In partnership with Artists Den, Billboard is taking a look back Jason Mraz’s 2014 Artists Den concert at LA’s Royce Hall, ahead of the release of his new album Look For The Good, which is due this summer, and his forthcoming single of the same name, which will drop April 17.
During the 10-song set, Mraz performed hits including “I’m Yours,” “I Won’t Give Up,” “Love Someone” (which you can check out above) and “You Can Rely On Me” (which you can watch below).
Ahead of the show, Mraz sat down with Artists Den and recounted how he first met his band Raining Jane and what the process was like recording his then-forthcoming album Yes.
The singer shared that he first saw Raining Jane performing at University of Redlands, where they were both taking part in a festival. “I got there early to catch their act and was just blown away by their musicianship and their stage presence,” he said. “I was following them, and I was by myself with a guitar…They were a tough act to follow. And so that’s when I knew I just needed to join up with them.”
Mraz added that the songs on Yes were a combination of everyone’s strengths and values. “When the record was finished, I felt that the girls’ presence, their voices, as well as their musicianship, shows up the same on every track,” he explained. “That creates a color palette that is the same from start to finish.”
In another clip, Mraz discussed what he loves most about playing smaller venues, such as the 1,800-capacity Royce Hall. “When I play theaters or what we would call a smaller venue, it gives me the opportunity to have a conversation with whoever’s in the room,” he said.
“I love that vulnerable place,” he continued. “I love standing on the edge and trying to get a rise out of the audience, trying to get a laugh, or trying to take people to an inner space where they might heal something or recognize something and transform it completely.”
In the below video, you can also learn more about the history of Royce Hall, as Executive and Artistic Director Kristy Edmunds recounts the timeline from when it first finished construction in 1929 to now.
To pre-save Jason Mraz’s new song “Look For The Good” (out April 17), click here. You can also watch his weekly livestream show on his YouTube page.
