Franke Previte & John DeNicola On Writing Iconic Songs For “Dirty Dancing,” Their December 18th Masterclass, Maroon 5 & More

With sales of its soundtrack exceeding 55 million copies thanks to the singles “(I’ve Had) The Time Of My Life” and “Hungry Eyes,” songwriters Franke Previte and John DeNicola helped to create the cultural phenonenom that is Dirty Dancing. Previte and DeNicola will be appearing in an interactive live-stream event with Lisa Niemi Swayze, wife of the Late Patrick Swayze, in celebration of the iconic film on Friday, December 18, 2020 at 8:00PM EST. Ms. Swayze, who is also a pilot, co-wrote the best-selling book The Time Of My Life with her late husband and in recent years became the official spokesperson for The Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, which this event — produced by Rock & Roll Fantasy Camp and moderated by Britt Lightning from the popular band Vixen — will be benefiting.

Prior to the success of the Dirty Dancing soundtrack, Franke Previte was the frontman of the band Franke & The Knockouts, which had been signed by Millennium Records in 1981 and went on to score 3 U.S. Top 40 singles and 2 Top 50 albums. John DeNicola, a native New Yorker, began his musical career with the Motown Records bands Flight — as later sampled by Erykah Badu — and would later discuss the band Kara’s Flowers, whose members were 4/5 of the original lineup of Maroon 5. Simply put, both Preveite and DeNicola had plenty going on before Dirty Dancing and continue to be active as musicians and songwriters. DeNicola recently released his first solo album with plans in place to write for a forthcoming studio album for John Waite, who he has written songs with in the past.

On December 17, 2020, I had the pleasure of interviewing Franke Previte and John DeNicola via Zoom, as embedded below. More on their December 18th event can be found online at www.rockcamp.com, while more on Previte and DeNicola can be found online via their respective official websites, www.frankeandtheknockouts.com and www.johndenicola.com

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Tags: Adam Levine, Bon Jovi, Dirty Dancing, Franke Previte, John DeNicola, Maroon 5, Songwriters, The Black Eyed Peas

About the Author

Darren Paltrowitz Darren Paltrowitz is a New York resident with over 20 years of entertainment industry experience. He began working around the music business as a teenager, interning for the manager of his then-favorite band Superdrag. Since then, he has worked with a wide array of artists including OK Go, They Might Be Giants, Mike Viola, Tracy Bonham, Loudness, Rachael Yamagata, and Amanda Palmer. Darren's writing has appeared in dozens of outlets including the New York Daily News, Inquisitr, The Daily Meal, The Hype Magazine, All Music Guide, Guitar World, TheStreet.com, Businessweek, Chicago Tribune, L.A. Times, and the Jewish Journal. Beyond being "Editor At Large" for The Hype Magazine, Darren is also the host of weekly "Paltrocast With Darren Paltrowitz" series, which airs on dozens on television and digital networks. He has also co-authored 2 published books, 2018's "Pocket Change: Your Happy Money" (Book Web Publishing) and 2019's "Good Advice From Professional Wrestling" (6623 Press), and co-hosts the world's only known podcast about David Lee Roth, "The DLR Cast."