weekend), and more. 🎧 Follow the Podcast: https://linktr.ee/thehardestpart - #MaddieZahm #Meryl #MusicPodcast #TheHardestPart #Pride #QueerMusic #Songwriting #LiveSession See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.