John Mayer Gets Honest About ‘Daughters’ and Why He Really Wrote It

John Mayer is now looking back at two of his biggest hits and admitting something surprising: they came from a much more personal and imperfect place than fans might expect.

At the opening concert of HISTORYTalks in Philadelphia on April 17, as reported by PEOPLE, the singer took a closer look at his 2003 hit “Daughters” and his 2006 song “Waiting on the World to Change.” Instead of just playing the hits and moving on, he paused to explain what was really going on in his head when he wrote them.

“Daughters” encourages fathers to treat their daughters well, pointing out how that can shape how they give and receive love later in life. It even won a Grammy for Song of the Year at the 47th Grammy Awards.

But Mayer admitted the thinking behind it was not as grown-up as it sounds.

“What was a 24-year-old boy doing, telling fathers?” Mayer questioned before breaking into laughter.

He then explained the real motivation behind the song.

“The actual reason for the award-winning song, he admitted, “is very selfish.”

“I was thinking in very circuitous and clever ways that it was really about me, a young guy, so selfishly upset that he couldn't be with the woman he loved, because he thought that her father must have had something to do with it," Mayer shared.

He added that young people often turn complicated feelings into simple songs that just work.

“When you're young... that's young logic, and it plays really well in songs. It just does. ‘Come over. I know [we're] horrible for each other, come over,' [type of] young.”

Then he joked about how much harder it is to write songs with “older logic.”

“'Had a tough day, coped with it.' It's a tough song to write. ‘Had a rough morning, took a look at the bright side, got a good phone call later, reminded myself, "What was I doing worrying?"'" he joked. "It's not a chorus."

Mayer also talked about his 2006 hit “Waiting on the World to Change,” which became one of his most popular songs and won a Grammy for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance.

The song expresses frustration about feeling powerless in the world, especially for younger generations. But not everyone loved its message at first.

“It is a good idea. Sound and responsible,” Mayer replied. “A lot of people thought it was passive. It was too passive.”

To explain the idea, Mayer used a simple example about car trouble and waiting for help versus trying to fix things yourself.

“If your car broke down, or let's say you got locked out of your car, and somebody walked up to you and said, ‘Why can't you get in your car? What are you doing right now?'" he said. "And [you reply], ‘I'm waiting for AAA.' "

He continued, “Sometimes there are some people who say, 'Why don't you just smash through the window and just unlock it inside of the car?' Some people go, ‘Just wait for your roadside assistance.' "

Then he added a humorous reflection on how long change can actually take.

"Theoretically, now, I wrote that song 20 years ago. AAA hasn't shown up," he added, seemingly alluding to the fact that we are still waiting for government leaders to step up.

Jokingly, he ended, “John Mayer makes an incisive remark at the 250th anniversary [of the United States].”

“Waiting on the World to Change” was released on July 11, 2006, as a lead single from Mayer’s album Continuum. It also became one of his strongest-performing songs commercially, even with mixed critical reviews.

The New York Times called it a “lovely and anger-free ode to a vaguely dissatisfied generation," while Pitchfork criticized it, saying, “Preaching the gospel of non-action and civic apathy, the song has the gravitas of an infomercial but only a fraction of the soul.”

Even with divided opinions, the song still connected with a lot of listeners and helped define Mayer’s early career sound.

Looking back, Mayer’s reflections show something simple but relatable: even big, award-winning songs can start from messy, very human thoughts.