Call It with Natasha Bedingfield

Summary

Call It What It Is – Episode Featuring Natasha Bedingfield Released on May 12, 2025 by iHeartPodcasts

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Introduction: Bridging Music and Friendship In this vibrant episode of Call It What It Is, hosted by Jenna Ushkowitz, acclaimed singer-songwriter Natasha Bedingfield joins as a special guest. Known for her empowering hits like "Unwritten," Bedingfield delves into her creative process, the evolution of the music industry, and the profound impact of friendship and vulnerability in her life and career.

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The Genesis of "Unwritten" Natasha Bedingfield opens up about the heartfelt origins of her iconic song "Unwritten." She shares, "It was a very honest and real moment, especially writing with Daniel. It wasn't trying to be something; it just was." ([07:17]) The collaboration with Daniel allowed her to infuse personal experiences and genuine emotions into the song, making it resonate deeply with listeners across generations.

Evolution of the Music Industry Transitioning to the broader landscape, Bedingfield discusses the significant transformations in the music industry over the past two decades. She remarks, "The way content is consumed has changed so drastically, giving new life to songs from years ago with fresh audiences." ([05:58]) This shift highlights the enduring relevance of her music and its ability to connect with both old fans and new listeners alike.

Vulnerability and Empowerment in Creativity A central theme of the conversation revolves around the balance between vulnerability and empowerment in the creative process. Bedingfield emphasizes, "The vulnerability is something everyone feels, but the strength is what we all need." ([34:34]) This duality is essential for authentic storytelling in music, allowing artists to convey genuine emotions while also fostering a sense of empowerment both for themselves and their audience.

Social Media’s Role in Modern Creativity The duo explores the impact of social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram on music promotion and fan engagement. Bedingfield shares her fondness for TikTok, noting how it has fostered connections with fans who create dance routines to her songs. "TikTok has like booktok, TikTok Mental health. It doesn't have to be dance moves all the time," she explains ([38:09]). This adaptability of platforms allows artists to reach diverse audiences and foster a more interactive relationship with their fans.

Personal Reflections and Rapid-Fire Insights In a heartfelt rapid-fire segment, Bedingfield reflects on personal growth and industry experiences:

• Biopic Casting: "I feel like Kate Winslet would be amazing to play me." ([40:47])
• Advice to Younger Self: "Wait a few years and there'll be a song that will really relate to you. Lighten up and have fun." ([41:04])
• Dream Collaboration: "I would love to collaborate with Eminem." ([41:37])
• Theme Song for Life: "That's what I'm trying to write. I've got a really cool song that I think is the new theme song for me." ([41:49])
• Surprising Fact: "Many American fans are surprised that I'm English and that I was homeschooled from 11 till 17." ([42:11])

These insights offer listeners an intimate glimpse into Bedingfield's personality, aspirations, and the thoughtful considerations behind her artistic endeavors.

The Power of Music and Community The conversation underscores the universal power of music to evoke emotions and create a sense of belonging. Bedingfield shares, "Singing feels so great with other people. It's the feeling of dancing that brings us into our higher selves." ([35:34]) This sentiment highlights how collaborative efforts and shared experiences in music can transcend individual performances, fostering a collective spirit of joy and connection.

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Conclusion: Embracing Authenticity and Collaboration Natasha Bedingfield's appearance on Call It What It Is is a testament to the enduring power of authentic storytelling and collaboration in the arts. Her reflections on vulnerability, the evolving music industry, and the importance of genuine connections provide valuable insights for both creators and consumers of music. As the episode wraps up, Bedingfield leaves listeners inspired to embrace their own creative journeys with honesty and optimism.

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Notable Quotes:

• "The vulnerability is something everyone feels, but the strength is what we all need." — Natasha Bedingfield ([34:34])
• "TikTok has like booktok, TikTok Mental health. It doesn't have to be dance moves all the time." — Natasha Bedingfield ([38:09])
• "Singing feels so great with other people. It's the feeling of dancing that brings us into our higher selves." — Natasha Bedingfield ([35:34])

Key Topics Discussed:

• Origins and creative process behind "Unwritten"
• Changes in the music industry's landscape
• Balancing vulnerability and empowerment in creativity
• Impact of social media on music promotion and fan engagement
• Personal growth, aspirations, and reflections on fame

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Whether you're a long-time fan or new to Natasha Bedingfield's music, this episode offers a profound exploration of the artist's journey, the intricate dance between emotion and artistry, and the ever-evolving dynamics of the music world.

Transcript

[Ryan Seacrest]

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[Natasha Bedingfield]

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[Natasha Bedingfield]

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[Jenna Ushkowitz]

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[Natasha Bedingfield]

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[Jenna Ushkowitz]

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[Natasha Bedingfield]

It's so nice to be in an interview with someone I know and love, and I'm just kind of like getting goosebumps from how nice you just were to me. Thank you. Lovely.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

All true. All true. And we are here with none other than Natasha Bedingfield. We've been also humming Unwritten all morning long as we came to this podcast. And you and I share being really well known for one thing. All this incredible music, Hope. I mean, I don't know, maybe it's shot of hearts.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

It's true. We've done so many other things and people can be like, well, what have you? Like, you're back or something. And it's like, well, no, I mean, I've been working.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah, no, I'm really still here.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah, still here. Still being creative. And yeah, I mean, it all. It's amazing. But also, I think too, we both have quite a young audience. Yes, it's really amazing.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yes.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

I mean, it's very unique, actually, to us.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yes, it is. And I think that. Well, I'm hearing you say that it is. It's not just a young audience. It's that there is, you know, you put out work and all you can hope is that it has teeth enough to grab someone and make them feel some kind of way, whether it was what you intended them to feel when you wrote it or something, sang it or produced it or something entirely different. Right.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Wow.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Sometimes these songs are playing at our greatest during some of our greatest moments, and sometimes they're playing at some of our lowest moments. And yet they mean so much to us and they start to, like, every time you hear that song, you. You think of that time or whatever it is. So music is so important.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

I love that you said the teeth that it has Teeth enough. Yeah, it kind of bite. It kind of bites and it actually resonates and it goes deeper than a little moment.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah. I love that.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

That's what I think.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

That's what you hope. That's what we all hope. That is what creatives.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

That is what you hope. Now we find ourselves in situations where because of different. The ways that our businesses have changed, music industry has changed. The watching, you know, content, it now isn't just TV or film, it's content. And the way that that's being watched has changed. And so now because of that change, your music that you wrote, you know, almost 20 years ago is. Is taking on a whole new life with another generation. So it's like all the people that heard it the first time, they're still in. They're still bopping down the street and they are feeling all the goosebumps from listening to your music. And now there's a whole nother level and generation.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Another wave. Yeah. And it's wonderful. I'm being flown to England to sing for an English soccer team that is. It's like the most amaz, underdog story of this soccer team that every time they win, they sing Unwritten in the dressing in the changing rooms. And then they're finally. They've made it into their Premier League this week and so they're flying me there for their final.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

What's the team?

[Natasha Bedingfield]

It's called Burnley.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

I'm going to root for them.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Isn't that amazing? Because they're flying me there and I'm going to. And so it's awesome because you just can't expect who is going to. Who's going to connect with something that you make. And who would have known it would be all these men, all these blokes, British dudes.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

So.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

And afterwards they're going to go out to the pub to take you out there and. Got to go out to the pub afterwards.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

What do you. Do you think that. I mean, with regards to Unwritten specifically, I guess, since that's what we're talking about. What do you think it was about the lyrics that just like. I know my answer is, but I. I want to know what yours is like. When you were writing at the frame of mind that you were in the. The. Was there. I don't know your songwriting process, but was there a goal, an idea that was swishing around in there?

[Natasha Bedingfield]

I think what's spectacular is it really is a song that was to one person and it was to my youngest brother, and it was really very Honest and very real. And it was a time where I'd just been signed by these amazing songwriters and I was their very first artist. And we were writing all these amazing, clever songs that were hilarious, kind of like comedy writers, where four of us would sit around a table and we were just like, go free association and be as kind of wacky and crazy and stupid. And we wrote songs like these words. I love you, I love you, I love you. Yeah, it's just like out of this world kind of stuff. Another song called Single about being single and just very clever concepts. And then I had this very simple idea about unwritten. And I was like, I would love to write this. And they were all like, it's a bit too preachy. They were like, no one's gonna go for that. And so I was like, okay, I guess this isn't the right people to write with that. But I just put the little note I had in my pocket, and when I met Daniel, that's when I was like, this is the person I'm going to write it with. And then it wasn't trying to be something and it wasn't really like anything.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Else, but it was a time. But you had a direct line. I mean, you had a direct line, too.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

You were in the. In the photo. Yeah. And Danielle is one of the most amazing people who. She was a famous. She was a famous actor when she was a kid. She was in all in the Family. Oh, yeah. So she was the kid in Archie Bunker's house.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Oh, my gosh.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

And so she went from being a child star to then being in a band, a huge band. So she had many lives, and she was just one of these amazing people who'd kind of gone through a lot, and together we just made this amazing song. And then she was a mentor for me. She really. She got me on camera. Yeah, Phone now. And she was like, now talk to the camera. And I was super shy, and she would take me into Venice beach and she would make me go up to people and ask them questions and interview them and, you know, so that was amazing. You know. You know when you meet someone who's been in the industry before and knows about the pitfalls and. Yeah, so that was amazing. And we wrote Pocket for the Sunshine together as well later on, a couple years later.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

There's a lot of your songs.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

I was really lucky that I met her. Yeah. And the other element that was really special and it kept me very real in that song is that I was feeling a bit out of touch because I was Writing with all these men and I wanted my. I just felt like I needed my sister and so I invited my sister to come out and stay with me. And all these guys were worried that my sister would distract me and they were. Made it super hard actually. And Danielle was like, no, let her have her sister out. And something about having my sister there. Nicola.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Was just made me feel grounded and made me feel really honest.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

God. Isn't that amazing how that times out?

[Natasha Bedingfield]

You just kind of know that it kind of says what you want it to say, but you don't know how it's going to. There's no way of knowing or controlling how it. Where it's going to go.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

No. And you. And you putting it together for that first time, you would have no idea just how many more times you would sing that song.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Did you have that feeling when you in Grey's Anatomy that it would. I.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

I had the feeling pretty early on that we were doing something that felt like it was new. There was a freshness and an honesty and a vulnerability to it. I mean I wasn't a baby. Baby actress, but I still felt like I was in my nascent phases of understanding and owning. Showing up to work and what that meant and storytelling and preparation and all the things. And I also felt like when I went there I was already a fan. My expectations were of myself.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

You were willing to. You knew it would mean you'd have to talk about hard issues because that kind of does already already was talking about difficult things. Right. Things that were no no's taboos. So you already had that. You already knew. I'm gonn have to really come to the plate.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Well, yeah. I mean this is not about me and I see what you're doing here, Natasha, but I feel.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

I feel you do have interest in.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

I know that's the last thing I say about me. Okay. I only because I know that. That there are huge swaths of your audiences that are shared between us is.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

That there is parallels here. They really are. Yes.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yes, there are. I felt a huge responsibility to a community and I needed to show up in the most real and true and positive way. Like I knew what the representation could mean.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

I put a lot of pressure on myself. Can you tell? Could mean if we got it right. And. And I get goosebumps because I've got.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Goosebumps as you're talking. Like I'll show you full leg goosebumps. Because I hope you did.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

And you know the stories that we hear, you know from. From our beloved crew, they has at least worked for some. Right? And that means everything to me. So I love that.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

I love that that was your intent because that's what I can hear. And I think that's what the goosebumps mean is it's like really your intention behind it is really so pure there and that it res. That's that feeling of goosebumps. The music resonates, but it doesn't mean that you're scared.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Right. Like, I mean again, there's just so many of your songs. But we started with Unwritten. I mean for me that there is such a hopeful optimism to what feels like the impossible circumstance of allowing yourself to be free. I think that's why also we saw it come come back around in anyone but you. When the song came out, it was like this incredible, just auditory hug. It was like a big warm hug for your ears and your heart and your soul because you just knew what was gonna like happen next. And I'm guessing that you don't get to play a set without playing Unwritten at this point.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah, I have to play Unwritten. There will be riots if I start.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

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[Jenna Ushkowitz]

When you are out in the world singing, I mean, it's different. I've already seen you. I know the answer to this question. You give it your all. I have watched so many Instagram reels and seen so much footage of you from all different angles, and you just go for it.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

I go. I go for it. I do. And I'm kind of seeing myself as an athlete and I just always want to get better. Yeah. I want to always be a better singer, you know?

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

And I think you learn a lot after over 20 years. Like, you just learn so much. You just are able to kind of really articulate yourself and well, that's what I say.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

So. So given the story of unwritten. And then you were just saying 20 years. How do you feel like the music industry has changed since that moment? I mean, being supported by, you know, you talking about Daniela and talking about, you know, being around a bunch of blokes and saying, like, no, no, we don't want to distract her. She's this precious commodity in this room and this tender 20 year old girl that we need to.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

And they hate boyfriends. They hate, like when people bring their boyfriends in and the boyfriends or the family try to kind of meddle.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

They try to kind of separate you from that, from anyone you're close to so they can have full control. It just happens. And they're your friends too. And so you're kind of like, sure, that's how it goes. So I think it's what experience a lot of women have actually, is that there's this Barbie doll thing where people want to kind of like, this is what you should wear. Like, I'm going to dress you. This is what looks good on you. But it comes with language of like, you don't look good in those colors or you like. It comes with this language of expertise where you kind of have to go, well, all right, I'll do whatever you think.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

You know, was there a moment where you were like, no.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah, yeah. I mean, you don't even realize it's happening. Sometimes you have the illusion of control where you think, oh, well, I don't really like any of these video directors, you know.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

But that you have to choose right now because we're doing the video in two days. So, like, there's no option to kind of find another person.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

I have friends, I don't know if you do too, that are performers. And I'm I'm always in awe of them because in those situations which we do all find ourselves in, like, yeah, it, that's true. I have friends who will be like, well, then we're not shooting it in two days.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

And I'm always in awe of them.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

I'm like, I know, I'm sorry.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Wait, I didn't know that there was an option.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Z. You can do that. You can do that. But you will be cool to difficult women. But that's okay as well. That's okay. Okay. But yeah, that happens quite quick. Especially 20 years ago, I think. I mean, I probably still does, but 20 years ago, it was definitely a thing that everyone was afraid of, a label that. Don't you think?

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

This is why it drives me crazy. Yes, absolutely.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Still it is.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

I think it. Oh, I, I think my guess, it probably still is. It's funny. I found myself, I, I have a new job and we're about to start and. Yeah, I want to be surrounded by people who are better than me, who are better at me than other things, hopefully. Maybe. I mean, I always know that I work really hard to bring what I bring and I trust in that experience. But it's funny because as a woman, as an actor, as a mother of four children, there's also parts of your life where, as you know, being a mother, there's certain dates that you can't control. Like, I've always run up against my kids birthdays because there's four of them on the calendar. And I've always gone to work and been like, these are the dates I need off. And that's not even difficult to say. I need my kid's birthday off. But yeah, there were times in my life where people made. Was presented to me that it was a real hardship. I was a real problem. I was giving them that I had couldn't work on this day.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

But I actually also do really relate to the family one because I do feel like I, I, whenever it was a family thing, I used to kind of COVID it over. You know, it was my family even it was my siblings or my parents. I would, I would always kind of like pretend it was something else. Yeah, this is lying.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

But do you like to be alone?

[Natasha Bedingfield]

I do. Love it. Yeah, you too?

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Me too.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah, I, I love daydreaming too. I used to have to write lines in school saying, I will not daydream.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Stop it.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah. Because I was one of those daydreamy kids. Like, I was just like, I'm never bored.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah. I know some people I, I've heard a couple people say out loud, you know, oh, gosh, I wouldn't know what to do with myself. Or I. You know, I'm. I'm alone because the family's going out of town this week. I can't go or whatever. And I'm like, I would absolutely kill for a weekend home alone with no one needing anything from me.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

That's what I'm fascinated by, how different people are and how we want different things and how everyone thinks that we all want the same thing and tries to convince everyone that this is. You're not going to be happy unless you have the. If you. Unless you go to Disneyland or.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Something.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah. Or. Yeah. Or whatever. When you're in the car, what do you listen to?

[Natasha Bedingfield]

I listen to really calming music. When I'm in the car, I like to feel like I'm in a movie. So I listen to orchestras or yoga music or. Yeah.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

So it's like a spa in your car.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah. Or a movie. Yeah. And I'm really into this band called Salt. I don't know how you pronounce it. S, A, U, L, T. So cool. I love it. Yeah. And there's a girl from Portugal called Maro. I just love it. She's so great.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

I would love that. And how do you find new music?

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Just ask all my friends, like, what. What are you listening to? And then start following it.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

And then. Do you listen. You listen on Spotify? Yeah. You guys, I'm a Spotify girl, too. Well, there's where our family's divided. The boys in our family listen through Apple Music.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Okay.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

And I didn't know that. I thought everyone was listening on Spotify. And I canceled our Apple music thing. And it was Mutiny. They were pissed. They were like, my. My son was like, all of my playlists have been destroyed. What did you do to me? And I was like. So I went. I quickly went back. But he got him back.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

You got him back.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah. He's got a great taste in music, I have to say. I give that to Christopher. His. His credit because when Luke is in the car with Christopher, he really listens to the music he wants to listen to. And so Luke kind of comes to his music. I am in the car with the girls, I think probably more often than not. And I just go along with what they want to listen to. They're very mainstream. They're very mainstream. It's not to say that they don't have opinions about the mainstream, but they're very much in, you know, the Sabrina Carpenter, Gracie Abrams Amazing. Yeah. And such incredible artists. And you know what? I have to say, I find that the girl power that's coming up in that group feels very self possessed.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah. It's really.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

They feel in control. They feel like they're saying when and where and how.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

They're not afraid to say ugly things.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yes.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

They're not afraid to talk about real stuff. Yes. I mean, Dochi was talking about that. She farts.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

You know, like people talk about real stuff.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Makes me laugh.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah. People aren't talking. It does. It's good.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

It's literally my kryptonite. I'm gonna start laughing now. I cannot, cannot talk about farts or farting without laughing.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

But what is it like all these illusions that our generations had to have where we're like pretending. Yes, perfect.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Pretending we never farted. We never, ever, ever went to the bathroom. Can't even say it now. Like I was literally about to say what it is and I couldn't even say it. Yeah. Yes, I know. And also. And the pulling off of the mask. Right?

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

I feel like my generation was very much like, if you're going to put something on Instagram, it's a pretty, pretty picture. It's a, you know, it's not this, you know, unrehearsed.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

The next generation don't want airbrushed.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Y. Yeah.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Everything.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Oh, yeah. Take a little.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Chins are okay down there on Snapchat.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Well, have you ever turned your camera around on you at the wrong moment? That's a shame spiral. I'm like, what?

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Who?

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

It's a total jump scare to me.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

You are so beautiful.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

You are.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

I don't even say how amazing you are. I mean, every time I'm with you, I just, I. I can't stop saying great stuff about you. Thing that I love is how generous you are. Just like really kind to people. And I just feel it every time I'm with you. It's this like giving superpower that you have.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

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[Ryan Seacrest]

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[T Mobile Announcer]

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[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Okay, so when do you feel like you create? Like, in your. Are there, like, spaces where you go to. You go, like, I'm going to write songs right now or I'm gonna journal or like, how does that work? Because I'm so not an original content creator. I take people's words and then I make them something, hopefully. But I've actually never been an original content creator. So what is that process like for you?

[Natasha Bedingfield]

So it's all artist's way. The artist's way. Like, where you just write. Have you done it?

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

I've tried.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

The only problem with that one, one of the things is that it's called the morning pages and you do a morning dump.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

You do it.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

The problem that I have is I'm not a morning person. So I don't have any great ideas in the morning. I don't have any ideas at all. I have nothing. My brain is not thinking anything.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Aren't you supposed to just dump?

[Natasha Bedingfield]

I don't have anything to dump. Like, my brain. Not even.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Like, my coffee sucked this morning.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

It's empty.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

It's empty. Nothing here. The thoughts are gone.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

It's very strange. Yeah. So I have to wait a little bit till I wake up, but thaw.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Out, warm up the engine.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah. Yes. I think exercising, yoga and those things have been really helpful for me. And then so I just don't do the morning. Like, that's the thing. I'm not legalistic. Like, I don't do the morning pages, but I definitely do pages.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

You know, and you're out of night. I'm a night owl, so I love doing stuff at night. That's when it's, like, really, like, alive. And I need to have, like, private spaces to do that. Like, I have, like, a room. I have a place at my house. It's my creative room. And yeah, I just go crazy. But I'm very collaborative. Like you are. Like, I love to write over zoom with people. And someone will send me a track. Jack Harlow sent me a bunch of tracks and Rust. Like, a lot of rappers send me songs and then I'll write. I'd send it back and kind of go back and forward. Yeah. And then I get ideas for books. And, like, I wrote, like, it was an idea for a movie. I write it down. I'm always writing things down. I'm always Taking notes and then I want to write a. A TV show. And she's like, why don't you just make it a song? So then I was like, oh, yeah, that could be a good song title. So I'm like, oh, yeah, I'm a songwriter. I'll do that. I may have to do that first. And people do want songs. So, you know, and then. Yeah. I mean, a lot of it is collaborative and it is about people. It is like someone will come to my mind and I'll text them right away.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

And a lot of times it's just at the right moment, you know, I.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Think that is very spot on. I think in the collaborative universe, we go in and out of a lot of woo woo over here, you know, I really believe that we're so connected.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Telepathy tape. Telepathy tape.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

It's just, yes, yes, yes, yes. I find I have a lot of thoughts in general that range from my to do list to creativity in the shower.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Shower is great. Yeah.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

And then I have been known to truly step out of the shower and be sopping wet and like reach for my phone, dry. Just my right hand off enough so that the front of my iPhone will register my finger taps.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yes.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

And I will write notes or I'll do like the voice note thing. And then I'm like, oh, yes, I got my thoughts down. And then I'll come back to look at them and I'll be like, that was. That's a different language. Like, what were they thinking? How am I meant to follow the breadcrumbs here?

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah, it was like. It's like when you write a song in the middle of the night, it's very hot. It doesn't make much sense.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Like, I write a song in the middle of the night. I don't. You do. Do you ever wake up in the middle of.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah, but I'm singing so quietly, trying not to wake anyone up. It's like really hard to kind of make it out the next day. But sometimes I had full songs in dreams, you know, I'm like, maybe. Yeah, maybe that's the one, you know? So there's a part of songwriting that's a bit addictive. Like, it's like a hit. Like, maybe this is the next big song.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. See, I love that about you too, is that you have that optimism, like anything could be.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

I mean, as evidenced by your story of unwritten. I mean, that's truly the thing is that you never know when it's coming. And so you just keep showing up someone recently that I've worked with for such a long time and I were talking about this business and how it's changed and what we do and the vulnerability of it and then how quickly you have to go back and forth between feeling very vulnerable, which would perhaps maybe lead to thoughts where you feel a little unwanted. Right. Because you're like, oh, I want to be picked. I want to be picked for the part. I want to be picked for the, the track. I want someone to pick up the music to start playing in different places so people will again allow it into their lives. And as we know from back, like whenever music started, Right. And there was only radio to expose it to people, the more it's played, the more it's in your consciousness, the more you get, you come to it. Right. So there's this, there's this back and forth between the vulnerability and like, please pick me to the self possessed empowered. I know what I'm doing.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

I know what I'm doing. And this is my interpretation of this character. And it may not be the one that gets picked, but it's mine.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

And I'm the only one that can do it. And I'm the only one that can write this song. And it's a really, it's an interesting.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Back and forth as a creative. Yeah, yeah, it is. And, and then, but that those, both those sides are so important to, to the actual process, I think. Don't you? Because the vulnerability is, is everyone. And everyone feels that. But then the strength is kind of what we all need.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

So.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, completely.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

I, I just, I, I think that everyone should be writing songs. Everyone should be writing and everyone should be singing and doing things that are, you know, because singing is your, your vagus nerve. Your vagus nerve. That's just like, it's, it's regulating and it's, it's like dancing.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Where it's good for you.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

And I think that's why people love to go to shows because you're singing, you're using your voice. It doesn't matter how it sounds. It's not, it's not about the end result. It's not about whether you're going to be famous for it. It's just the feeling of singing feels so great with other people. The feeling of dancing feels great. You know, and those are all very human things that just bring us into our higher selves.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

I think that is so well put. And it's reminding me that, I mean, I'm a little bit of a Crier. I have easy access to that as, as sort of like my expression of feeling. And I was at a bar mitzvah over this past weekend and as soon as the cantor started, I was just crying. And I was reminded that every time I go to church, as soon as the entire congregation starts singing, I start crying. And it's. They're not sad songs. They're beautiful songs. They're songs of hope. They're songs of this, that or the other. Some of them are sad. But I immediately start crying. And I think it's because of what you just described. It's just this, this beautiful primal thing that all of us can do, clearly some of us better than others, but we, it, it hooks us, it brings us together.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

It's a belonging.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah. It's a. Before I go on stage, my band and I, we all just do two ohms. And it feels so silly because it's just two ohms. It's just. Yeah, yeah. You know, but it's, it's the vibration. Like we kind of lock in with each other. It's like as we're looking at each other as we're oming, you kind of just feel zing. Like we're, we're together.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

And we can, we can do anything, no matter what happens. Like if there's sound problems, if there's. We're just gonna.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah, we lock in. Just keep going.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah. So I, I feel like it's that locking in with each other that feels great.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

It is. Because now I find, you know, as you've explained, there's so many songs that are so personal to you and now because of social media and because of the access that, you know, we all have to each other, we're hearing the personal story maybe even before you've heard the song. So like my 12 year old told me all about one of Sabrina's songs and how it was about this ex boyfriend and then how he cheated on her and I was like, how do you know all of this? But okay, do you feel. How do you. What's your relationship with social media?

[Natasha Bedingfield]

I love TikTok. I think it's really fun.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Well, TikTok loves you, so that's maybe.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

That'S why I like it. I love to be loved. Who doesn't?

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

But I like this. I like this for you.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Okay, so TikTok. TikTok has like booktok, TikTok Mental health. Like it has a number of different Rain talk.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah, yeah.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

It has a number of things that I can navigate through that. And it doesn't have to be dance moves all the time.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah, I like that.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Although people have them for your moves too. I think I'd be very flattered by that.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah, that's so cool. And I met through the kids who made a dance to my song that went viral. And I loved how TikTok brought us together and I loved how touched I was from just other people's lives.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

And so, yeah, I love that. Oh, I think Instagram, for me, it's not my. My big. I haven't really conquered Instagram, to be honest. I love them with like a. I don't get it.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

We have to conquer.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

I obviously don't get it. Or people don't get me on it. But, but, but Spotify, like, you know, it's like. I don't. It's a kind of disconnect with. Yeah, I don't really know.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

I think it's all different for all of them.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

So it's kind of what you really do. Do well on Instagram.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

I don't know that I. I don't know that I do well. I don't have the bandwidth to. To really understand more than one. So I sort of glommed onto Instagram as my go to. And then. And then it makes sense. I always get lost on TikTok. I don't know what's going on. I need to get better at this.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

You have to train the algorithm. Like, somebody showed me Jax, who is a huge TikToker, she gave me lessons.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Oh. So maybe I need to call her.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

She gave me, like, a few hours of really, really good lessons. She was just, like, really keeping it short and sweet and. And really training the algorithm first. Training the algorithm. Just go through it. I really don't like, really, like, don't like this. Don't like this, don't like this. And then it really figures you out really quickly. Because the thing about TikTok is it's loud and as soon as you open up, it' just like a bit of a shock to your system. And I always just used to throw my phone.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

But once you stop, you start really telling it what you like, you start getting really. It figures you out very.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

So. So if I let it know that I think that farts are funny, do you think that I would just get lots and lots of funny farts?

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah, okay.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

I'm willing to.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah. But, but, but the actual. It's very much like Instagram, too, that. The reels.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah, well, the reels make me laugh the hardest. I Could talk to you for 5,000 hours. But we have a little bit of a rapid fire here. So a little. A couple questions that just like whatever comes to your mind first. If you had someone to play you in a biopic, who would you want it to be?

[Natasha Bedingfield]

I feel like, like even though she's older than me, but Kate Winslet, I would love that.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah, she's great.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah, she's great.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

I love that. Okay, what is something you would tell your younger self?

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Wait a few years and there'll be a song that will really relate to you. I think just to lighten up, I think I was very serious as a, as a teenager. I was really trying to do everything correctly and I think have a bit of fun would have been a good thing. Like, I wasn't really light at that point. I was just really trying to be a grown up. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

I get that. One artist you would like to collaborate with.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

I would love to collaborate with Eminem.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Oh, that's a good one.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

I love him.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

That's a good one. Okay, if your life right now had a theme song, what would it be?

[Natasha Bedingfield]

That's what I'm trying to write.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yes, your theme.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

And I think I've written it. I've got a really cool song that I think is. Is that new theme song for me at least.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah, I love that. Okay. Oh, I can't wait. Okay. What's one thing that fans would be surprised to learn about you?

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Well, a lot of American fans would be surprised that I'm English because they often are quite surprised because my songs are like American songs and I was homeschooled. That's something I don't think everyone knows. Yeah, yeah. From 11 till 17.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Wow. At home with your family?

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Yeah. Were you your siblings and four kids?

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Thank you, thank you. Thank you so much for coming. I adore you.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

I love you.

[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Come on. Again.

[Natasha Bedingfield]

Thank you. Foreign.

[T Mobile Announcer]

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[Ryan Seacrest]

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[Jenna Ushkowitz]

Behind every successful business is a vision. Bringing it to life takes more than effort. It takes the right financial foundation and support. That's where Chase for Business comes in. With convenient digital tools, helpful resources and personalized guidance, we can help your business forge ahead confidently. Learn [e-mail] backslash business Chase for Business Make More of what's yours the Chase Mobile app is available for select mobile devices. Message and data rates may apply. JPMorgan Chase Bank NA Member FDIC Copyright 2025 JPMorgan Chase & Co. You're listening.

[Ryan Seacrest]

To an iHeart podcast.