General Hospital alum Rick Springfield shares his songwriting approach

Former General Hospital star Rick Springfield became a TV heartthrob when he played Dr. Noah Drake on the show. That role would help propel his rock and roll song Jessie’s Girl to number one on the Billboard Top 100 in August 1981. Springfield continues to perform his music and recently has brought back his I Want My ‘80s tour. This event has several guest singers, including John Waite, Wang Chung, Paul Young, and John Cafferty. During his promotional rounds for the concerts, Springfield was interviewed about his songwriting.

His album had a singular meaning

General Hospital alum Rick Springfield was a guest on KTLA5’s Morning News program, and he shared the clip on Instagram. He was asked how his approach to songwriting today differs from the period when he originally wrote Jessie’s Girl. He commented, “Well, you write about different things, certainly, and I mean honestly, all of [the album] Working Class Dogs is about getting laid,” which drew some great belly laughs from the anchor team.

Springfield added, “That’s not so much of an issue anymore, unfortunately,” getting even more laughs. He further remarked that there were currently “a lot of different issues to deal with, you know…but the writing process is still the same.” He took a dive into that process, continuing, “You still got to wait for something to land, you know, I always believed that it's all there and it just has to come through you.” (Learn how Springfield offered strength in the face of tragedy.)

The former General Hospital star’s fans expressed their adoration with tons of heart emojis, although @kariq66 was flabbergasted by his initial remark, writing, “😱 did he say that on TV LIVE?!? 😮😂.” One follower, @adrienne_everheart_, praised Springfield’s body of work, writing, “Some of your best music isn’t the hits! 🙌.” @kauffmanvicsik wanted to see Springfield level up with the response, “Come on people he needs to be voted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame & Songwriters Hall of fame for 2026…” urging other followers to vote the singer in.

@junemacon directly responded to that reply, stating, “@kauffmanvicsik I totally agree! The music industry needs to quit treating him like a joke and show him the respect he deserves and has earned!” @roxych47 fondly remembered his soap roots, responding, “He is still gorgeous! Dr. Noah Drake ❤️❤️🔥🔥👏.”

Some fans wondered if Springfield was having a glass of liquor on an early morning show, with @sliderwrx2 writing, “Always a favorite 🤘 Scotch in the morning? Such a rockstar 😎.” It’s more likely his glass had apple juice or something similar in it, but a star like Springfield needs to keep up his image as a hardcore rocker.

Some fans wondered if he would ever return to General Hospital, but the odds of that get slimmer every year as he's so busy touring.

You can watch new episodes of General Hospital on ABC and Hulu.