F*ck Failure

by Benny Blanco

*INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER^

From Grammy Award–winning producer, artist, actor, and New York Times bestselling author benny blanco comes a book that teaches you how to achieve your wildest dreams by seizing the most powerful opportunity you’ll ever be failure.

You want success? You gotta fail better. I fail constantly—small everyday failures and massive failures that last for years. I’ve learned a few tricks along the way, and all of them have to do with turning f*cking up into an artform. My superpower as a producer is helping people tap into the success that’s already inside of them.

F*ck Failure gives you the non-shortcut shortcuts to success. If you let it this book can change your life. Soon enough, failure will start to feel good. And once you realize that failure is freedom, you’ll never look back.

Genres: Nonfiction, Audiobook, Self Help, Music

208 pages, Hardcover

Published September 15, 2026

Reviews

[erika · Rating 4 out of 5]

can finally post that i read this for work (go watch my segment)!! but the memoir portion of this book was so interesting & i loved hearing his stories on his come up in the industry! probably could’ve done without the advice part but i did love how funny this was & how much his personality came through!

[Taylor Jacobs · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a Benny Blanco hater at my core. I only started listening to this book bc I was bored, and then before I knew it I couldn’t stop listening. I thought it was very interesting.

[Morgan Herrera · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very tiny part memoir (the reason for the 2 stars) and the rest is regurgitated self help information that has been said over and over again

[Mollie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I made this account just to post a review here. Boy, is this one of the more awful, repetitive, blissfully unaware books that is completely predictable and unfriendly for women readers. My wonderful partner got this book for us to discuss - she loves self help books and although I'm not enthused about them, I was excited to read something with her as we’ve done this a few times before. First off, the author, Benny Blanco, is arrogant to say the least and so blissfully unaware of how men, including himself and the men around him (famous abusers mentioned such as C*eLo Green and Dr. L*ke), have been able to thrive with not very many setbacks. Among the other classic male humor tropes including thinking of his wife (he mentions multiple times but fails to use her name or acknowledge her role in his success until page 65) as a prize and of course the famous “let’s talk about me being naked multiple times” thing that guys really like to do. Now, yes, he explains in the book that he’s had a lot of setbacks, but not just at the expense of himself… at the expense of others. That’s where I started to fall upset by the tone of his book. He doesn’t even elaborate on how he’s potentially made it up to others… just that his mom’s house was robbed.. Twice… “lol!” as mentioned on page 80. He seems to talk a lot about success being in multiple parts of life, examples he uses is relationships, career, and self. But he can only seem to talk about the success of his career and hasn’t truly backed up his own success in other areas in his life, just the fact that he seems to take part in songs that make it on the Billboards. Now, I admit I’m not fully finished with this book, but I don’t have much hope he’ll revive his own character. He’s of the idea of putting in the work but from his own recall, it seems as though he’s also just gotten away with a lot of things, not necessarily that he worked that hard. I understand that men won’t acknowledge how much they’re allowed to get away with and still remain successful, but this feels like such a garbage read in 2026 as a woman. I think if you’re going to write a “self help” book of literally any sorts, you kinda need to actually own up to and understand your place in the world already. You need to kinda work on the other areas of your life too. Failure is a hard thing for a lot of people, I know this for sure. But I think we should leave the “helping”-people-face-their-failure thing to people that have done the work outside of their career.

Update:
After reading the second half of the book, and I admit there was a very useful section about being able to have success along with everybody else which is a very important thing to understand for someone who feels like they’re “failing too often”, the sections felt rushed and not coherent with the whole first part of the book. Again, there were small mentions of previous life discrepancies outside of his career that the author fails to elaborate on or makes connections to how overcoming that obstacle or how he has become a better person since then. I’m unsure if he’s failing to elaborate on purpose because he hasn’t worked on other areas in his life other than his career and only uses those small parts as examples to drive his conclusion home. Although there were only some useful bits to take away from this book, the book, again, feels like it’s written for men by a guy who just slid by in life. “You can do anything if you work hard and tell your wife you love her!” type obvious stuff sprinkled in with a couple of, “whoa is me!” type of memoir that just feels repetitive. I’m not learning anything from you constantly talking about writing songs with Ed Sheeran and Justin Bieber. Literally nothing. Just sounds like you wanted to write about all the famous people you wrote songs for. My advice to the author, since he likes to take advice from others as stated in his book, is to get real. Shut the fuck up about your career. You are an uninteresting workaholic. Start talking more about how your childhood or how your fuck-up’s in your 20’s taught you something. Talk to us about why you still work with known abusers in the industry, and don’t be shy. WHY you make the decisions you do. There wasn’t much of that other than “because I wanted to be famous”. Maybe you’d have a more interesting book. My 1 star still stays the same. Gonna donate this book afterwards. I’m hoping someone out there actually needs it.

[Emina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Typically not a self-help type of person, but when I saw that Selena Gomez’s husband wrote a book, I had to read it.

I appreciate the fact that he doesn’t claim to be something he isn’t. This isn’t researched, he’s not a professional. So he uses his experiences and references them when he makes a point.

I loved the memoir portion of this book a lot, it taught me a lot about Benny that I wouldn’t have known otherwise. I don’t think he truly gets enough credit.

Will I adopt the things he mentioned? Maybe. Nonetheless, I enjoyed this book and loved getting a glimpse of “memoir” from this book.

*thank you Simon & Schuster for the copy! I wasn’t asked for a review in exchange, all thoughts are my own :)*

[Aurora Jay · Rating 4 out of 5]

𝗤𝗨𝗜𝗖𝗞 𝗣𝗟𝗢𝗧 𝗣𝗘𝗘𝗞
benny blanco shares the failures, mistakes, and unexpected setbacks that shaped his career, from struggling as a kid to becoming a hit songwriter and producer. He turns those experiences into practical, no-BS advice about embracing failure, chasing big dreams, working hard, and finding success on your own terms.

𝗔𝗨𝗗𝗜𝗢 𝗧𝗔𝗞𝗘
I liked that this was read by benny. He really put his personality into it, and sometimes it felt like he was just thinking out loud rather than reading a book to us.

Every now and again he’d put on a voice to imitate our “annoying voice,” which I didn’t love!

I loved how personal he got and that he didn’t just talk about business. And I loved all the Jewishness! It felt really good to relate to him on that level.

𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗧𝗘𝗡𝗧 𝗧𝗔𝗞𝗘
I was immediately into this. It felt like a friend sharing his story, and he came across as really relatable, like we were on the same level.

Fair warning - he shits and farts a lot and then tells us! 💩💨

It’s a short book with a simple framework, and it was really easy to follow. He didn’t overcomplicate anything or throw a bunch of fancy jargon at us. He was just super down to earth.

Not all of the content was new or fresh, but he still made it his own sharing his own experiences and the lessons he’s learned.

𝗪𝗢𝗥𝗧𝗛 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗?
This was such an easy, quick and entertaining listen, but it also had some really solid content. Not gonna lie, I’ve come away feeling pretty motivated!

Thank you Simon & Schuster Audio and NetGalley for this gifted ARC.

And huge thanks to Maria Medina from The Coaching Network for this buddy read

🎧 Narrated by Benny Blanco
📖 Release 09•15•26 | 208 pages | 4h 20m

[Taryn Hatcher · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book doesn’t really do anything revolutionary, but tbh… sometimes we need to hear the same stuff until it actually clicks in our brains lol It’s really just a reminder that failure is part of the process and, more importantly, proof that you’re actually TRYING.

I mostly know Benny Blanco from Dave, but I knew he was a successful producer and didn’t realize he was from the DMV(sameee🤗) The whole book felt like a friend saying, “I followed my dreams, got told no a million times, and kept going. Now look at me! You can do it too, so stop letting failure scare you.”

It’s a quick, light, motivational read that may not blow your mind, but will give you a lil something to think about.

I read the physical book for the first half & then listened to the audiobook for the second half which was narrated by Benny Blanco himself. Thank you Simon books & Libro.fm for the free books.

[Brittany Adams · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn’t know who Benny was before he started dating Selena BUT it was so much fun to find out that he was a huge part of my listening career. I not only liked it for that but also he’s actually pretty smart and I will be taking some of these practices into my life cuz I usually give a big f*ck.

[Olivia Swindler · Rating 4 out of 5]

My biggest takeaway is I love benny blanco

[Guinevere DelaMare]

(Audiobook)

[Kimberly · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a self-help, key to success book? Meh. As a mini memoir, peek into Benny’s career and relationship with Selena, fun!

[Jacob Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

F*ck Failure takes a refreshingly unconventional approach to one of the biggest questions people face: how do you actually achieve the success you want? Rather than presenting failure as something to avoid, Benny Blanco turns the idea completely around, presenting mistakes, setbacks, and failed attempts as opportunities to learn, experiment, and move forward.

What makes the concept especially engaging is the author's willingness to embrace imperfection. The message isn't about finding a magical shortcut or pretending that successful people never struggle. Instead, the book encourages readers to become more comfortable with getting things wrong and to understand that failure can be part of the creative process.

I also appreciated the connection between failure and creativity. Blanco's experience as a producer and artist gives the message a practical perspective, particularly for anyone trying to create something, pursue an unconventional career, or turn an idea into reality. The emphasis on experimentation makes the book feel energetic rather than overly instructional.

The idea that failure can create freedom is another particularly interesting takeaway. Fear of making mistakes can prevent people from taking risks, sharing ideas, or pursuing goals that matter to them. By changing the way readers think about failure, the book encourages a more adventurous and resilient approach to personal and professional growth.

Overall, F*ck Failure offers an entertaining and motivating perspective on success, creativity, risk-taking, and resilience. Readers interested in personal development, entrepreneurship, creativity, entertainment, or simply finding the confidence to try again should find the book's message both accessible and encouraging.

[Christine DeSmet · Rating 4 out of 5]

F*** Failure, by benny blanco
This guy (who spells his name with the small “b”) knows he failed big sometimes in his younger life, and he still has failures. He’s figured out a few simple tricks and things that can help anybody move on from failures. He’s a songwriter, artist, chef, cookbook author, but he’s probably most famous for his creations and collaborations in the music industry with big-name singers like Ed Sheeran and his marriage to Selena Gomez. The guy has experienced a lot of failures, egos, problems, and at times bottomed out. His house burned down, too. He tells all in this book. He made mistakes. He whined too much in the past. What he learned about beating failure should appeal to most anybody, but of course I was thinking of writers. I come across too many Substack newsletters or posts on social media in the writing industry where somebody whines about misfortune. What are you doing about it? Read this short, instructive book and it could change your approach to life and maybe bring you more success with a few changes. He wastes no words. I like what he suggests. There’s a positive outlook I admire. I thoroughly enjoyed taking time out for this book—no, I took time for me. It felt good.

[Chantal · Rating 4.5 out of 5]

This was memoir too as much as reviews say otherwise, Benny does tie his life story with his advice. It felt like talking to a best friend giving you advice to pursue your goals and that it is never too late to do so. That even the failure of it all, is important to it all, as well as taking a step back and maybe coming to it at a later time. To write down your goals to hold to it and not giving up no matter how long it takes. I loved that he stressed the importance of kindness and that it would come back. Also the advice of taking time to react whereas writing out your response, giving yourself a few hours, and then sleeping on it, editing it again, so you can respond in a clear headspace.

He was also open about his own Mental health with his anxiety, ocd, and ADHD which let you in on his process and struggles.

I don't think I would reread the whole book again, but I do think I want a paper copy to come back to chapters that I need to be reminded of again.

[Taylor Miller · Rating 2.5 out of 5]

My mom really wanted me to read this because she loved it! The first half of the book I wasn’t vibing with, I definitely enjoyed listening to his experiences though! I wish it was more of a memoir and less of a self-help book. Do I think he worked hard to get where he is? Absolutely. Do I think this makes him able to write a self-help book and give people tools? Absolutely not.

I am in therapy and not a moment goes by where I think, “Oh, I can go help people with their problems now!” This review sounds a bit rude BUT IDC! There!!! that’s something I got from the book. He told me not to care what people think! Did I learn a lesson from THE Benny Blanco????

[Sam Etskovitz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very easy to read book.. read the whole thing in 1 week. Alot of it goes back to common sense. Few key takeways for me:
- Get messy. Try a bunch of shit, throw it against the wall and see what sticks.
- Balance = Key. Just business success wont hold up the stool. You need to ensure your personal health + relationships are also getting the attention they deserve.
- You dont need to be a dick to succeed. The energy you give is th energy you receive back.
- Even when you have a bad day, take the pressure off and keep going. Hard work + a good attitude will lead you to success.

[Maryanne · Rating 2.75 out of 5]

meh. if all benny wanted to do was check off “write a self help” book for his goal list well then mission accomplished. It’s - ok. The stories of his early years growing up show grit, determination and the power of not giving up. But it’s standard platitudes and dreck. Once we hit the Donny D chapters I was begging for an editor to come in and count the number of name drops in a chapter.It nothing new or earth shattering, but if you want to learn how the song Dynamite got written, give it a listen.

[Jeannine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This exceeded my expectations. I liked the straight talk and how it was more like having a conversation and less like a book. Definitely recommend the audio. It was about more than just succeeding - there was great tidbits of easy ways to cope with everyday aspects of life in a way that broke it down really well. I found it helpful and can think of several people I know who might benefit from listening to this book.

[Anthony Murphy · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a great little book. It was a decently fast read. I find Benny Blanco pretty interesting, especially since he seems to have come out of nowhere. While it’s full of a lot of self help fluff, he has some pretty helpful lessons or ideas to at least think about. I thought some parts dragged, but I did like his overall message of celebrating in success and in failure. He also was very big on being a nice person. Good stuff

[Captain Absurd · Rating 3 out of 5]

This might not be my usual type of reading material, but—despite some observations that feel like standard, well-worn self-help tropes—I do appreciate the authenticity and the extensive, behind-the-scenes look at the music world. It’s certainly preferable to the pretentiousness of Rick Rubin’s latest book. That said, had I judged the whole thing solely by its cliché title, I never would have written this comment. I’d give it a solid three!

[Athena · Rating 3.75 out of 5]

A really charming, uplifting take on the power of dedication. It somehow avoids being cloying despite the relentless advice about working hard, staying positive, and being a nice guy.

benny blanco's message is simple and applicable for everyone. He's an engaging writer with interesting things to say. And I think he might just know a few things about being successful.

Thank you to Simon & Schuster for my copy.

[Katie Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Benny Blanco - I think he’s so funny, so I knew I wanted to read this book. I loved it, I found myself laughing out loud while listening to it. I loved all the behind the scenes things he talked about with writing and recording songs, it was so Interesting. But also I loved all the life lessons he gives too. Easy, quick read that you should pick up!

[Helen Wu ✨ (Loves audiobooks) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nothing new but I like how he reinforces some good strategies.

“Maybe it’s not right now” - no doesn’t mean no forever

“Conflict is a waste of energy”

“Break your goal into small pieces. Tackle them one at a time.

[Alexis Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I went into this thinking it’s Benny Blanco! I know I will love this! However you guys (yes using my Elin Hilderbrand voice)…THIS IS A MUST READ! It’s so much more than I thought it would be. It’s from the heart. Sound advice. And let me add in another…AUTHENTIC. It’s real. 5 stars 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟

[Roxanna Moscovitch · Rating 4.5 out of 5]

I enjoyed the audible version and hearing B Blanco's reading of his story. I found it to be motivating and full of many personal stories that had shed a light on how he learned how to deal with his depression, anxiety and quick success. I suggest the audio version.

[Jennifer Byrn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simple, short and smart. Truly the basic stuff you need reminding of. Some felt a little self-improtant. A lot about his road to success but it'sapplicable anywhere. I read it in an hour standing at my local B&N

[Marsha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have always used the word "FAIL" to mean first attempt in learning. I devoured this audiobook. I want to give copies to my kids because they need to hear these words from someone other than their Mom. Great advice and lessons learned.

[Hayley Meyer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I honestly didn’t know much about Benny blanco before listening to this book. I really enjoyed how he shared motivational messages connected to his lived experiences. Good listen.

[Tracey Schauf King]

When you doubt yourself, going through a hard time this book was a great reminder to not let the idea failure get in your way!

[Samantha Lewis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sometimes we need to hear things over and over till they stick. Honestly loved it and will be thing about for a while.