Unless you slept through English class in high school, you probably know Shakespeare’s Sonnet 130. As a songwriter who is probably best known for his original lyrics, you might wonder why I would write a song using someone else’s words. The answer is simple: this was a homework assignment. To explain that, I may need to give you a little backstory.

When I moved back to Louisville, I thought I might do an early childhood class that I did in New York City. It was very popular there. They had a six-month…