Music Is My Life

About this podcast

During each episode of this Berklee Online podcast, we talk to a different music industry mover and/or shaker who is making us take note. Our guests walk us through their musical journeys, beginning with their first exposure to music, continuing through their epiphanies and into their current positions, where the subjects can proclaim from the highest mountain, “MUSIC IS MY LIFE!”

Music Is My Life

Episodes

2021
054: Lady A
Lady A (the Seattle-based singer) discusses her life in music, and her ongoing legal battle with Lady A (the Nashville-based trio who formerly called themselves Lady Antebellum).
February 22, 2021
51 min
2020
053: This is the Kit —Kate Stables
Kate Stables of This is the Kit discusses her new album, Off Off On, having fun with words, touring with the National, and turning her daughter on to Lizzo.
December 21, 2020
53 min
052: AJR—Jack and Ryan Metzger
AJR are three brothers—Adam, Jack, and Ryan Metzger—who began their music career on New York City streets, where they busked daily for hours at a time. The two brothers who take part in this interview—Ryan and Jack—say that years of trying to get people’s attention off the streets was formative to their work ethic and the constant need to one-up themselves in songwriting and their live show, including their upcoming virtual concert, dubbed One Spectacular Night.
December 6, 2020
42 min
051: Gavin Rossdale of Bush
Gavin Rossdale had tracked all of the songs on what would become Bush’s multiplatinum debut, but he was still painting dentist’s offices. In this wide-ranging interview, he talks sudden (and enduring) success, his favorite Gwen Stefani tunes, and more.
November 23, 2020
40 min
050: Lee "Scratch" Perry
Lee "Scratch" Perry on working with Bob Marley, inventing dub, and a lifetime of being "the Upsetter."
November 9, 2020
34 min
049: The Go! Team
Ian Parton and Ninja of the Go! Team talk about how to turn a solo kitchen recording project into an energetic live ensemble that stays together for nearly 20 years.
October 26, 2020
58 min
048: Joe Wong (The Trap Set)
Joe Wong talks to Pat Healy on hosting The Trap Set podcast, creating his solo debut, "Nite Creatures," and scoring for shows like Russian Doll and Master of None. Visit musicismylifepod.com and save $100 on a Berklee Online course.
October 12, 2020
45 min
047: Molly Tuttle
Molly Tuttle’s brand new … but i’d rather be with you is a collection of seemingly disparate cover songs—running the gamut from Rancid to the Grateful Dead—that got the singer through tough times in her life. She recorded the album as a coronavirus lockdown project because everybody else is currently going through tough times of their own. She talks in detail about her upbringing, her punk rock roots, and her bluegrass background, as well as her time at Berklee, playing with the Goodbye Girls.
September 28, 2020
35 min
046: Sadie Dupuis of Speedy Ortiz and SAD13
Sadie Dupuis of Speedy Ortiz on the eve of releasing Haunted Painting, her second album under the SAD13 moniker, discusses her life in music, words, and math. Math? Yes, math!
September 14, 2020
47 min
045: Martha Reeves
Summer’s here and the time is right for taking time to appreciate the legendary Martha Reeves, of “Dancing in the Street” fame! Along with her backing singers, the Vandellas, Martha Reeves recorded other mega Motown hits, including “Jimmy Mack,” “Nowhere to Run,” and “Love is Like a Heatwave.” She speaks to Pat Healy about the climate of social change then and now, the importance of having a teacher who believes in you, as well as her amazing career at Motown. Visit musicismylifepod.com to save $100 on a Berklee Online course.
July 5, 2020
52 min
044: Janet Billig Rich
Janet Billig Rich became interested in music when she first saw the Replacements. After taking in about 100 shows she went on to sell merch at indie rock shows, intern at Caroline Records, and then move on up to manage acts like Nirvana, Hole, and Dinosaur Jr. She's now a music supervisor, clearing rights for Broadway shows like Rock of Ages, as well as for movies and TV shows. Visit musicismylifepod.com to save $100 on a Berklee Online course.
June 22, 2020
43 min
043: Vanessa Carlton
Vanessa Carlton speaks candidly about the seedy underbelly of the music industry, and why followups to “A Thousand Miles” were more successful than the men on her team wanted her to believe. She discusses how her latest album, Love Is An Art, is a new beginning for her and how eager she is to tour, once touring is something people are allowed to do again. She also talks significant relationships with fellow musicians, from the magical (Stevie Nicks), to the amazing (John McCauley of Deer Tick), to the regrettable (Stephan Jenkins of Third Eye Blind). Visit musicismylifepod.com now.
June 8, 2020
38 min
042: Sam Hales of Jungle Giants
Sam Hales is the songwriter, singer, guitarist, multi-instrumentalist, and now the producer of most of Jungle Giants’ music. They have released three albums and two EPs, and for the first EP, Sam worked two jobs, one at a convenience store, the other at McDonald’s, just to make the money to fund the recording. He and the other members, Ceshira Aitken, Andy Dooris, and Keelan Bijker all met in high school, when some of them played in rival bands. Visit musicismylifepod.com now.
May 25, 2020
49 min
041: Eddy Grant
Eddy Grant shares how a heart problem at the age of 23 led him to quit the Equals and start a career in music production, and then as a solo artist, eventually making some of the biggest hits of his life, like “Electric Avenue” and “I Don’t Wanna Dance,” by fusing rock, reggae, and elements of electronic music. He continues to pioneer new sounds like soca and ringbang. Visit musicismylifepod.com now.
May 11, 2020
57 min
040: Lisa Loeb
Lisa Loeb shares how her parents encouraged her and her siblings' musical development, but cautioned them against going into the music industry. But now they are all musicians. She also shares how she wrote her mega-smash, “Stay (I Missed You)” while studying at Berklee. Her latest album, A Simple Trick to Happiness, is out now. Visit musicismylifepod.com now.
April 27, 2020
35 min
039: M. Ward
Matt Ward discusses how a closeted $25 guitar and a Beatles book started him on a journey that led him to his latest album, ‘Migration Stories.’ He also discusses collaborating with Zooey Deschanel in She & Him, songwriting, and how it might be nice if you called him m'lord. Visit musicismylifepod.com now.
April 13, 2020
35 min
038: Black Belt Eagle Scout
Katherine Paul discusses Black Belt Eagle Scout, her youth on the Swinomish reservation, her fondness for her Radical Indigenous Queer Feminist T-shirt, how working as a booker at a club helped her get a deal with Saddle Creek, and more. Visit musicismylifepod.com now.
March 30, 2020
43 min
037: Ron Pope
Ron Pope wrote "A Drop in the Ocean," a mammoth hit that he had no idea would resonate with an audience so much. Then he wrote "One Grain of Sand" and enjoyed similar astronomical success. He talks to Pat Healy about triumphs and tribulations with major labels and streaming services, as well as Brooklyn Basement Records, the label he founded with his wife and manager, Blair Pope. Visit musicismylifepod.com now.
March 16, 2020
43 min
036: Spider Stacy of The Pogues
Spider Stacy met Shane MacGowan at a Ramones gig in England when they were both teens. Shortly after, they formed the Pogues, a band that merged folk styling and punk rock delivery with Irish rebel songs. Then Spider learned how to play the tin whistle. He talks to Pat Healy about a new Pogues musical, playing with Joe Strummer, the Lost Bayou Ramblers, and how to deal with unreliable band members. Visit musicismylifepod.com now.
March 2, 2020
38 min
035: Andy Stack of Wye Oak and Joyero
You may know Andy Stack as one half of the duo Wye Oak, along with Jenn Wasner. But he’s also one WHOLE of Joyero, whose debut came out on Merge in 2019. He talks to Pat Healy as Wye Oak assembles for their first tour in years. The difference with the latest tour is that it's more than just Jenn and Andy now. The live band features Arone Dyer, Pinson Chanselle, and Adam Schatz. Visit musicismylifepod.com now.
February 17, 2020
45 min

Music Is My Life

About this podcast

Categories

About this podcast

Categories

Music Is My Life

Episodes

054: Lady A

053: This is the Kit —Kate Stables

052: AJR—Jack and Ryan Metzger

051: Gavin Rossdale of Bush

050: Lee "Scratch" Perry

049: The Go! Team

048: Joe Wong (The Trap Set)

047: Molly Tuttle

046: Sadie Dupuis of Speedy Ortiz and SAD13

045: Martha Reeves

044: Janet Billig Rich

043: Vanessa Carlton

042: Sam Hales of Jungle Giants

041: Eddy Grant

040: Lisa Loeb

039: M. Ward

038: Black Belt Eagle Scout

037: Ron Pope

036: Spider Stacy of The Pogues

035: Andy Stack of Wye Oak and Joyero