On this week’s episode of Songland, Charlie Puth searches for his next big hit. He meets four undiscovered songwriters: Sam DeRosa, Zach Sorgen, Paris Williams, and Joel Adams.

First up is Sam DeRosa with her song, “Pill For This.” Charlie and producers, Shane McAnally, Ester Dean, and Ryan Tedder are blown away by Sam’s performance. Their only real suggestion is to give the song a more intimate feel and strip it back a little. Ester also says she’d love to hear this song as a duet.

Next, Zach Sorgen shares his song, “Habit.” Charlie and the producers love it and call the song ear candy. In terms of feedback, they advise Zach to add a drum beat to give the song more swag. Shane mentions playing with a few of the lyrics as well.

Third, Paris Williams performs her song, “Pity Party.” Charlie and the producers say that the melody is a ten. The only thing left to do is customize the song for Charlie and tailor it so that it feels authentic coming from his point of view.

Last up is Joel Adams with his song, “Hate Love.” Charlie and the producers say that the song is fantastic. They suggest some lyric changes and giving the song more duality.

Having heard all four songs, Charlie now has to decide who will advance to the studio round. He selects Zach Sorgen, Joel Adams, and Sam DeRosa.

During the studio round, Joel pairs up with Ester; Zach pairs up with Ryan; and Sam pairs up with Shane to refine their songs in preparation for the performance round.

When the performance round arrives, Sam kicks things off with “Pill For This.” Charlie and the producers like how the production complements the lyrics and gives the song an angsty feel. Charlie also says that Sam is a very strong singer.

Next, Zach Sorgen performs “Bad Habit.” Charlie and the producers say that the song is“fun and universal. Even better, Charlie says he can picture himself singing it.

Finally, Joel Adams pitches his new version of “Hate Love.” Charlie and the producers find the way Joel and Ester have flipped the concept of hate love to be very clever.

With each of the songs having been refined, Charlie must choose the one he’ll record. He picks Zach’s song, “Bad Habit.”

Following Charlie’s episode of Songland airing, he revealed on Twitter that he chose not to record his own version of the song and let Zach have the honor instead. Charlie sparked controversy over his decision since he performed the song live but did not end up releasing it, which actually hurts the songwriter instead, since a big name isn’t attached to it. Fans who went to search for Puth’s version of the song were left empty handed. The song is also not doing as well on the charts as another song featured on the show “Pill For This” which is also sung by the songwriter.

Next week, OneRepublic visit Songland.