The Show
Historic Los Angeles theater Royce Hall, located on the UCLA campus, provided a spectacular backdrop for Jason Mraz’s taping of Live from the Artists Den. Accompanied by the four members of LA folk-rock band Raining Jane, Mraz revisited old favorites like “I Won’t Give Up” and previewed new material – such as “Hello, You Beautiful Thing” – from his album, YES!. The focus was on the collaborations with Raining Jane, who wrote and recorded YES! with Mraz. The set was punctuated by classic Mraz hit, “I’m Yours,” which earned a full-throated singalong from the rapt 1700-person crowd.
Mraz revisited old favorites like “I Won’t Give Up” and previewed new material – such as “Hello, You Beautiful Thing”.
Behind the Den
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Jason Mraz
Since getting his start 19 years ago performing in coffeehouses in his adopted city of San Diego, Jason Mraz has earned platinum or multi-platinum certifications in more than 20 countries, sold 48 million singles, made pop history with his record-breaking classic single, “I’m Yours,” racked up two Grammy Awards among six nominations, won a prestigious Hal David Songwriter Hall of Fame Award, and sold out iconic venues around the world. In 2014, Mraz released, YES!, his fifth and first-ever acoustic album, which he wrote and recorded with the L.A.-based folk-rock band Raining Jane. A dedicated surfer, farmer-gardener, filmmaker, and photographer, Mraz is also an impassioned social activist and philanthropist, supporting causes ranging from environmental advocacy and LGBT equality to global work against human trafficking. In 2017, Mraz made his Broadway debut in the musical Waitress alongside fellow Artists Den alum Sara Bareilles.
The Venue
Completed in 1929, Royce Hall is one of the four original buildings on UCLA’s Westwood campus in Los Angeles and has come to be the defining image of the university. Designed in the Lombard Romanesque style and inspired by the Abbey Church of Sant’Ambrogio in Milan, it once functioned as the university’s main classroom facility. The building’s exterior is composed of elements borrowed from numerous northern Italian sources and features a nearly-symmetrical, yet abstract two-towered facade. Luminaries who have appeared on Royce Hall’s stage over the years include George Gershwin, Leonard Bernstein, Ella Fitzgerald, Albert Einstein, and John F. Kennedy. Photography courtesy of Colin Young-Wolff for Artists Den Entertainment.
