If it wasn’t for being a Grammy Award nominated pop-star and producer, Charlie Puth would have been a teacher.
It was a former ambition he reflected on during the pandemic, as the US artist spent most of his time indoors.
"I just have so much respect for teachers and enamoured by how they process and give information," he said during his session at Culture Summit Abu Dhabi on Tuesday. "I hope that I am able enough to do something like that with a feasible piece of art, which is an album."
Speaking with Berklee College of Music president Roger H Brown, the Attention singer explained his creative process and how the viral hit See You Again with Wiz Khalifa, which currently has five billion YouTube streams, gave him an insight into the universal power of songs.
Here are five takeaways from his session.
1. The importance of melody
Puth realised he had global smash hit on his hands when seeing the reaction to See You Again on his travels across China and Europe. The way people responded to the song, he recalled, became instructive in how he approached his future works.
“I heard fans singing my song outside the hotel room, in China. Now they were getting the melody absolutely perfect but messing up on the some of the lyrics because English is not the first language," he says.
"The same thing happened in Denmark where they also got the melody right and only some of the lyrics, it dawned on me then that melody is the most important thing for non-English speaking fans.
“From that point on, melody was the focal point of everything I do.”
2. He goes with the flow
Travel remains Puth’s primary source of inspiration.
A life on the move, he says, naturally unlocks certain qualities nearly all creatives share.
“It no coincidence I wrote all of my hits abroad because I am inspired by different cultures and watching how people carry themselves in comparison to where I come from,” he says.
“If you want to be a songwriter then you are usually an empathetic person. We are very good at reading the room. I would go to a restaurant and a melody would pop in my head just from the way my fork felt. I always let my brain flow freely.”
3. Keep chasing greatness
One of the best career advice Puth received was from Jimmy Iovine.
Puth recalled meeting the music executive and producer while briefly signed to record label Interscope Records. Upon meeting the burgeoning artist, Iovine told him to aim bigger than the charts.
“He would tell me to 'chase great'. I also feel that if you are excited to play your song to your friend, then it will translate to the rest of the world,” Puth said.
“If the song is no good and you post it on TikTok or Spotify and you feel that you have something better up your sleeve, make sure you show the better stuff. You have to be passionate about it.”
4. He wants to make a classic album
While known for his modern approach to pop music, Puth aims to step back and explore the sounds of the past.
After this record that I am working on, which is pop, I just want to do something like Rod Stewart's The Great American Songbook albums," he said. "I mean, this was how I came to learn about all these great classic songs.
5. His next album will be his best
Participating in the conference from his home studio, Puth reveals he is close to completing his yet-to-be-titled third album.
Not only could it be a career defining work, but Puth hopes it can nab his first ever Grammy Award.
“I want to win the Best Pop Album in the Grammys. I had many nominations but now I just want to win,” he said.
“We don't make music to win Grammys but it is just a personal goal of mine. I just want to make the best album ever and one that people coming out of this pandemic can be inspired by.”
Culture Summit Abu Dhabi concludes on Wednesday at 9pm. Attendance is free and open to the public. Registration is live on the website.
Dhadak
Director: Shashank Khaitan
Starring: Janhvi Kapoor, Ishaan Khattar, Ashutosh Rana
Stars: 3
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
Brave CF 27 fight card
Welterweight:
Abdoul Abdouraguimov (champion, FRA) v Jarrah Al Selawe (JOR)
Lightweight:
Anas Siraj Mounir (TUN) v Alex Martinez (CAN)
Welterweight:
Mzwandile Hlongwa (RSA) v Khamzat Chimaev (SWE)
Middleweight:
Tarek Suleiman (SYR) v Rustam Chsiev (RUS)
Mohammad Fakhreddine (LEB) v Christofer Silva (BRA)
Super lightweight:
Alex Nacfur (BRA) v Dwight Brooks (USA)
Bantamweight:
Jalal Al Daaja (JOR) v Tariq Ismail (CAN)
Chris Corton (PHI) v Zia Mashwani (PAK)
Featherweight:
Sulaiman (KUW) v Abdullatip (RUS)
Super lightweight:
Flavio Serafin (BRA) v Mohammad Al Katib (JOR)
Who was Alfred Nobel?
The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.
- In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
- Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
- Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
MATCH INFO
Alaves 1 (Perez 65' pen)
Real Madrid 2 (Ramos 52', Carvajal 69')
Australia men's Test cricket fixtures 2021/22
One-off Test v Afghanistan:
Nov 27-Dec 1: Blundstone Arena, Hobart
The Ashes v England:
Dec 8-12: 1st Test, Gabba, Brisbane
Dec 16-20: 2nd Test, Adelaide Oval, Adelaide (day/night)
Dec 26-30: 3rd Test, Melbourne Cricket Ground, Melbourne
Jan 5-9, 2022: 4th Test, Sydney Cricket Ground, Sydney
Jan 14-18: 5th Test, Optus Stadium, Perth
The more serious side of specialty coffee
While the taste of beans and freshness of roast is paramount to the specialty coffee scene, so is sustainability and workers’ rights.
The bulk of genuine specialty coffee companies aim to improve on these elements in every stage of production via direct relationships with farmers. For instance, Mokha 1450 on Al Wasl Road strives to work predominantly with women-owned and -operated coffee organisations, including female farmers in the Sabree mountains of Yemen.
Because, as the boutique’s owner, Garfield Kerr, points out: “women represent over 90 per cent of the coffee value chain, but are woefully underrepresented in less than 10 per cent of ownership and management throughout the global coffee industry.”
One of the UAE’s largest suppliers of green (meaning not-yet-roasted) beans, Raw Coffee, is a founding member of the Partnership of Gender Equity, which aims to empower female coffee farmers and harvesters.
Also, globally, many companies have found the perfect way to recycle old coffee grounds: they create the perfect fertile soil in which to grow mushrooms.
Not Dark Yet
Shelby Lynne and Allison Moorer
Four stars
Teams in the EHL
White Bears, Al Ain Theebs, Dubai Mighty Camels, Abu Dhabi Storms, Abu Dhabi Scorpions and Vipers
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Anghami
Started: December 2011
Co-founders: Elie Habib, Eddy Maroun
Based: Beirut and Dubai
Sector: Entertainment
Size: 85 employees
Stage: Series C
Investors: MEVP, du, Mobily, MBC, Samena Capital
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
SCORES
Multiply Titans 81-2 in 12.1 overs
(Tony de Zorzi, 34)
bt Auckland Aces 80 all out in 16 overs
(Shawn von Borg 4-15, Alfred Mothoa 2-11, Tshepo Moreki 2-16).
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Honeymoonish
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Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20myZoi%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202021%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Syed%20Ali%2C%20Christian%20Buchholz%2C%20Shanawaz%20Rouf%2C%20Arsalan%20Siddiqui%2C%20Nabid%20Hassan%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20UAE%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2037%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Initial%20undisclosed%20funding%20from%20SC%20Ventures%3B%20second%20round%20of%20funding%20totalling%20%2414%20million%20from%20a%20consortium%20of%20SBI%2C%20a%20Japanese%20VC%20firm%2C%20and%20SC%20Venture%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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