Warren said: "Some of the lyrics, like 'I can stay awake just to hear you breathing,' I'd be like, 'No, don't do that. When tasked with writing a song for Armageddon, she figured it was a perfect sentiment, since the film dealt with the impending destruction of Earth.Warren found inspiration after hearing about an interview where actor James Brolin said that when his wife Barbra Streisand was away, he missed her even when he was sleeping.Warren was also behind huge songs such as 'Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now' by Starship, 'If I Could Turn Back Time' by Cher, 'Because You Loved Me' by Celine Dion, and 'How Do I Live' by Leann Rimes.īarbra Streisand and Josh Brolin in 2019.Diane Warren wrote the song, which is about treasuring every moment spent with another person.Who wrote 'I Don't Want to Miss a Thing' and what inspired it?ĭiane Warren with Aerosmith's Steven Tyler in 2016.She just channels the zeitgeist of love.Find out all you need to know about Aerosmith's 1998 classic from Armageddon here. So I don't think there is any way one could explain the meaning of any of her songs in terms of actual events in her life. I just read an interview with her at (check it out, it is really interesting!) and she's never been married or even fallen in love! No kids, either. One of the most famous songwriters few people have ever heard of. She is pretty amazing - so prolific and so successful. It makes sense that it is a Diane Warren song. This song had just crept into my head from hearing it on the radio (and I did see "Armageddon" in the theatre though I didn't think much of the film). I love a lot of their music, some of my favorites are "Walk This Way", "Sweet Emotion", "Rag Doll" and "Janie's Got a Gun", among others (so no, it isn't just boys who like classic Aerosmith). I didn't think much of "Don't Want to Miss a Thing" before that - I didn't even know it was Aerosmith. They are also all ephemeral - every mother loses her baby just by the process of time. There is something very spiritual and mysterious in a very primal way about a baby, and the experience of becoming a mother (I can't speak for fathers). Babies live completely in the moment and can teach you a lot about how important it is to appreciate the now rather than lingering on the past or worrying about the future. You find yourself amazed by this tiny creature that just days or weeks before was inside of you. As a parent you want them grow and evolve, but at the same time there is the wish that they could stay this way forever. So one night after I brought her home I was just lying on my side watching her sleep and this song came into my head - it was perfect! Time is warped when you have a newborn, and you know that they won't stay that way for long. I bought a special kind of bassinet called a co-sleeper which is basically a three-sided crib that attaches to the side of a regular bed so she had her own space and when she woke up to nurse I just had to lift her over onto my bed. My daughter was such a miracle, so beautiful and healthy, and my family was so supportive - my parents and siblings spent Thanksgiving night in the hospital while I was in labor - and everyone fell in love with her immediately. I was also on my own as her father had chickened out and didn't even show up for the birth - something I had not expected since we had been friends for 16 years and were both in our 30's. The line from Grosse Pointe Blank, "You spend the first year just trying to keep these little guys alive," is so true. I was incredibly happy and terrified at the same time. I had never felt so much love in my life (and I had most definitely been in love before - I am a real romantic, a believer in true love and soul mates). General CommentIn the weeks after I gave birth to my daughter I barely slept and I would just watch her sleep. Then I kiss your eyes and thank God we're together I could spend my life in this sweet surrender I could stay awake just to hear you breathing