Pop-rock band OneRepublic have been consistent hitmakers of the 21st century, without ever sticking to a formula. A lot of that pop intuition and innovation starts with frontman Ryan Tedder, who began playing coffeehouses in Colorado in the late ’90s with high school buddies including guitarist Zach Filkins. When Tedder moved to Los Angeles a few years later, he reconnected with Filkins and together they formed OneRepublic in 2002. At the same time, Tedder was building his career as a songwriter, eventually writing and producing singles for artists like Leona Lewis, Hilary Duff, and Jennifer Lopez. But when it came to his own band, he’s said his goal has never been to write a hit, only to create genuine works of art: “It has to be a hundred-percent authentic and visceral to my human experience. If I haven’t felt it, if I didn’t go through it, if it’s not resonating with me, I can’t sing it,” Tedder told Apple Music. That straight-from-the-heart mentality is what ignites the straight-to-the-gut effect of OneRepublic’s greatest anthems, starting with their 2006 debut single “Apologize”—which eventually became a multiplatinum success—and later with even bigger songs like 2013’s propulsive folk-pop stomper “Counting Stars” and more diverse sounds such as 2016’s silvery synth groove “Kids.” As Tedder continues to rack up songwriting and production credits alongside Beyonce, Ed Sheeran, Adele, and other chart-topping stars, he’s still saving up his hardest emotional punches for OneRepublic’s next global smash.