The rise to fame of American pop-rock quintet OneRepublic was far from normal. In fact, they almost did it backwards. They had a smash hit before landing a record deal, and that hit, Apologize, wasn't even the original; but a remix by hip hop superstar Timbaland.
The group's frontman and chief writer, Ryan Tedder, always wanted to influence people by playing music in a band. But when the chance of breaking into the mainstream pop scene came, he chose to step back from the glamour of life on the stage to the isolation of the studio.
In 2000, when boy bands and bubblegum pop prevailed, a 21-year-old Tedder won a singer/songwriter contest on MTV. The prize was a music contract by N Sync's Lance Bass - but he turned it down.
'How could I ever take myself seriously if I was embarrassed by what I was singing?' Tedder asks, adding he wanted to write more than just catchy tunes - music that connects on a deeper level.
While recognising the appeal of pop, he wanted to find a balance between accessibility and credibility. Timbaland, who produces epic tunes for the likes of Jay-Z and Justin Timberlake, spotted Tedder's talent and took him under his wing.
Tedder created tunes for hot artists like Rihanna, Beyonce, Kelly Clarkson and Jennifer Lopez, and wrote the score for the movie Step Up under the pseudonym 'Alias'. He gained global acclaim with a shared Grammy nod with Jesse McCartney for Leona Lewis' Bleeding Love.
But Tedder still hoped to realise his rock band dreams. He and high school soccer teammate Zach Filkins, who studied classical guitar in his teens, formed OneRepublic in 2003. Drummer Eddie Fisher and guitarist Drew Brown joined later.