The Journey of ‘Unwritten’ reveals the inspiration behind Bedingfield’s 2004 track and highlights its lasting impact
Natasha Bedingfield is celebrating the legacy of her massive track “Unwritten.” Rolling Stone can exclusively premiere The Journey of ‘Unwritten,’ a short-form documentary about Bedingfield’s song, which explores the inspiration behind the 2004 hit and how it came to be.
“I don’t know why this song has so much staying power, but I do know it is very honest and seems to keep resonating for so many different types of people,” Bedingfield tells Rolling Stone. “The message of being in charge of your own life and letting go of inhibitions must be an important one for everyone.”
The Katie Paul-directed documentary features interviews with fans (including one who has an “Unwritten” tattoo) ahead of a performance at Webster Hall in New York City and clips of Bedingfield’s performances of the song over the years.
“A tattoo of your lyrics is such a compliment for a songwriter because it’s permanent. When I write songs I always have hoped to make songs that will be around for a long time,” she says. “The only time I freak out with tattoos is when people shove their arm in my face and ask me to write the words in pen for them to tattoo. That’s too much pressure.”
The short doc includes Bedingfield walking around the venue ahead of her performance, discussing her love for singing live, and talking to her team about how she was discouraged from celebrating her big hit when it first released.
“My best advice to a new artist is to find some way to keep a tally of how many shows you are doing as there is no way to find out retroactively. Also, you gain nothing by having a knock-on-wood type superstition around celebrating. If anything, saying ‘cheers’ to yourself and those around you is gratitude which is the key to fulfillment,” she adds.
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Bedingfield explains in the documentary about how she wrote the single for her little brother and was inspired by philosophers who saw the lives of young people as empty pages in a book meant to be filled.
The singer-songwriter is set to continue a tour later this month with a show scheduled in São Paulo on Sept. 13, before a string of East Coast shows at the end of September. “There’s nothing better than being in a room with great music; feeling unguarded enough with strangers to dance and sing your heart out,” she says.
