Desmond Child worked and made hits with some of the top rockers including Aerosmith. The songwriter recently chatted with the New York Times about how his contributions to tracks are dismissed or downplayed by the artists themselves. He recalled the time Steven Tyler downgraded his work by saying:
“When Steven Tyler wrote his memoir, he completely diminished me by saying, ‘Well, everything was already written’ and I just added a few words.'”
In addition to Tyler, Desmond shared that Joe Perry also didn’t give him credit for the track. He added:
“When Joe Perry wrote about ‘Dude’ in his autobiography, he said, ‘Well, Desmond just came up with the title.'”
Although the songwriter has had artists who didn’t recognize his contributions, there have been others like KISS’ Paul Stanley, who has shown support from day one. The duo have worked together on several songs, including the hit ‘I Was Made For Lovin’ You.’
Besides working on songs together, Desmond has even asked Paul to write a foreword for his first memoir, ‘Livin’ On a Prayer: Big Songs Big Life,’ which will be released on September 19th. To show his appreciation, Child recently tweeted to share with fans that he wouldn’t be at this point in his career if it weren’t for Paul Stanley. To that, Stanley responded and wrote:
“Desmond’s book is fantastic. It’s an honor to be a part of his so-deserved fame as a hitmaker and career saver for some. With or without me, he was destined for greatness. Respect and love.”
You can read Desmond Child’s interview with the New York Times here and listen to ‘Dude (Looks Like A Lady)’ below. You can also read Child’s and Paul Stanley’s tweets below.
A DEEP LOW BOW! To my mentor, collaborator and friend @PaulStanleyLive who taught me how to write stadium anthems the @KISS way. There is no Desmond Child without Paul Stanley!
Want to read more about my incredible fun times writing with Paul Stanley for KISS? pic.twitter.com/byvscFE764
— Desmond Child (@DesmondChild) August 27, 2023
Des’s book is fantastic. It’s an honor to be a part of his so deserved fame as a hit maker and career saver for some. With or without me he was destined for greatness. Respect and love. https://t.co/s0g1frV8Iv
— Paul Stanley (@PaulStanleyLive) August 28, 2023
