Jade Bird – The SoCal Sound Session
3 songs in-studio + interview with Mookie
Jade Bird is set to release her third studio album, titled Who Wants To Talk About Love, and she came into The SoCal Sound to interview and perform three songs LIVE in an intimate stripped back acoustic setting in The SoCal Sound Performance Space.
Mookie, longtime host and champion of authentic music, sat down with Jade for an intimate conversation that unfolded between performances. The pair touched on heartbreak, artistic vulnerability, and the cathartic process of turning pain into song. It was a reminder of why Jade Bird continues to resonate so deeply with audiences—because she tells the truth, even when it hurts.
From The SoCal Sound’s Benefest concert to now
Jade Bird is no stranger to The SoCal Sound. Last summer, she performed at our very first “Benefest,” a benefit concert to support public media, sharing the stage (and a stairway moment) with the legendary Jackson Browne. That memory still lives rent-free in our collective hearts—especially hers. “That was a moment,” she said during the session, visibly moved.
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Who Wants To Talk About Love
The phrase that kept coming up in the interview was ‘catharsis’. This album was born from a recent relationship that came to an end, and all the deep feelings that come to the surface after an event like that.
Jade explains further, “I'm feeling like this physical, like it's emanating from me, as I play them. And there are real moments when I'm singing these lyrics and I kind of feel like myself be really welling up because it is just, it's very direct from from this whole, you know, all of these, all of these songs have memories from like, actual experience since, and a lot of them are in the worst time of my life.”
LIVE PERFORMANCE
What’s Next
With a new record on the horizon and upcoming tour dates—including shows with Tom Odell and a slot at Glastonbury—Jade Bird is entering a bold new chapter. Her sound has matured, her writing sharper than ever, and her live performances are turning more personal and immersive.
She’s also exploring new creative outlets, diving into fiction writing and character-based storytelling outside of songwriting. And now based in Southern California, we’re lucky to call her a local—for now, at least.
Jade Bird’s Who Wants To Talk About Love will be available on July 18th on Glassnote Records
All SoCal Sound Session, interviews, and performances are filmed and edited by Matt Blake, recorded and mixed by Tristan Dolce.
Support Public Media
Public media thrives because of listeners like you. Sessions like Jade Bird’s—unfiltered, unforgettable, and deeply human—are only possible with your support. As Mookie said at the top of the session, “Members are really the lifeblood of public radio.” Every donation helps us keep the lights on and the music playing.
If this session moved you, consider donating to The SoCal Sound. Help us continue to bring world-class artists into your world, support the spirit of independent public radio.
