Sturgill Simpson Makes 2nd Appearance on Joe Rogan Experience Podcast

Photo: YouTube
Photo: YouTube

Sturgill Simpson made his second appearance on the long-winded Joe Rogan Experience podcast on Monday (4-4) ahead of the release of his new album A Sailor’s Guide to Earth out April 15th, and talked many subjects with the comedian, including the new album, which apparently Rogan was the first to leak the title of accidentally on Instagram.

“This is definitely a record that anybody that knows about me, I would like them to hear as a record, because that’s how I recorded it to be heard,” Sturgill told Rogan. “Ideally, it wasn’t designed to be heard broken apart … All of my favorite records, my top four or five records, are concept records.”

Sturgill also talked about how one of his favorite artists of all time is Marvin Gaye, staring down a buffalo, juggling touring and family life, and how he’s been dealing with his meteoric rise.

“Although I guess transitionally it’s been in the last couple of years—three or four years—but I’ve been doing this my whole life to various levels of thanklessness. I spent a lot of the years in honky tonks and dive bars where you were background noise. And now that I’m older, I think that’s been the best part of it. I’m clear and focused enough, and I have enough responsibilities in my life to where I’m not taking it for granted. Trying to use it as the opportunity that it is to do something hopefully bigger than just myself.”

Sturgill said during his first appearance on the Rogan podcast that he would only make a total of five records in his career, which has spooked many Sturgill fans that there’s only a finite amount of music from the songwriter left to be heard. But like anyone, Sturgill reserves the right to change his mind. Though Sturgill didn’t re-affirm his five album limit on the new podcast, he did speak on how the recording process is his favorite part of making music.

“I love the recording process most of all. That’s where you learn if you’ve improved. You’re under a microscope. I get hyper focused in the studio. It’s a good thing other people get tired because I would probably just keep them in there all day. But you’re so tied to this thing and in it, that by the time it’s finished, you just don’t want to think about it anymore … But now you’ve got to work it up and out out in a live context and play this thing, whereas hopefully you’ve tried to bare your soul and be as honest as possible, but then you’re standing in front of a room every night. So you have to block that part out of your head that people are judging you.”

Beyond that, there weren’t any bombshells about Sturgill Simpson, his new music, or his future plans. But there was plenty of more insight on his personal like and his perspective on the world. Hear the entire 2+ hour podcast below.

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