John Caramonica

On top of the mad task of picking only 30 people, we also went out and got some Music World heavyweights to weigh in.

Watch all the video interviews for free and check out the entire 30 Greatest Living American Songwriters Project at nytimes.com slash 30greatest or in the app.

And let us know if you agree with our picks.

I bet you won't.

If you couldn't tell, that is Mariah Carey.

I'm John Caramonica, one of the critics behind the New York Times' 30 Greatest Living American Songwriters Project.

We interviewed some of the songwriters on our list, including Taylor Swift, who hasn't sat for a video like this in a long time.

These are not ordinary conversations.

You're going to watch these videos and learn about intimate approaches to craft in ways that you rarely have access to.

Okay, Jay-Z's Teenage Notebooks.

I need to see those.

Watch all the video interviews for free and check out the entire 30 Greatest Living American Songwriters Project at nytimes.com slash 30greatest or in the app.

And let us know if you agree with our picks.

I bet you won't.

If you couldn't tell, that is Mariah Carey.

I'm John Caramonica, one of the critics behind the New York Times' 30 Greatest Living American Songwriters Project.

We interviewed some of the songwriters on our list, including Taylor Swift, who hasn't sat for a video like this in a long time.

These are not ordinary conversations.

You're going to watch these videos and learn about intimate approaches to craft in ways that you rarely have access to.

Okay, Jay-Z's teenage notebooks.