Who do Ellen & Zach Braff both love?

Welcome to younghollywood. com.

Hey Young Hollywood, it's Michelle Marie and we are here backstage at Henry Fonda Theater with Joshua Raden right here.

Tell us about your sound.

How do you like to describe yourself?

Sometimes I like to say it's whisper rock.

Yes, it's like And sometimes I pull out the electric guitar and it's a little more rockin'.

Um sometimes I'm solo acoustic, you know, I like to vary it.

So, you know, recently you've had some great, great exposure especially with all the shows that your songs have been premiered on.

Scrubs, One Tree Hill, and Grey's Anatomy.

It's weird actually.

I have over 100 songs in the last two years to like every TV show.

Like American Idol and I don't know how it happens, but I guess I'm thankful for it because that's like my radio.

So, also I know that Zach Braff is, you know, one of your good friends.

Tell us how you guys met.

We met after school.

He became like my first fan, you know, and was so supportive.

Um and no one had ever heard me play.

I wrote one song and he was like, "You should put, you know, record it and I'll give it to the producers and they put it in Scrubs and it was in this funeral scene.

And it ended up being like the most emotional scene the show has had in like eight years."

Another thing too is, you know, Ellen of course is a huge fan of yours and she actually asked you to play at her wedding.

I played her show in January and she during soundcheck, she said, "I've been looking for a song to walk down the aisle to and this is it.

I love it."

And Portia was there and she they were both like we love this song.

And I thought she was just being nice and then uh two days before her wedding, I got a call, "Would you be willing to fly into LA and be Ellen's surprise to Portia for the wedding?"

And I walk in and I start playing and they both start crying and uh and I almost lost it, you know, I was like, this is too much pressure.

This is like their special day.

You know, I didn't Yeah, that luckily I didn't mess up.

Let's talk about your album, Simple Times.

We just uh made this video for the single, I'd rather be with you.

Let's talk about the video because I really like the concept behind it.

You know, it's a really simple video.

too beside me.

I no longer fear.

I need to be bold, need to jump in the cold water.

Need to grow older with a girl like you.

The concept was just um a couple, me and Katrina Bowden, who's on 30 Rock.

Just uh day, like a like a a drive around the beach.

We're just around Malibu and shot it all on Super 8 cameras.

So it's really grainy.

It was cool.

It was really easy and fun to do.

What are some of your influences that helped create your sound from the very beginning?

Uh Bob Dylan, The Beatles, you know, the classics.

A lot of Motown too.

You know, a lot of Otis Reading, Sam Cook, uh Wilson Pickett, Marvin Gay.

Do you get nervous at all like when you play for a huge crowd?

For a big crowd, I do, yeah.

What do you do to get to shake the nerves before you go out?

I have this sort of mantra that I say over and over again.

No envy, no fear.

No envy, no fear.

I say it in my mind over and over again.