FADE IN
Act 1
INT. STUDIO - 18:00
Background radio music. PETER is playing the piano.
PETER (V.O.): Once I begin playing, I get hooked to it.
Playing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): From a music friends' chatgroup, I learned one was born today 69 years ago.
Playing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Wishing other's happy birthday anniversaries, my practice is to send my "Happy Birthday" song.
Playing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I like it. I can't tell why. Some like it too.
We hear from the radio a song by the Beatles: I Want to Hold Your Hand.
Peter stops to listen to it.
Act 2
FLASHBACK
INT. STUDY - DAY (Days ago)
Peter is watching a documentary on YouTube.
PETER (V.O.): As an amateurish composer and lyricist since my late 50s, I like to know stories as to how hit songs were created.
We see and hear a character on TV talking about the song "I Want to Hold Your Hand".
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I first heard the song in the early 1960s, I liked it.
From TV, we hear:...I got hooked up with the song...As I didn't have the record yet, I stayed awake to listen to the radio...
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I listened to the radio too but I wasn't that crazy.
We hear: ...the song was so popular that DJs would play the song once every hour....
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Wow!
END FLASHBACK
Grabbing his smartphone, Peter researches about hooks in songs.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): A hook is a memorable, rhythmic, or lyrical phrase in a song that catches the listener's attention and remains in their minds.
Reading.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The hook in the Beatles song "I Want to Hold Your Hand" is primarily found in the melody and lyrics of the chorus.
Reading.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The iconic line "I want to hold your hand" is repeated throughout the song and served as the central hook.
Reading.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): It's a simple, catchy phrase that expresses the longing and desire for physical closeness and connection.
Reading.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The repetition of the chorus and its melodic structure make it easy for listeners to sing along.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The primary objective of my songs, "Happy Birthday" included, is to enable listeners to sing along.
Reading.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): The opening guitar riff of "I Want to Hold Your Hand" is instantly recognizable and serves as a secondary hook from the start of the song.
Thinking.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): I seldom have that in my songs.
Recalling.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): In Autumn 1968, I was 14. I did compose a song with lyrics...
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): If there's a hook at all, it was the last line..."Why are you being so cruel to me".
Recalling.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): In late 1995, I wrote my second song "Fate". The melody wasn't catchy, and the lyrics weren't simple and concise.
Reflecting.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Now, it's easy to look back what I should have done, and how I might have changed my career.
Act 3
INT. STUDIO - CONTINUOUS
Having input the prompt: "A teenager listening to the radio" in an AI art generator, Peter sees a cubist image appearing.
PETER (V.O.): If one wants to catch more fish, one use more hooks with baits. The same for popular songs.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Where're my other creative dreams going? I just want to hook up with them.
Pausing.
PETER (V.O.) (Cont'd): Meanwhile, I'll do the hard thing ie to accept what I actually did do.
.
Tapping YouTube, Peter watches his "Happy Birthday" MV. And we hear Peter singing: Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday to You! Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday, Happy Birthday to You!...
FADE OUT
THE END
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