Sara Bareilles - What's Inside: Songs From Waitress [Nov 6!]

[Deleted]

Sept 29, 2015 13:10:23 GMT -5 George said:

Her new single "She Used to Be Mine" impacted Hot AC yesterday and scored 24 adds.

She'll be performing on Today Show 10/7, Late Night with Seth Meyers 10/7, Live with Kelly & Michael 10/9, The Meredith Vieira Show 10/12.



Her next full-length album What’s Inside: Songs From Waitress is due November 6th.



www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop-shop/6707826/sara-bareilles-whats-inside-songs-from-waitress-album

I thought I'd start a new thread since it's a new era. I did not expect a new album from her to be out from her until next year since she typically has a 3 year period between albums so I'm beyond ecstatic about this!

[inclinations]

I need another empowering song a la Brave from her, just make sure Katy Perry doesn't catch any wind of this or we'll end up with another Sara rip off. Have the two of them ever spoken about the obvious way Roar practically just rearranged Brave, changed the lyrics and called it a new track. Katy's a sneaky one, hope she's keeping her material highly confidential. Looking forward to hearing this though.

[Devil Marlena Nylund]

So technically this is a musical soundtrack and not an album? I'm sure it'll be solid nonetheless but I won't be surprised if it doesn't have the usual schedule of singles or achievement of hits.

[felipe]

Sept 29, 2015 17:22:27 GMT -5 Devil Marlena Nylund said:

So technically this is a musical soundtrack and not an album? I'm sure it'll be solid nonetheless but I won't be surprised if it doesn't have the usual schedule of singles or achievement of hits.

I guess this is an album with Sara's versions from the musical's songs. The actual soundtrack will probably be the actors' singing.

[Deleted]

She Used to Be Mine is stunning.

Sept 29, 2015 14:22:57 GMT -5 inclinations said:

Have the two of them ever spoken about the obvious way Roar practically just rearranged Brave, changed the lyrics and called it a new track. Katy's a sneaky one, hope she's keeping her material highly confidential.

Sara doesn't care:

When Bareilles was asked about the controversy between the two songs, she responded: "Katy's a friend of mine and we've known each other a really long time," and was upset that there was a "negative spin on two artists that are choosing to share positive messages." She also mentioned she had known about "Roar" before its release and stated "If I'm not mad I don't know why anybody else is upset."

Dr. Luke also tweeted that Roar was written and recorded "before Brave came out," although that statement tellingly only refers to when Brave was released, and not when it, too, was written and recorded. My guess is that Dr. Luke, the other producers (Max Martin and Cirkut), and/or Katy heard Brave in passing before it was released and ended up making a song that sounded somewhat similar, but Katy gave Sara the heads up to avoid any problems and Sara said she was fine with it.

[toomuchboy]

How did Katy end up friends with awesome talent like Sara Bareilles and Kacey Musgraves?

I thought she'd be releasing next year (and O was partly glad considering the number of albums I've bought this year), but I can't say I'm not happy to hear more from her.

[#LisaRinna]

I was underwhelmed with Blessed Unrest, so maybe this album will be better.

[Deleted]

Oct 2, 2015 10:05:12 GMT -5 #LisaRinna said:

I was underwhelmed with Blessed Unrest, so maybe this album will be better.

She ended up working with Neal Avron as her producer for this album who produced all of Kaleidoscope Heart. Maybe you'll like it if you liked that album.

[George]

LIVE PERFORMANCES/INTERVIEWS:

Today Show:
www.shallownation.com/2015/10/07/sara-bareilles-on-today-show-video-live-interview-on-new-memoir/

Late Night with Seth Meyers:
www.nbc.com/late-night-with-seth-meyers/video/sara-bareilles-she-used-to-be-mine/2918394

Live with Kelly & Michael:


The Meredith Vieira Show:
meredithvieirashow.com/2015/10/13/sara-bareilles/

Also, new interview:

Q&A: Sara Bareilles Talks Gay 'Brothers and Sisters,' Whether Closeted Celebs Are 'Brave' & Why She Thinks Taylor Swift Stands For 'Sisterhood'
By Chris Azzopardi

Originally printed 10/8/2015 (Issue 2341 - Between The Lines News)

Sara Bareilles was enjoying a bite at a Boston restaurant recently, and on her way out, the manager stopped her. He wanted a hug.

Inspired by her empowering anthem "Brave," this particular young fella, she says, felt compelled to express his gratitude. "As a teen growing up in Oklahoma," Bareilles recalls him telling her while they hugged, "thank you for your music."

The urge to give the "Gravity" singer a big squeeze is, of course, unavoidable - she's like a friend, and her voice has literally saved lives (in her newly-released memoir, "Sounds Like Me: My Life (So Far) in Song," Bareilles tells the story of a fan whose suicide attempt was thwarted when her song "Hold My Heart" came on the radio).

The hug-friendly fan, then, would certainly be happy to know that Bareilles has new music; her latest, "What's Inside: Songs From Waitress," is a mix of previously unheard tracks and songs Bareilles wrote for the film-turned-Broadway musical "Waitress."

In a recent interview with Bareilles, the lovable singer-songwriter opened up about another longtime passion of hers: LGBT advocacy. During the chat, she recalled growing up around her gay "big brothers and sisters," and also shared her thoughts on whether celebrities should come out, why she can't be anything other than herself and her hope for females in pop music.

How do you react to stories like the one from the Boston restaurant manager?

It's still hard for me to understand the impact the song is having. I wrote it as a love letter to a friend who was struggling with coming out as an adult, and it was such an intimate story. It was also so impacted by (fun. guitarist) Jack Antonoff and all the incredible advocacy work he does in the gay community. So, I'm so grateful that the song has taken on a life of its own and is speaking to a message that I deeply, deeply believe in. I'm so proud that it brings either comfort or anything helpful to anybody out there.

As an ally, how and when did you become so passionate about LGBT rights?

Growing up, my mom had a lot of gay friends, and so people in the gay community were, essentially, big brothers and sisters to me all my life. I never even thought twice about it until I got older and realized that that wasn't the norm - it wasn't everyone's experience to have an open-hearted and accepting family unit toward a community they weren't necessarily a part of. To me, it's about being accepting of an idea that we're all the same community; it's almost like, I can't believe we're still having the conversation. It's how I feel about it sometimes. I'm like, "Everybody fuckin' get on board already! Relax!"

But it's such an exciting time. It really, really is. And so I feel really grateful that I was raised with the mentality of being an open-hearted and accepting individual. I feel sad for those who weren't given that opportunity as a child, but I think those patterns of thinking can be unlearned, and I think that's what's happening.

It might surprise some people that you grew up in an open-minded environment. You grew up Catholic, right?

Yeah, I did.

How did you and your family reconcile religion with the gay "brothers and sisters" you grew up with?

The way my parents always dealt with that was... (Laughs) I suppose we weren't the most devout Catholics in that way. Certainly, it was distilled into this idea that you treat everyone the way you want to be treated. Period. And there are no exceptions to that rule, and that's the kind of religion that I want to be a part of.

Regarding "Brave," you once said in a webisode, "It's important to be brave because by doing that you also give others permission to do the same." How do you react, then, to people in the limelight who are hesitant to come out but could potentially inspire so many people if they did?

(Sigh) That's a really hard thing to speak to. Honestly, I understand both sides of it. Everyone is on their path, and I really believe that, at the end of the day, people are doing the best they can with what they've got. Not everyone is comfortable enough to step into a leadership position and you can't really judge them for that.

I would love to see everyone step into this holy space of carrying the torch of bravery - it's just not everyone's role. If you make someone feel bad because they're not (out), isn't that similar to punishing them because they're quote-end quote "different" in the first place? All of that is a form of judgment. I would rather hope that everyone's doing the best they can and that eventually people feel safe to be exactly who they are. It's just so hard. You can't know what's going on behind the scenes - why someone is as complicated as they are - and I just wouldn't want to judge someone's experience.

In an industry where authenticity isn't easy to come by, you have always remained true to yourself. Why has it always been important to give the public your most authentic self?

I have to give my family a lot of credit. I don't really know how to be any other way. My whole family - we're all very bad liars. (Laughs) We don't know how to do it! There are people out there who are much more graceful and adept at navigating social situations; I just think I default to awkwardness, because when I feel awkward I have to just be awkward. So I give them a lot of credit. But also, those are the kinds of people I relate to. When I see someone being honest in the media, I'm so grateful for it.

I think everyone has vulnerabilities and everyone feels messy or shameful or not good enough, and I would rather share that and hope to create connection than pretend my life is a highlight reel. It's just not. It's human. Celebrity or otherwise, there's no human out there that has some sort of plateau of happiness - it just doesn't exist. So, I would rather speak to the highs and lows of what it means to have a dynamic lifestyle and a dynamic life than pretend I'm fucking happy all the time. I'm a mess. (Laughs)

You featured a lesbian couple, Aly and Andrea, and their surprise proposal in your video for "I Choose You." How often are you asked to do gay weddings now that's it's legal?

(Laughs) Well, I am asked to do a lot of weddings, and I love weddings, don't get me wrong. But yeah... it's really fun. It's so beautiful to have made a statement with a song that's really just about love at the end of the day.

The song was inspired by a guy who came up to me after a show and said, "My wife and I wanted to use your music in our wedding, but everything you write is so depressing." (Laughs) I thought about my catalog of songs, and went, "Wow, I haven't really said anything positive about love yet." (Laughs) So that song was sort of inspired by this backhanded compliment. But to be with Aly and Andrea - they were so courageous; they didn't have the full support of their families, and Colorado was a hotbed at that moment. Not for our video shoot, but there was a lot of conversation happening around this issue at that time.

It was just really beautiful. Those girls stepped out into this very public space with their love, and it was really a beautiful thing to witness. I felt so privileged to be there with them.

What songs on the "Waitress" album do you think your LGBT fans might relate to most?

The lead single, "She Used to Be Mine," speaks to the idea of anyone's character and the parts of ourselves that are multi-faceted, the fact that we all can be messy, we all can be forgotten and lonely and strong. That message is not even a female-centric message; it's more about taking a look at who you've become and who you thought you were going to become and juxtaposing those two images. I don't know if it's a gay or straight thing - it's more just about a human condition experience, which I think that song really speaks to.

For "Waitress," how much pie did you eat to get in character to write those songs?

(Laughs) There was a lot of pie! But I love pie. I mean, I didn't use the pie to get into these characters, but once the rehearsal process started, there was a lot of pie: pie-making seminars, and gifts from fans and friends of the community bringing pies to the rehearsals and performances - oh yeah, a lot of pie.

Are you a cream pie or a fruit pie gal?

I'm a fruit pie gal.

What kind of fruit?

My favorite is blackberry. I used to make blackberry pies with my mom growing up, so I have this very visceral memory - it's so nostalgic to me. There's actually a scene in the show and in the movie where she (the waitress, Jenna) is making blackberry pie and that scene always stuck with me because that's exactly what I used to do with my mom.

How does writing for a musical compare to writing your own songs?

The biggest difference is that within my own music I'm telling my own story. My songs tend to be very autobiographical, and so it was a challenge to find my way into telling the story on behalf of another character. But it ended up being one of the most delicious parts of the show for me, that I got to play with the psyche of these characters. I got to challenge myself to find my way into how the crotchety old man who owns the diner would speak to our lead character (Jenna). What would he say to her? What would he want her to know? How does his life inform him as a storyteller? It was a really cool and very exciting challenge to find my way into these characters, and in a way, there was a kind of instinctual impulse I was following with writing for the show and that was very similar to the way I write for myself, except I was telling someone else's story for the first time.

When "Brave" came out in 2013, Katy Perry was criticized for releasing "Roar," a song some said resembled "Brave," shortly thereafter. How much of the "Brave" vs. "Roar" debacle was the result of women being pitted against women? And in general, what are your feelings on the way women are treated in this industry in comparison to their male counterparts?

We're in the middle of a really exciting time for feminism. I think it's going to take on a lot of different shapes and faces within kind of any industry. My issue with that particular experience was the idea that music is a competition, that there isn't enough for everybody. That's part of the philosophy behind the creation of music - that there's always more to draw from, with the intent of creating a bigger and broader music community. And so it was a strange experience to watch people get so angry on my behalf and to pit us against each other.

Women, as much as we can, should continue to build up a sisterhood. That doesn't mean you have to like everybody out there either. It's a little kumbaya to think that we're all just gonna hold hands and wonder off into the sunset. But I do think that being treated with respect and fairness and equality is really important to me, and being a woman who wants to feel that my opinion and my creative ideas are accepted as equally as any man or any other human in the room - it's something that I will continue to walk toward expecting that it will be there. I don't walk into a room and expect not to be heard. I am surprised when I am not heard.

Speaking of "sisterhood," you've been one of Taylor Swift's many surprise guests on tour when you two duetted on "Brave" in 2013.

Taylor was beyond welcoming. It's one of the things she does so well. She really champions other artists with this idea that there's enough for everybody and you don't have to pit yourself against other artists. We can celebrate each other's art and then let people decide who they gravitate toward, but it doesn't have to be based on a feeling of competition.

Does this mean you're in her squad now?

(Laughs) I don't know what the squad rules are. I don't have a T-shirt or, like, anything.

[George]

You can now hear "Bad Idea" with Jason Mraz on Spotify:

[George]

Sara Bareilles dishes on 'Songs From Waitress'
Elysa Gardner, USA TODAY 1:24 p.m. EST November 3, 2015



NEW YORK -- Pouring herself a cup of herbal tea at a downtown restaurant, Sara Bareilles is the picture of serene composure. You'd never guess that she's been working like a maniac for the better part of two years.

The singer/songwriter of empowering hits such as Brave and Love Song began unveiling the fruits of that labor last summer. The stage musical Waitress -- an adaptation of the 2007 Adrienne Shelly film, with music and lyrics by Bareilles -- opened at Cambridge's American Repertory Theater in August. In October, Simon & Schuster published Sounds Like Me: My Life (so far) in Song, a collection of "confessional" essays.

Now comes the release of What's Inside: Songs From Waitress, featuring tunes from the musical -- which is due on Broadway next spring, with previews scheduled to start March 25 for a April 26 opening.

"It was an act of self-indulgence," Bareilles, 35, says of the album, out Nov. 6. "I couldn't quite pass off the show without getting a chance to sing these songs myself."

Bareilles was first approached about the book and musical during the same period -- ironically, while taking a "mini-hiatus" from recording and touring. "I was hanging out with my sister," she recalls, when she was contacted by her literary agent and by Diane Paulus, the Tony Award-winning director of recent Broadway revivals of Pippin and Hair, regarding Waitress.

Though a fan of musicals since childhood, with favorites ranging from Oklahoma! to Chess, Bareilles had never seen the film Waitress before. Watching it, she was immediately attracted to the heroine, Jenna (played by Keri Russell), an inventive pie maker trapped in an abusive marriage.

"I really loved how flawed and messy Jenna is," says Bareilles. "I liked that she was a soulful, creative person trying to find an authentic way to express herself." She also found "so much natural similarity between the character and myself that it wasn't a stretch to find my way in" to eventually record the songs herself. "She's someone who has a great capacity for love, but feels very broken sometimes."

Bareilles had first seen the actress who would play Jenna on stage, Jessie Mueller, in Mueller's Tony-winning performance in the title role of Beautiful: The Carole King Musical. "She was so grounded and graceful, and just had so much heart," Bareilles says of Mueller, who has become a good friend.

Both Waitress's leading lady and its composer/lyricist earned good notices in Cambridge, though Bareilles hasn't read them. "I don't really read reviews. My theory is that the good ones inflate your ego, and the bad ones can just ruin you. I've found it's more productive to stay in the room with what I've created, rather than worry about how it's being perceived."

That perspective did not come without a few hurdles. In Sounds Like Me, Bareilles recalls personal and professional challenges stemming back to her struggles with weight as a child. "I have two young nieces, and I can remember so vividly what I went through, with body image and peer pressure," says the singer, whose figure is now slim and chiseled. "I really want to be someone who can send positive messages, who can encourage them to love themselves as best they can."

Working on Waitress made Bareilles realize how much she herself has grown since her 20s. "I'm about to have my first Broadway musical. When I made my first album, I was so overwhelmed that I don't think I was able to enjoy it. It's nice to be in a place where I can create something new and realize how precious it is."

[blahsi]

For anyone planning on picking this up tomorrow, Target has added it to their Cartwheel app, offering 10% off the purchase price, which is advertised at $9.99.

[Mike]

Saw her at NY City Center tonight for the album release show. First hour included songs from 'Waitress' which were solid for the most part. The last 35 min though... LAWD. She got behind the piano and did the hits plus her cover of "Sittin' On The Dock of the Bay." Closed out the show with an acapella version of "Gravity" and I swear at times you could hear a f*cking pin drop. It was breathtaking.

While her singing was great, I have heard her sound better before (I've seen her about six times now)... However, I will say that she had the crowd ROARING with laughter between songs -- more than I've ever heard before. I was in tears at times. If the whole music thing doesn't work out down the road (doubtful), she has a future in comedy for sure.

[Rural Juror]

Nov 5, 2015 23:01:33 GMT -5 Mike said:

Saw her at NY City Center tonight for the album release show. First hour included songs from 'Waitress' which were solid for the most part. The last 35 min though... LAWD. She got behind the piano and did the hits plus her cover of "Sittin' On The Dock of the Bay." Closed out the show with an acapella version of "Gravity" and I swear at times you could hear a f*cking pin drop. It was breathtaking.

While her singing was great, I have heard her sound better before (I've seen her about six times now)... However, I will say that she had the crowd ROARING with laughter between songs -- more than I've ever heard before. I was in tears at times. If the whole music thing doesn't work out down the road (doubtful), she has a future in comedy for sure.

I was there too and I agree with all of the above...except for her sounding better before. I've seen multiple times as well and I thought last night was one of her best vocal performances that I've had the pleasure of seeing. If I could marry her voice and have its babies, I totally would. The studio versions of the songs just don't do her voice justice. I was in awe the whole time throughout the concert and you're right that you could practically hear a pin drop during Gravity. That was AMAZING and a real treat to the fans.

My favorite performance was definitely She Used To Be Mine because it made me so emotional that I was on the verge of tears and when everyone stood up and gave her a lengthy standing ovation, those tears were so close to rolling down my face. What a song. She truly is one of the most honest songwriters out there. Whatever she's singing about, I feel whatever feelings she puts through in the song. The woman is that damn good!

Can't wait to listen to the CD and to see the musical come spring time. Sara is unstoppable!

[Deleted]

You can definitely tell that the album was written for a musical in mind so in that sense it's not a standard Sara Bareilles album. She definitely brought it vocally on this album. If they release anymore singles, Opening Up and Everything Changes would be my picks.

[#LisaRinna]

I love her voice.

[George]

"Waitress" (Musical) Trailer:

www.people.com/article/sara-bareilles-waitress-broadway-musical-trailer

Also, her performance from BroadwayCon:

[ILLUSION]

Just listening to this now. Awesome music. This show is gonna be great! Can't wait to see it!

[Mike]

"Waitress" is nominated for four Tony Awards including Best Musical and Best Original Score!

[Rural Juror]

I've bought tickets to the May 28th matinee and I can't wait! Congrats to Sara and everyone involved with the show for being nominated. They won't win (because: Hamilton), but I'm sure they're all over the moon over the nominations. Actually, maaaaaybe Jessie can win in her category.

[ampersand]

I'm so happy about her Tony nom! Can't wait to see the musical. My friend and I are planning a trip to NYC later this summer just to catch it.

[George]

Tony Awards:

[George]

"She Used to Be Mine" was used in tonight's Dancing with the Stars. Hope this brings some renewed interest in Sara's version!