Rivers Cuomo: The Genre-Spanning Songwriter Behind Top Hits and Hidden Gems

Rivers Cuomo wrote tracks for Panic! at the Disco, CeeLo Green, Charli XCX, and Cold. The Weezer lead singer crafted pop, soul, and rock material that climbed playlists and dominated streaming services.

Cuomo collaborated on "Victorious" with Brendon Urie, CJ Baran, Mike Viola, White Sea, Alex DeLeon, and Jake Sinclair. This appeared on Panic! at the Disco's fifth album, Death of a Bachelor. Jake Sinclair and Suzy Shinn handled production. Panic! at the Disco's 2005 album, A Fever You Can't Sweat Out, was double platinum, according to the GRAMMY Museum.

Cuomo teamed up with CeeLo Green on "Anyway." Eric Frederic, Ross Golan, and Josh Alexander joined the writing sessions, and Wallpaper and Daniel Ledinsky produced the song. It has a melodic, R&B-influenced arrangement.

Charli XCX wrote "Hanging Around" with Cuomo, Justin Raisen, and Jeremiah Raisen. “It was really cool working with Rivers. I was really surprised when he wanted to work with me. He followed me on Twitter, and I was like, ‘Cool! Maybe this can happen!' and then we got in touch, and I just went over to his house and we wrote two songs together in his studio in his backyard,” said Charli XCX, according to Vice.

Cold lead singer Scooter Ward reached out after discovering that "Stupid Girl" sounded similar to Weezer. Ward toured with Weezer and befriended the band before asking for assistance on the track from Year of the Spider. 

The co-writing credits span multiple formats and production styles. Producers sought Cuomo's knack for hooks and pop structure on projects outside the alt-rock space. Each partnership assembled different teams in the studio. White Sea contributed during the Panic! at the Disco sessions.