Ammar Malik (born June 22, 1987) is an American songwriter. He has co-written several modern pop songs, most notably

Maroon 5 Maroon 5 is an American pop rock band from Los Angeles, California. It currently consists of lead vocalist Adam Levine, keyboardist and rhythm guitarist Jesse Carmichael, lead guitarist James Valentine (musician), James Valentine, drummer Matt ...

's "

Moves like Jagger "Moves like Jagger" is a song by American band Maroon 5 featuring American singer Christina Aguilera. It was released on June 21, 2011, as the fourth and final single from the re-release of the group's third studio album '' Hands All Over'' (201 ...

" and

Gym Class Heroes Gym Class Heroes was an American rap rock band from Geneva, New York. The group formed in 1997 when Travie McCoy met drummer Matt McGinley during their high school gym class. The band's music displays a wide variety of influences, including hip h ...

' "

Stereo Hearts "Stereo Hearts" is a song by American group Gym Class Heroes featuring Adam Levine of Maroon 5. The song was released on June 14, 2011, as the lead single from the group's fifth studio album, ''The Papercut Chronicles II''. Composition and rec ...

" which have both been certified multi-platinum by the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

. He tied for 17th place in

Songtrust Songtrust is a global digital rights management platform which allows songwriters and artists to manage their music publishing and related rights. Based in New York, it is a division of Downtown. Overview Songtrust was founded by Downtown CEO ...

's publication of the top 20 songwriters of 2011. Ammar Malik's songs have sold over 100 million copies worldwide in total.

Life and career

Early life

Ammar Malik is a first-generation American born to Pakistani parents in

Northern Virginia Northern Virginia, locally referred to as NOVA or NoVA, comprises several counties and independent cities in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. It is a widespread region radiating westward and southward from Washington, D.C. Wit ...

. He first started learning guitar when he was 14. As a high school and college student he wrote and performed music locally with several different bands. Malik attended

George Mason University George Mason University (George Mason, Mason, or GMU) is a public research university in Fairfax County, Virginia with an independent City of Fairfax, Virginia postal address in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area. The university was origin ...

as an English major.

Songwriting

Malik's close friend and co-manager David Silberstein had a childhood connection to producer

Benny Blanco Benjamin Joseph Levin (born March 8, 1988), known professionally as Benny Blanco (stylized in all lowercase), is an American record producer. He is the recipient of the 2013 Hal David Starlight Award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame. He is also ...

along with his brother and now co-manager Jeremy Levin. After Malik and Blanco were introduced, Blanco suggested he try his hand at writing songs for other artists. Though Malik had intentions of being an artist himself, when nearing the end of college he decided to give it a shot. In an interview Malik said that two of his biggest influences are

Radiohead Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (lead guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Greenwood (bass) ...

and

Rx Bandits Rx Bandits are an American four-piece band based in Seal Beach, California, United States. The band formed in 1995 in Orange County, California. They have appeared on the Vans Warped Tour, at the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival, Coachella Valle ...

. He also co-wrote "Compass" by

Lady Antebellum Lady A (formerly known as Lady Antebellum) is an American country music group formed in Nashville, Tennessee, in 2006. The group is composed of Hillary Scott (lead and background vocals), Charles Kelley (lead and background vocals, guitar) ...

in 2013's single. In 2013 Malik won the coveted BMI Pop Songwriter of the Year title, along with

, and Claude Kelly. Each contributed four songs to the year's most performed list. Malik co-penned "Ass Back Home", "Moves Like Jagger, "Payphone" and "Stereo Hearts". Benny Blanco, Adam Levine and Ammar Malik also clinched BMI Pop Song of the Year honors for their co-write of "Moves Like Jagger".

Songwriting discography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Malik, Ammar 1987 births American people of Pakistani descent Living people Oakton High School alumni Songwriters from Virginia