WEBVTT - What Now with Brittany Howard 0:00:00.360 --> 0:00:06.400 Welcome to Good Game with Sarah Spain, where we are devastated, heartbroken, terrified, 0:00:06.480 --> 0:00:10.119 and furious. We have very few words of hope or 0:00:10.119 --> 0:00:12.160 help today. We just want you to be kind to 0:00:12.200 --> 0:00:14.680 each other and take care of your little corner of 0:00:14.720 --> 0:00:17.119 the world the best you can. I'm going to mourn 0:00:17.120 --> 0:00:20.000 today and tomorrow and however many days I need until 0:00:20.000 --> 0:00:21.919 I find my strength again. And then I'm going to 0:00:22.000 --> 0:00:25.360 get back to fighting for women, for my black friends, 0:00:25.400 --> 0:00:27.840 for my gay and trans friends, for my immigrant friends, 0:00:27.920 --> 0:00:31.680 and for my friend who spent months generously documenting every 0:00:31.720 --> 0:00:34.800 step of her IVF publicly to help other women, only 0:00:34.880 --> 0:00:36.800 to find out this week that the baby is not 0:00:36.960 --> 0:00:39.360 viable and she will now wait to see if her 0:00:39.360 --> 0:00:42.120 body can miscarry safely on its own, whether it will 0:00:42.159 --> 0:00:45.000 be an ectopic pregnancy, or whether she'll need a medical 0:00:45.040 --> 0:00:48.199 abortion to safely survive her attempt to grow her family. 0:00:48.880 --> 0:00:51.360 Thank God she's in a state where that is still legal. 0:00:52.200 --> 0:00:54.160 When I find the strength, I'm going to get back 0:00:54.200 --> 0:00:57.160 to fighting for everyone who is scared and suffering and 0:00:57.200 --> 0:00:59.920 feeling betrayed by a country that has never yet live 0:01:00.280 --> 0:01:02.600 up to its promise of liberty and justice for all. 0:01:03.520 --> 0:01:06.600 To quote poet Adrian Rich. My heart is moved by 0:01:06.680 --> 0:01:10.240 all I cannot save. So much has been destroyed. I 0:01:10.319 --> 0:01:14.560 have to cast my lot with those who age after age, perversely, 0:01:14.720 --> 0:01:19.960 with no extraordinary power, reconstitute the world. Please take care 0:01:20.000 --> 0:01:23.039 of yourselves and take care of each other. Today, we're 0:01:23.040 --> 0:01:25.840 going to do something different. At the espnW summit last week, 0:01:25.880 --> 0:01:27.640 I had a chance to talk to Grammy Award winning 0:01:27.720 --> 0:01:31.400 musician Brittany Howard, formerly of Alabama Shiks. She's now out solo, 0:01:32.160 --> 0:01:34.360 and I thought our conversation would just be a nice, 0:01:34.520 --> 0:01:37.039 entertaining listen to take our minds off of all things 0:01:37.080 --> 0:01:37.760 real life. 0:01:37.920 --> 0:01:39.360 Brittany and I chatted about. 0:01:39.080 --> 0:01:42.200 Her growing up in a junk yard, haunted houses, treating 0:01:42.200 --> 0:01:46.080 her voice like an instrument for her storytelling, becoming a unicorn, 0:01:46.200 --> 0:01:48.280 and what animals we're going to have on our later 0:01:48.360 --> 0:01:51.560 in life farms. Those farms might become in sooner than 0:01:51.560 --> 0:01:54.320 I planned. Brittany was truly a delight. I hope you 0:01:54.360 --> 0:01:59.160 enjoy it. It's coming up right after the break. This 0:01:59.200 --> 0:02:03.880 woman is a Powerhouse was born in Athens, Alabama. Singer, songwriter, producer, 0:02:04.040 --> 0:02:08.200 multi instrumentalist. She started playing guitar in junior high She 0:02:08.280 --> 0:02:11.000 and a high school friend founded the band Alabama Sheiks 0:02:11.000 --> 0:02:13.400 in two thousand and nine, and she won four Grammy 0:02:13.440 --> 0:02:16.480 Awards with that band. In twenty fifteen, she received a 0:02:16.560 --> 0:02:20.360 Billboard's Women in Music Powerhouse Award and released a self 0:02:20.360 --> 0:02:26.600 titled album with her side project Thunderbitch, which has never 0:02:26.600 --> 0:02:29.880 been my nickname, but I want it to be. I'm 0:02:29.880 --> 0:02:32.480 gonna work toward that. In twenty eighteen, she toured with 0:02:32.520 --> 0:02:35.280 her trio Bermuda Triangle, and then in twenty nineteen, she 0:02:35.320 --> 0:02:39.760 released her first solo album, entitled Jamie, which was nominated 0:02:39.800 --> 0:02:43.560 for seven Grammy Awards. Last year, Rolling Stone named her 0:02:43.639 --> 0:02:46.480 to its two hundred and fifty Greatest Guitarists of All 0:02:46.560 --> 0:02:49.639 Time list. In February of this year, she released her 0:02:49.680 --> 0:02:52.600 second solo album, What Now, and it's been named one 0:02:52.600 --> 0:02:54.600 of the best albums of the year by outlets including 0:02:54.680 --> 0:02:57.560 Rolling Stone, NPR, The New York Times, and Pitchfork. She 0:02:57.680 --> 0:03:00.960 is a longtime champion for LGBTQIA plus writes, and she's 0:03:01.000 --> 0:03:03.840 made an impact fighting for social justice causes in her community. 0:03:04.080 --> 0:03:06.919 She is a bad ass. If you aren't loud enough, 0:03:06.960 --> 0:03:18.640 I will yell at you. It's Brittany Hard Yes, yes, 0:03:21.840 --> 0:03:24.880 after this mentioned, I'm gonna put it to bed, but truly. 0:03:24.960 --> 0:03:27.960 Andrea Carter at our New York summit was asked, if 0:03:28.000 --> 0:03:31.399 you could only listen to one musician for the rest 0:03:31.480 --> 0:03:33.760 of your life, who would it be, and she said, 0:03:33.760 --> 0:03:36.280 Brittany Howard. So when we keep saying how excited she 0:03:36.400 --> 0:03:39.080 is and why she was literally crying earlier, that is why. 0:03:40.160 --> 0:03:45.640 Also good taste, Andrea, right, good taste. Okay, Brittany, I 0:03:45.680 --> 0:03:49.560 want to get weird right off the top, cause I 0:03:49.720 --> 0:03:52.640 was reading about you living in a haunted house, and 0:03:52.760 --> 0:03:54.600 when I asked you about it, you said that an 0:03:54.640 --> 0:03:57.000 actual through line for making your music has been being 0:03:57.040 --> 0:04:01.040 deeply uncomfortable, including like ghosts. So take us all to 0:04:01.080 --> 0:04:01.720 the haunted house. 0:04:02.760 --> 0:04:04.119 Do you want to hear about the haunted house? 0:04:04.200 --> 0:04:04.720 Yeah? 0:04:04.800 --> 0:04:05.160 Okay. 0:04:05.600 --> 0:04:08.280 I lived in this haunted house for seven years, y'all, 0:04:08.960 --> 0:04:10.760 and people always ask me why didn't you leave? 0:04:11.320 --> 0:04:12.720 And I says, because I ain't got no money. 0:04:14.320 --> 0:04:18.799 You know, the ghost was doing things like slamming cabinet doors, 0:04:21.160 --> 0:04:24.880 flinging open my bedroom door, flinging open my bathroom door. 0:04:25.480 --> 0:04:32.560 There's a there's an instance of growling, whispering in the air. Yeah, yeah, 0:04:32.600 --> 0:04:33.239 seven years. 0:04:33.360 --> 0:04:35.080 But I also loved that you originally lived there with 0:04:35.120 --> 0:04:37.719 a bunch of family members, so everyone just assumed somebody 0:04:37.720 --> 0:04:39.719 in the house was doing it, and then everyone left 0:04:39.720 --> 0:04:41.280 except for you, and you were like, oh. 0:04:42.320 --> 0:04:45.560 Yeah, no one else is here, exactly right. I started 0:04:45.560 --> 0:04:48.159 blaming it on the raccoons outside. I was like, oh, 0:04:48.200 --> 0:04:51.400 it must be a raccoon that is wiggling a nail 0:04:51.440 --> 0:04:53.640 loose that opened the cabinet. I was trying to be 0:04:53.720 --> 0:04:55.920 very logical about the whole thing. 0:04:55.640 --> 0:04:58.200 And then an invisible raccoon whispered in your band made's ear. 0:04:58.240 --> 0:04:59.520 He ran out of the house, and you were like, 0:04:59.560 --> 0:04:59.919 time to go. 0:05:00.320 --> 0:05:01.840 Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's right. 0:05:01.920 --> 0:05:05.479 My bandmate, Zach, we were in this little rehearsal room 0:05:05.520 --> 0:05:08.200 I had in there and we were going over the song. 0:05:08.240 --> 0:05:10.320 He just stops playing and I was like, why'd you stop? 0:05:10.360 --> 0:05:11.000 We were doing good. 0:05:11.360 --> 0:05:15.440 He's like white like and he was like, something just 0:05:15.440 --> 0:05:19.040 whispering in my ear. I'm out of here, and. 0:05:18.960 --> 0:05:20.680 I was like me too, I'm leaving too. 0:05:22.440 --> 0:05:25.680 But you made beautiful music there, yes, And then Sound 0:05:25.720 --> 0:05:27.560 in Color. You were staying up all night and there 0:05:27.600 --> 0:05:30.560 was a bat in the studio. Yeah, okay, and then Jamie, 0:05:30.600 --> 0:05:32.760 you were in a greenhouse during a heat wave with 0:05:32.800 --> 0:05:33.240 no Ac. 0:05:33.480 --> 0:05:34.599 Yeah, one hundred four degrees. 0:05:34.880 --> 0:05:37.560 And then the last album was very peaceful. So what 0:05:37.600 --> 0:05:38.159 does that mean? 0:05:38.440 --> 0:05:41.599 I don't know progress. I'm gonna try a pattern of peace. Okay, 0:05:41.640 --> 0:05:42.400 see what happens. 0:05:42.520 --> 0:05:46.159 I think we all should Yeah, starting next Tuesday. Okay. 0:05:50.480 --> 0:05:55.040 You had incredible success with Alabama Shakes, but you decided 0:05:55.080 --> 0:05:57.599 to go solo. And your first solo album, Jamie, was 0:05:57.640 --> 0:06:00.520 incredibly personal. You named it after and debtie it to 0:06:00.560 --> 0:06:03.520 your sister, who died at age thirteen. There are songs 0:06:03.560 --> 0:06:06.200 about her. There are songs about growing up poor on 0:06:06.240 --> 0:06:08.440 a junk yard, your home was hit by lightning in 0:06:08.480 --> 0:06:10.560 the middle of the junk yard, about your parents in 0:06:10.560 --> 0:06:13.400 a racial marriage and the judgment that they got, your 0:06:13.400 --> 0:06:16.120 struggles with religion, Like, there was so much personal stuff 0:06:16.120 --> 0:06:19.039 in there. Why did you want to make an album 0:06:19.320 --> 0:06:20.719 that was so specific? 0:06:23.600 --> 0:06:26.839 I feel like, you know, I grew up in a 0:06:26.839 --> 0:06:32.919 small town. I felt like I was seen, but not 0:06:32.960 --> 0:06:35.880 in a positive way. I didn't have like a lot 0:06:35.880 --> 0:06:40.200 of positive encouragement to be who I was. You know, 0:06:40.400 --> 0:06:42.320 I feel like it took me a long time to 0:06:42.360 --> 0:06:44.200 be like no, I have a story, of an interesting story, 0:06:44.200 --> 0:06:45.240 of a good story to tell. 0:06:45.520 --> 0:06:46.159 I think it took me. 0:06:46.160 --> 0:06:47.880 A long time to be proud of who I was, 0:06:48.760 --> 0:06:51.440 well proud enough to share it with the world, you know, 0:06:51.800 --> 0:06:56.520 because that's very vulnerable. But that was an inspiration behind it, 0:06:56.839 --> 0:07:01.440 just using my voice and authentic, just telling people who 0:07:01.520 --> 0:07:05.039 I am. And I think that's like a It's like 0:07:05.080 --> 0:07:07.080 a trail that I'd like to keep blazing. 0:07:07.560 --> 0:07:13.840 Yeah you're Yeah, thank you. And we often find that 0:07:13.880 --> 0:07:15.960 the more specific we are, the more relatable it is, 0:07:16.000 --> 0:07:18.920 which feels counterintuitive, but in fact, people need to hear 0:07:18.960 --> 0:07:22.160 our very specific, very personal stories to feel less alone, 0:07:22.400 --> 0:07:25.480 which is the most powerful way to speak to the 0:07:25.560 --> 0:07:30.320 larger masses. Your high school friend and bandmate, Zach Cockrell, 0:07:30.360 --> 0:07:34.640 actually played on both of your solo albums, So why 0:07:34.640 --> 0:07:36.480 couldn't you make them with the band? Did it feel 0:07:36.480 --> 0:07:38.840 like those albums only could have been solo albums? 0:07:39.240 --> 0:07:42.480 Yeah, you know, I just needed time to do everything 0:07:42.520 --> 0:07:45.120 in my own way because I had never really done that. 0:07:45.120 --> 0:07:47.080 I'd always had kind of like a delegation of the 0:07:47.120 --> 0:07:48.320 guys like what do you think about this? 0:07:48.440 --> 0:07:49.360 What do you think about that? 0:07:50.040 --> 0:07:53.240 And not wanting to sing anything that gets under anybody's 0:07:53.240 --> 0:07:55.840 skin too much, you know. I was kind of It's 0:07:55.880 --> 0:07:58.880 not like anybody made me do that. That's just what 0:07:59.160 --> 0:08:01.720 the position at the I put myself in. And then 0:08:01.760 --> 0:08:04.680 I thought it was very freeing to walk away. Instead 0:08:04.680 --> 0:08:07.840 of it being like such a negative thing. It was like, Okay, 0:08:07.960 --> 0:08:10.080 now I'm on my own I can make my own 0:08:10.120 --> 0:08:13.600 mistakes or I can have my own victories. If the 0:08:13.640 --> 0:08:16.640 ship sells great. If the ship sinks, that's my fault. 0:08:17.240 --> 0:08:21.640 And taking this absolute authority over the whole project. I 0:08:21.640 --> 0:08:24.240 had never done that before. I'd never been able to 0:08:24.400 --> 0:08:26.920 just touch every single thing just how I wanted it to, 0:08:27.040 --> 0:08:29.760 you know, And I think life is short. Why not 0:08:29.880 --> 0:08:30.240 try it? 0:08:31.040 --> 0:08:35.480 Yeah? We love that, right. I think also, you're in 0:08:35.520 --> 0:08:39.120 such a different position after those Alabama Shakes albums than 0:08:39.160 --> 0:08:42.040 when you started. You told Terry Gross on Fresh Air 0:08:42.080 --> 0:08:44.680 about leaving the band and writing about your sister. You 0:08:44.720 --> 0:08:46.480 said quote, I think there was a lot of healing 0:08:46.559 --> 0:08:48.800 that happened after I took my time away from the Shakes, 0:08:48.960 --> 0:08:50.600 because I finally got to slow down and look at 0:08:50.600 --> 0:08:53.679 how much life had changed, and the change was remarkable. 0:08:53.720 --> 0:08:55.800 I needed to put my feet back on the ground 0:08:56.040 --> 0:08:58.199 and figure out who I am now and what matters 0:08:58.240 --> 0:09:00.360 to me. I know my sister would be so proud. 0:09:00.480 --> 0:09:02.920 I got out of the junkyard, I got out of Athens, Alabama, 0:09:02.960 --> 0:09:05.800 and I could see the world, hear different languages, see 0:09:05.800 --> 0:09:08.640 different cultures, experience the sun in different places of the world, 0:09:08.679 --> 0:09:10.679 and see the ocean. And you said you owed so 0:09:10.720 --> 0:09:12.600 much of that to your sister because she brought music 0:09:12.640 --> 0:09:16.400 to your life. That is remarkable to do in the 0:09:16.400 --> 0:09:19.120 midst of great success, to say, oh, I want to 0:09:19.120 --> 0:09:21.040 take a moment and actually just think about what things 0:09:21.080 --> 0:09:22.559 mean to me and how different I am now, instead 0:09:22.559 --> 0:09:23.840 of just let me ride this way for as long 0:09:23.840 --> 0:09:25.839 as people will let me. How do you decide to 0:09:25.880 --> 0:09:27.520 do that happiness? 0:09:28.000 --> 0:09:29.640 You know, you can have a lot going on it. 0:09:29.559 --> 0:09:32.200 It all looks right, like, everything looks great. You have 0:09:32.200 --> 0:09:35.640 this great opportunity. Everybody around you saying yeah, just keep going. 0:09:36.240 --> 0:09:41.400 But I wasn't very happy, which was confusing. Like you said, 0:09:41.480 --> 0:09:45.600 I came from a place where the fact that I 0:09:45.720 --> 0:09:51.000 started making music and the world heard it was just unfathomable. 0:09:51.280 --> 0:09:53.480 I never could have imagined that what happened for me. 0:09:54.720 --> 0:09:56.400 So then to be, like you said, at a height 0:09:56.400 --> 0:10:01.560 of success, like that and just feel overcome with it. 0:10:01.679 --> 0:10:04.560 Just felt like a lot of pressure in a way 0:10:05.280 --> 0:10:07.199 to not mess it up, and. 0:10:07.200 --> 0:10:09.040 So I just ran away. 0:10:10.920 --> 0:10:12.640 I didn't run away, I just kind of started over 0:10:12.920 --> 0:10:14.959 again in a way, and I was like, if I'm 0:10:14.960 --> 0:10:16.640 going to do this, I really really want to do 0:10:16.679 --> 0:10:19.040 this my way. I want to tell my story. I 0:10:19.040 --> 0:10:22.600 want to be who I authentically am, you know. And 0:10:23.440 --> 0:10:25.600 like the guys in my band, I love them so much. 0:10:25.640 --> 0:10:27.760 They're so supportive of that, and they heard me out. 0:10:27.760 --> 0:10:30.040 And it's a really difficult decision to make, but I 0:10:30.080 --> 0:10:31.480 knew it was the right one, even if it was 0:10:31.520 --> 0:10:32.120 really scary. 0:10:32.440 --> 0:10:36.720 Yeah, your sister died from retino blastoma, which is a 0:10:36.720 --> 0:10:40.000 condition that you also suffered from. You survived, you have 0:10:40.080 --> 0:10:42.400 partial blindness in one eye as a result. How did 0:10:42.400 --> 0:10:45.160 that experience change you? And did you have any survivor's 0:10:45.160 --> 0:10:47.960 guilt recognizing that you both suffered it, but you were 0:10:47.960 --> 0:10:48.679 the one that made it. 0:10:49.440 --> 0:10:50.679 Yeah, when I was younger, I did. 0:10:50.720 --> 0:10:53.400 When I was younger, I definitely had survivor's guilt because 0:10:54.000 --> 0:10:56.920 if you all could have met my sister, absolute genius, 0:10:57.679 --> 0:10:59.640 you know, like she was the clean one in the house, 0:10:59.679 --> 0:11:04.120 reading books and her sheets, were nice, and her bed 0:11:04.240 --> 0:11:07.160 was made, and her room was always vacuumed and organized. 0:11:07.400 --> 0:11:11.200 She had a little cassette tape organization system, and she 0:11:11.240 --> 0:11:13.240 had all kinds of glowing the dark purses and stuff, 0:11:13.280 --> 0:11:15.520 and I don't have any of that stuff going on. 0:11:15.520 --> 0:11:18.360 I had lego blocks in my floor at all times. 0:11:18.760 --> 0:11:20.880 You know, we were very different. I was outside, I 0:11:20.880 --> 0:11:23.080 had sticks in my hair, I was dirty, and so 0:11:23.960 --> 0:11:26.360 she was just this type of person that I really admired, 0:11:26.400 --> 0:11:27.720 you know how it is being a little sister. 0:11:27.720 --> 0:11:28.839 You look up to your big sister. 0:11:29.280 --> 0:11:32.120 And she also just showed me the world of show 0:11:32.160 --> 0:11:35.760 me the world of music and art, poetry, and that 0:11:36.320 --> 0:11:38.800 we had all these things at our fingertips, even though 0:11:38.840 --> 0:11:40.200 we didn't have a lot, you know, a lot of 0:11:40.520 --> 0:11:45.040 material goods. And I idolized her so like losing her 0:11:45.200 --> 0:11:47.640 and me going on. You know, the way I saw 0:11:47.679 --> 0:11:50.160 myself at the time was like the less able one. 0:11:50.920 --> 0:11:54.480 And I struggled with that for like many many years, 0:11:54.559 --> 0:11:58.199 struggled with a lot of anger because take it like 0:11:59.080 --> 0:12:00.319 a a. 0:12:00.280 --> 0:12:02.560 Disease like cancer, taking somebody so young. 0:12:03.200 --> 0:12:05.640 I thought that was very unforgivable of God, and I 0:12:05.679 --> 0:12:07.720 couldn't really wrap my head around it. So for a 0:12:07.720 --> 0:12:10.040 long time, I was just kind of like I felt 0:12:10.040 --> 0:12:12.000 like I was in the desert trying to figure life out. 0:12:12.800 --> 0:12:15.880 But as I got older, I realized, like, just because 0:12:15.920 --> 0:12:17.800 someone's not here we can't see them, that doesn't mean 0:12:17.800 --> 0:12:20.000 they're not still guiding you. And I very much feel 0:12:20.000 --> 0:12:21.440 like me and my sister are close in that way 0:12:21.520 --> 0:12:27.280 to this day. And now I feel like I got 0:12:27.320 --> 0:12:31.720 like an invisible angel with me at all times. 0:12:31.800 --> 0:12:33.400 You know, I feel much more powerful. 0:12:34.360 --> 0:12:38.439 That's really cool. Said it made you angry, and you 0:12:38.480 --> 0:12:40.920 said when you used to sing, your early performances were 0:12:40.920 --> 0:12:45.200 basically an opportunity to belt out anger in public. You 0:12:45.240 --> 0:12:48.120 were angry for yourself from growing up on the junk yard. 0:12:48.520 --> 0:12:50.640 You were angry about people who told you you didn't 0:12:50.679 --> 0:12:53.640 look like a lead singer. You were angry for the 0:12:53.720 --> 0:12:56.040 judgment your parents dealt with. You were angry for ancestors 0:12:56.040 --> 0:12:58.679 you never met because of the racism that they faced. 0:12:59.480 --> 0:13:01.760 Are you still singing from a place of anger? 0:13:02.240 --> 0:13:04.240 Yeah, in a way, for sure. 0:13:04.240 --> 0:13:05.880 I'm still angry about a lot of stuff, Like the 0:13:05.920 --> 0:13:08.079 world's not fixed, Like I see a lot of stuff 0:13:08.080 --> 0:13:11.080 going on that is crazy and heinous and absolutely immoral. 0:13:13.640 --> 0:13:17.840 There's still a lot of stuff I'm angry about, but 0:13:17.920 --> 0:13:20.000 at least I have outlet you know what I mean. 0:13:20.080 --> 0:13:22.599 It doesn't like fester. I can say something or I 0:13:22.640 --> 0:13:23.320 can do something. 0:13:23.320 --> 0:13:25.640 I have a lot of opportunities now that I didn't 0:13:25.640 --> 0:13:28.720 have before to feel like I'm a powerful person that 0:13:28.760 --> 0:13:30.560 can actually create change. 0:13:31.080 --> 0:13:33.560 You know. Even just being at the summit like this 0:13:33.679 --> 0:13:35.080 right now, it's just like something. I think. 0:13:35.120 --> 0:13:38.120 It is so powerful, especially for all of these women 0:13:38.160 --> 0:13:40.200 to be together and to hear each other each other 0:13:40.280 --> 0:13:41.320 stories and support each other. 0:13:41.360 --> 0:13:42.520 It's very powerful thing. 0:13:43.240 --> 0:13:46.439 Yeah, it does feel different to feel like you have 0:13:46.520 --> 0:13:49.120 a voice and an opportunity to change things, even in 0:13:49.280 --> 0:13:52.880 small levels compared to the largeness of the problems that exist. 0:13:53.000 --> 0:13:53.240 Yeah. 0:13:53.240 --> 0:13:56.040 Sure, but the anger can still be there. It's motivating, 0:13:56.120 --> 0:13:59.559 it's useful. But there's a lot of meditative sound bowls 0:13:59.600 --> 0:14:01.920 on the new which would make me think a little 0:14:01.960 --> 0:14:05.520 less anger. It's hard to combine anger and meditative sound 0:14:05.520 --> 0:14:06.520 bowls exactly. 0:14:06.679 --> 0:14:08.400 Yeah. I was trying to get right, you know. 0:14:08.400 --> 0:14:12.200 Okay you were Maybe if it sounds peaceful, I'll feel 0:14:12.240 --> 0:14:12.720 that way. 0:14:13.000 --> 0:14:13.200 Yeah. 0:14:13.240 --> 0:14:14.800 I was like, you know, I see all these people 0:14:14.800 --> 0:14:16.600 getting into this kind of stuff. Let me go like 0:14:16.640 --> 0:14:20.160 on a little adventure and I liked it. Yeah, yeah, 0:14:20.240 --> 0:14:21.960 I liked it. I found out that the sound bowls 0:14:22.000 --> 0:14:25.800 really can like help you just reset and put you 0:14:25.840 --> 0:14:28.200 on a different vibe. Like if you show up stressed 0:14:28.240 --> 0:14:30.240 out and you listen to the album, it's got all 0:14:30.280 --> 0:14:33.840 these beautiful, real sound bowls on it, and you'd just 0:14:33.880 --> 0:14:36.080 be sitting in traffic, just chill, cool, cucumber. 0:14:36.160 --> 0:14:36.840 It's a vibe. 0:14:37.080 --> 0:14:37.520 Yeah. 0:14:37.600 --> 0:14:39.600 I don't do gummies often, but I did gummies once 0:14:39.600 --> 0:14:42.880 and went to a sound bowl thing. I saw a 0:14:42.880 --> 0:14:44.000 different astral plane. 0:14:44.240 --> 0:14:45.200 Was it almost too much? 0:14:45.520 --> 0:14:50.480 It's almost too much? More? With Britney Howard right after this, 0:14:59.080 --> 0:15:02.600 you saying Jonny Ma chills both sides now with Herbie 0:15:02.640 --> 0:15:05.160 Hancock at the Kennedy Center Honers in twenty twenty one. 0:15:05.880 --> 0:15:08.000 If I can't convince her just pop out with that 0:15:08.120 --> 0:15:11.080 song tonight, then y'all need to look it up, because 0:15:11.120 --> 0:15:14.760 I'm telling you this is not bullshitting. Probably the most 0:15:14.760 --> 0:15:17.320 beautiful cover of Joni Mitchell I've ever heard, because your 0:15:17.400 --> 0:15:21.040 voice could not be more perfect to hit, especially later Joni, 0:15:21.040 --> 0:15:23.240 when her voice as more of a depth and a 0:15:23.280 --> 0:15:25.880 growling experience to it. You did such justice to it, 0:15:26.200 --> 0:15:28.560 and an interview you said that she reminded you that 0:15:28.600 --> 0:15:31.200 your work shouldn't have any confines and that your music 0:15:31.200 --> 0:15:34.240 should always be an exploration. Is that hard to do? 0:15:34.360 --> 0:15:36.840 Once you've won Grammys and you're a major label artist, 0:15:36.840 --> 0:15:39.360 do you labels or execs prefer that they can fit 0:15:39.440 --> 0:15:42.120 you into one specific, recognizable genre. 0:15:42.680 --> 0:15:44.920 You know, I don't go anywhere I don't belong. I 0:15:44.960 --> 0:15:47.360 don't belong in places that want to change who I 0:15:47.400 --> 0:15:48.680 am or what I'm trying to create. 0:15:48.840 --> 0:15:49.880 You know, I would never go. 0:15:50.080 --> 0:15:52.240 Wait pause on that. That is a word. 0:15:52.920 --> 0:15:55.400 Damn, I just come up with that. 0:15:55.720 --> 0:15:59.600 I know that was good. Somebody write that down real quick. Okay, 0:15:59.640 --> 0:16:03.160 Okay for real though, because that's easier said than done. 0:16:04.440 --> 0:16:06.120 Well, you know, like I said, I've had a unique 0:16:06.160 --> 0:16:08.880 opportunity and I just decided, you know, when I went 0:16:08.920 --> 0:16:11.240 out on my own. Like I said earlier, I'm going 0:16:11.280 --> 0:16:13.120 to do things the way that I want to do them. 0:16:13.440 --> 0:16:15.320 And if it doesn't work out, I guess it wasn't 0:16:15.360 --> 0:16:17.320 meant to be. You know, I just don't want to 0:16:17.320 --> 0:16:21.240 beg anybody to be something I probably don't even want. 0:16:21.280 --> 0:16:22.520 You know what I'm saying, because. 0:16:22.320 --> 0:16:24.520 You know, you're worth. So it's like, if you don't 0:16:24.560 --> 0:16:26.400 want me for it, then that's on you, not me. 0:16:26.880 --> 0:16:29.280 Yeah. To me, it's like, I guess that's my sign 0:16:29.320 --> 0:16:30.920 to create my own label and do my own thing. 0:16:31.120 --> 0:16:34.920 Yeah, yeah, I can relate in ways I won't say 0:16:34.920 --> 0:16:39.240 out loud here. You have described your on stage style 0:16:39.560 --> 0:16:44.280 as inspired by jazz musicians son raw great, perfect, I've 0:16:44.320 --> 0:16:47.440 seen it. It's beautiful, and your everyday style as Australian 0:16:47.560 --> 0:16:53.680 Zoo tour guide. So I think I know the answer 0:16:53.760 --> 0:16:56.240 based on the last question. But as a labeler manager 0:16:56.280 --> 0:16:59.760 ever tried to dictate your on stage or or off 0:16:59.760 --> 0:17:01.160 stage brand and persona? 0:17:02.240 --> 0:17:10.359 I mean, I mean probably for the better. Honestly, It's true. 0:17:10.400 --> 0:17:12.600 I love looking like a Zoo guide. It's like it's 0:17:12.600 --> 0:17:16.200 like it's just that's my dream job. Like yeah, like 0:17:16.240 --> 0:17:19.119 Steve Irwin and yeah Autumn, Like that's I want to 0:17:19.119 --> 0:17:19.560 be with them. 0:17:21.040 --> 0:17:24.600 Okay, I love it. 0:17:25.040 --> 0:17:25.560 I love it. 0:17:26.920 --> 0:17:29.520 Your voice is truly another of the instruments you play. 0:17:29.560 --> 0:17:33.320 It is incredibly versatile. You can belt, you can have 0:17:33.400 --> 0:17:36.120 a deep alto, you can sing in falsetto, you can 0:17:36.160 --> 0:17:39.840 sing quiet and introspective. Do you know a certainty when 0:17:39.840 --> 0:17:43.040 you're writing a song, which of your voices you will 0:17:43.040 --> 0:17:45.320 bring to each part? Or do you play around and 0:17:45.320 --> 0:17:47.880 see how the story changes when you change the voice 0:17:47.920 --> 0:17:48.240 you bring. 0:17:49.119 --> 0:17:50.520 Yeah, you know, it depends. 0:17:50.680 --> 0:17:54.960 It depends on if I create the music first, or 0:17:55.680 --> 0:17:58.919 if I already have lyrics. Like some sometimes lyrics just 0:17:58.960 --> 0:18:03.000 show up, especially like in opportune times, like a time 0:18:03.040 --> 0:18:05.760 where I can't possibly get to a pen and I'm 0:18:05.760 --> 0:18:08.040 like in a bathroom at a bar, and I got 0:18:08.080 --> 0:18:09.960 my little voice memo up and I'm like, okay, So 0:18:10.080 --> 0:18:12.080 like the drums be like this, and then the bass 0:18:12.119 --> 0:18:13.040 is gonna be like this. 0:18:13.040 --> 0:18:14.720 Boom boom boom, boom boom, and then the. 0:18:14.720 --> 0:18:17.639 Guitar is like the back of the bar is like 0:18:18.119 --> 0:18:21.280 don't stop, shut up. 0:18:21.640 --> 0:18:23.480 And then I'm like, tomorrow, that's gonna make sense. It's 0:18:23.480 --> 0:18:24.200 gonna make sense. 0:18:25.720 --> 0:18:27.680 But you know, the voice is an instrument, and that's 0:18:27.680 --> 0:18:30.800 the way I use my voice. I don't need to 0:18:30.880 --> 0:18:34.200 build all of the time. It's not always appropriate, especially 0:18:34.240 --> 0:18:38.280 like for the story I'm trying to tell. When the 0:18:38.320 --> 0:18:43.240 way I use instruments is to convey emotion, you know, 0:18:43.280 --> 0:18:45.840 it's not just a razzle dazzle or to be the 0:18:45.840 --> 0:18:48.400 best or anything like that. It's just like, Okay, I 0:18:48.480 --> 0:18:53.479 want to convey feeling small but hopeful, and that sounds 0:18:53.520 --> 0:18:56.760 like maybe like a falsetto, or I want to sound nostalgic. 0:18:58.480 --> 0:18:59.480 You want you right there? 0:19:00.400 --> 0:19:01.639 How'd you know I could tell. 0:19:02.080 --> 0:19:04.679 I'll sing later though, Okay, okay, I mean you're paid too, 0:19:04.720 --> 0:19:10.520 so yeah. 0:19:07.760 --> 0:19:09.440 That'd be weird if later you were like, I'm gonna 0:19:09.440 --> 0:19:10.280 do spoken words. 0:19:14.040 --> 0:19:15.840 But yeah, that's usually how I decide. 0:19:15.960 --> 0:19:19.359 It's like do I want to sound more like stringy 0:19:19.960 --> 0:19:22.719 or do I want to sound more like Barrett's own 0:19:22.840 --> 0:19:23.800