The Hardest Part
Hosted by Kieron Banerji, The Hardest Part dives deep into the most challenging songs ever written. Every two weeks, an artist joins Kieron in the studio to break down the struggles, breakthroughs, and raw emotions behind their toughest songwriting experiences. From overcoming creative blocks to tapping into painful memories, these conversations reveal the delicate balance between self-expression and self-protection. Each episode wraps with an exclusive live performance of the song—raw, real, and sometimes heard this way for the first time. Follow the Hardest Part wherever you get your podcasts, and watch footage from the show on our YouTube and socials.
Episodes
In this episode of The Hardest Part, Kieron Banerji sits down with Sam Fischer for a behind the scenes look at the songwriting and music production behind his track “Sweet Contradiction.” The conversation dives deep into the songwriting process, the emotional reality of creating music, and how a studio writing session meant for another artist turned into one of Sam’s most personal songs.
From the first lyrical ide...
In this episode of The Hardest Part, Kieron Banerji sits down with Matt from Mariachi El Bronx for a behind the scenes look at the songwriting and music production process behind their track “Songbird.”
The conversation dives into studio life during the making of the band’s fourth Mariachi El Bronx record and how the song came together in a completely unexpected way. Unlike the rest of the album, “Song...
In this episode of The Hardest Part, Kieron Banerji sits down with Dream Nails to unpack the making of their track “The Information,” a song that went through multiple versions and nearly did not make the album.
The band explain how the track began as free writing for a completely different idea before evolving through co-writing, shifting styles, and eventually returning to their post-punk sound with new hooks in place...
What happens when two ideas don't fit — until they finally do? What does that process actually look like?
In this episode of The Hardest Part, Kieron Banerji is joined by Ulrika Spacek to break down the making of their track “Weights and Measures.”
The song began as two completely separate pieces. One was built around a heavy fuzz section. The other drew on early 2010s London electronic textures. For a long time, ...
How do you turn fear and anxiety into something creative? In this episode of The Hardest Part, Kieron Banerji sits down with UK band Chartreuse to unpack the story behind their song “I’m Losing It” — a deeply personal track written by vocalist Hattie following the news that she’d need major surgery at just 29, forcing her to relearn how to walk. Hattie shares how months of anxiety and fear about becomi...
In this episode of The Hardest Part, host Kieron Banerji is joined by Hrishikesh Hirway — musician, composer, and creator of the iconic podcast Song Exploder.
Known for helping artists dissect their songs an...
What do you do when you have five separate demos and no idea how they fit together?
In this episode of The Hardest Part, host Kieron Banerji sits down with NYC psych-pop collective Psymon Spine to unpack the twisting, turbulent process behind their ...
In this episode of The Hardest Part, host Kieron Banerji sits down with Elles Bailey to unpack the long, personal, and painful process behind “Ballad of a Broken Dream,” a track that sat in her voice notes for over five years before she could face recording it.
Originally writ...
In this episode of The Hardest Part, host Kieron Banerji is joined by Adult Jazz to unpack the long and winding process behind “Earth of Worms,” one of the most technically complex and emotionally unruly songs on their album So Sorry So Slow.
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In this episode of The Hardest Part, host Kieron Banerji sits down with Deep Sea Diver at Third Man Records in Soho to unpack the complicated road behind their track “Shovel.”
It started out as the easiest song they’d ever written&...
In this episode of The Hardest Part, host Kieron Banerji sits down with Sophie Jamieson to explore the writing of “How Do You Want to Be Loved?”, a delicate and emotionally loaded song from her album I Still Want To Share.
Unlike many of her...
In this episode of The Hardest Part, host Kieron Banerji is joined by Anna B Savage to unpack the long and winding process behind “Donegal,” a standout from her album You and i are Earth.
Anna reflects on her changing relationship to songwri...
In this episode of The Hardest Part, host Kieron Banerji is joined by London band Famous to unpack the writing of “Leaving Tottenham,” a climactic and emotionally charged track from their debut album Party Album.
The band’s frontm...
In this episode of The Hardest Part, host Kieron Banerji sits down with Devi Mambouka, the artist and music producer who performs as Masma Dream World, to explore the deeply spiritual and emotionally raw process behind the making of her art.
Unlike traditional songwriting, Devi's process is entirely intuitive—a sonic ritu...
In this episode of The Hardest Part, host Kieron Banerji is joined by Australian group Folk Bitch Trio to reflect on the long, messy road to finishing “Sarah,” a song that was nearly cut from their debut album Now Would Be a Good Time.
What began as a heartbreak-fueled acoustic track quickly became the most difficult song to finish—emotion...
In this episode of The Hardest Part, host Kieron Banerji is joined by Bria Salmena to unpack the winding creative journey behind “Closer to You,” a standout track from her debut solo album Big Dog.
Written across two cities—Bria in Los Angeles, Duncan Hay Jennings in Toronto—the song came to life through long-distance collaboration a...
In this episode of The Hardest Part, host Kieron Banerji is joined by singer, songwriter, and producer Jack Garratt for a deeply introspective conversation about his track “Mara” from the album Love, Death & Dancing.
Jack opens up about the emotional and psychological weight that followed his debut album, and how “Mara” became a ...
In this episode of The Hardest Part, host Kieron Banerji sits down backstage at The Barbican with Casper Clausen of Danish band Efterklang to dive into the quiet evolution of their track “Getting Reminders,” from the album Things We Have In Common.
Unlike their typical in-the-box ...
In this episode of The Hardest Part, host Kieron Banerji is joined by Ashaine White to explore the emotional and creative depths of her song “Hotel.”
Ashaine opens up about how the track was sparked by a phrase she often heard growing up: “You treat this house like a hotel.&...
In this episode of The Hardest Part, host Kieron Banerji is joined in the studio by Matt Thomson of The Amazons to unpack the creative journey behind two defining songs: “Black Magic” and “Joe Bought a Gun.”
Matt reflects on the early days of writing “Black Magic,” a track that first came tog...
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