Eve, Grammy-winning hip hop star

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1:12That's code TRAVELDIARIES. You can also find the link in the episode description here or head to salee.com forward slash TRAVELDIARIES for more details. Thank you to Salee.

1:28Hello everyone and welcome to the Travel Diaries podcast. I'm your host Holly Rubenstein and here each week I invite a special guest to take us through the defining chapters of their travel life. From their all-time favourite destination and hidden gem to what's at the top of their bucket list. Before we get started, if you enjoy this podcast, Please remember to hit follow or subscribe wherever you're listening. It's completely free and it means you'll get a fresh dose of Wanderlust in your library each week. And by doing this, you're also really helping the show to grow and continue to bring you fabulous guests.

2:07And this season, you can watch the podcast as well as listen. Full episodes are available on the Travel Diaries YouTube channel and you can watch along on Spotify too. If you'd like to see the conversations as they happen, head over there and subscribe. Thank you so much. And before we get on to today's guest, I've got the first chapter of my travel diaries as a family of four, which I thought I'd share. I think a lot of you are going to want to take note of this one. So we thought long and hard about where our first trip should be to. And we knew we wanted a short flight with lots of childcare when we land.

2:42And we wanted somewhere peaceful and relaxing. it was winter so we weren't going to do a long haul warm flight so we decided on Natu Hotel Forstofgut which is in the Austrian Alps if you're thinking what the what the what it's all spelled out in the episode show notes and you might recognize the name when you see it because it is a hotel that is all over Instagram as it's so photogenic but honestly it's one of the best family hotels I've experienced so far and it was a brilliant choice because what I'm now always looking for is a hotel that balances being completely family friendly but still feeling luxurious and calm for adults too and nato hotel ticked those boxes i mean for children it's just magic it has an incredible kids club from age two which is about absolutely loved and the activities just go way beyond what you'd normally expect there's a sand school where she went pony riding they went to go feed the reindeer there's an entire other farm on site a huge playground and And the hotel is so well set up for families with babies.

3:45They have all the equipment you could possibly need there. So you're not traveling with half your house. You can even like hire a pram. And then the setting just takes it to another level. In the winter, there's actually a piste that runs through the hotel. So you're watching skiers glide past while you're having a morning coffee. And there's a ski school literally on the doorstep. So Isabella was only three and she had her first skiing lesson, which was so cute. And all the ski high and everything was free. Whether you're traveling as a family or as a couple, I think both would deliver brilliant experiences and we're actually genuinely already planning to go back this year.

4:17So that's as it all a very successful first chapter in Casper's Travel Diaries. Now let's get on to today's guest. She is quite simply one of the most iconic voices in hip hop and R &B. She's the artist behind some of the biggest tracks of the early 2000s, including Who's That Girl? Let Me Blow Your Mind with Gwen Stefani and Gangster Lovin'. And these are songs that really defined an era and still feel just as fresh today. Born and raised in Philadelphia, Eve rose to global fame as part of the legendary Rough Riders crew, working alongside names like Dr. Dre and DMX, before carving out her own hugely successful solo career.

4:59She became the third female rapper in history to have a number one album on the Billboard 200, won a Grammy, starred in film and TV, and she's remained one of the most respected and trailblazing women in the industry. But beyond the music, there's a whole other side to Eve, one shaped by travel. As she tells us, she still feels like that little girl from Philly who got to see the whole world because of her music. And in this episode, we explore how that journey unfolded. I spoke to Eve a couple of weeks ago in person on the South Bank in London in the beautiful Big Ben balcony suite at the London Marriott County Hall Hotel.

5:35Looking out over the Houses of Parliament and Westminster Bridge. Couldn't have been a more quintessentially London location and we both really enjoyed that. So from childhood trips to the Jersey Shore to falling in love with Jamaica and a Slovenian hidden gem. I know you're going to love this one. So let's get started.

6:04welcome to the travel diaries it's so lovely to see you an icon of my teen and you know university years i mean i cannot tell you how much i have sung your songs to myself so it's really a real pleasure to meet you oh thank you i'm so happy to be here thank you for having me What does travel mean to you? Are you a keen traveler? Oh, love it. I do love it. I mean, I definitely get to travel fatigue sometimes. But, you know, when I'm home for a while, I'm always thinking what is going to be the next trip? Where are we going to go? And travel means everything to me. You know, I'm a little I still come like this little girl from Philadelphia that was able to see the world because of my music.

6:43So travel is everything. Your music opened up the world to you. Absolutely. Yeah. Well, you mentioned your childhood in Philadelphia. So today we're going to go on a journey through the seven chapters of your life's travel diaries. And we start with chapter one, which is your earliest childhood travel memory going back to those days. Yeah, I think it would be going to like the Jersey Shore. That's like the closest to us, you know, where you could get some beach, some sea. You could get like these salty sweets that we would have. Sticky toffee, saltwater taffy. And then there was, you know, little amusement parks.

7:25Not great ones, but enough when you're small. It's nice. Atlantic City, which is on the Jersey Shore as well. So, yeah, that's like my, that's the earliest memory of me traveling. Jersey Shore obviously has a reputation these days, doesn't it? For being a bit of a wild destination. It was good for families. It was good for families. And it still is. It depends on where you wind up. But yeah, there are pockets of it that are still really good for families. Yeah. Yeah. And, you know, when you were growing up, did music always feature in your household? Was it a huge part of your childhood? Yeah, it was.

8:01Music was always on. The radio was always on. And when I was growing up, one of the neighborhoods I'd lived in, we did block parties. So there were always DJs playing music. And my dad, actually, my biological father, was a DJ. So when I was growing up, he was always playing something. So yeah, I've been around music all my life, really. And do you think that that just infused into you? Oh, definitely. Yeah. Definitely. I didn't know this, but a few years ago, I always thought that my dad was just a DJ. But my mom told me that he played bass in a band. So I was like, ah, okay, this makes so much sense.

8:44It's in your DNA. Yeah, it's in my DNA for sure. And so from that kind of small town life to then your big break, that's a huge leap. And when I was kind of going back and reading about it, it suddenly feels like you went from that life to suddenly being in the studio with Dr. Dre and everything happening really quickly. But I imagine, did it happen really quickly? Because often with musicians, it sounds like it does, but then actually you're grafting for years and years. So what was it like? It was kind of a bit of both in a way. So I, you know, I was that kid that thankfully my mom has always had my back.

9:21So I was that kid that was like, I want to do the talent show, you know, this week again. You know, I had a group of girls. I went to Catholic school and we had our own little rap group. And so we were performing all the time. And when I was in high school, I kind of made the decision. I knew that I didn't want to go to university. I knew I wanted to pursue music. And I told myself, if I'm not signed by 17, then that means it must not be for me. Wow. So you had just eyes on the prize. I had my eyes on the prize. And I, of course, had turned 17 and it didn't happen. And I remember I called a friend of mine who was going to NYU.

9:58And I was like, can you send me, do they have classes on special effects makeup? Because I love special effects makeup. And so I thought I would go to NYU. And I think like a week later, I'd gotten a call for an audition to audition for Dr. Dre's right hand man. And I just was about to turn 18 and I got signed. And yeah, that once I got signed to Dre, all these things happened really fast. Like they threw me in the studio and I had an, you know, I had a condo, I had a bank account. But then I got dropped eight months later. It's just such a brutal industry, isn't it? It's so brutal. But I needed it, to be honest.

10:35And, you know, I always say, you know, it's that old saying of, you know, failure is a part of success. And I do believe if I hadn't gotten dropped, I wouldn't be here speaking to you. I wouldn't be living in London. I wouldn't have the career that I have. So I needed to be humbled and dropped. I needed to be dropped on my ass a bit and to sit down and think a bit because I was very feisty. I was very demanding. Right. So, yeah, I am thankful that I was dropped. You came back and reunited with Dre years later. Yes, reunited with Dre years later. And yeah, I'd gotten signed to Rough Riders. And I was like, I don't know, home back in Philly for like a month.

11:16And I got a call, got signed to Rough Riders and Dre. And I got back together on my second album, which is Scorpion. So which we're here to celebrate. Yes. As well. What was it like being in the studio with Dre? Because his reputation precedes him a little bit. What's he like? Oh, God, he's annoying. you know but he's a perfectionist he's a perfectionist and that's why he is dre and i will say it's funny because there are times where i was i'd be in the studio with him and be so frustrated um is that because he's doing multiple takes all the time yes yes so like even for one of the songs that i did there's one word the word block that he was like you have to say it like this and I'm like I am saying it like that and he's like you're not he was like I think we did it 15 to 20 times and when when I got it I heard what he heard and that's what makes him great because it literally just in that way it changed it changed I don't know the melody it changed it it was amazing so his ear is his ear it is next level yeah yeah and were there any hard feelings when you came back to him after the fact that he dropped you at the beginning?

12:33No, no hard feelings. For me, I was like, aha, see. Yeah, I mean. I told you. I told you. Yeah, you know, it was more kind of show off kind of. And no hard feelings on his side either. It was kind of like, listen, I get it. Like, yeah, this is why I signed you. It's just that we, you know, I do think, and it's the reason why for me, like people ask me in my career, like, why don't you take on any artists? I personally don't want to be responsible for another artist's journey because I am so focused on myself and my journey. I will gladly connect anyone but I think sometimes producers also it's the same thing.

13:13If you're a creative sometimes it's hard to kind of put that energy into another artist. So as I am mature enough now I have no hard feelings and understand that we just weren't meant to take that journey together yeah yeah and then the alchemy came together later exactly yeah exactly yeah well let's pause there for a second and move on to chapter two of your travel diaries and that is the first place that you fell in love with so I have to say there are many but my first love is definitely Jamaica for sure Jamaica um you know I always joke and say that I'm like the biggest Jafaken ever I am such a Jamaican or I used to be when I was like you know in high school and a lot of my friends were Jamaican and I used to spend a lot of my first vacations when I was able to spend money and like splurge on things and it is truly one of my favorite places so it was one of the first places when you were in charge of your own holiday yes yes you chose Jamaica I well you know it it chose me so I will say the first time I went was 1999 and I had gotten invited to to perform at this big music festival um and once that happened I took my mom I flew my mom with me and then I never stopped going I was like I have to come to Jamaica like I was going to Jamaica like three times a year but I lived in New York so it was easy it was super easy to get there yeah um especially in the winters it was like I'm going to Jamaica um and where would you stay uh I would say all over actually Kingston um Antigua Bay Ocho Rios I I like to stay in Kingston a lot I kind of like the city vibes because most people are like particularly Brits if they're going to Jamaica probably wouldn't go to Kingston would they they go to the beach they go to the beach um what was cool about Kingston for you what were your favorite spots oh god you know I used to stay there they there were different hotels but I always stayed in this residential hotel and people used to be like why are you staying here but it was a very small kind of almost like a boutique hotel the food was insane they had the smallest little pool out back but they had the most amazing bar and it was locals it was people who lived in that neighborhood um and I just liked it I mean also they had the best dance hall parties in Kingston so were they all asking for you to perform always No, you know, that was another thing I think I liked about it was that they knew I was just there to enjoy.

15:40I was there to enjoy. I hung out like they hung out. You know, I had so many friends there and, you know, it was it was I was never bothered in any way. They were just happy I was there and I was so happy to be there. Yeah. And so for somebody who hasn't been to Jamaica, what would be like some of the sites that you'd say? Yeah. Can't miss. Oh, my goodness. I mean, there are so many. There's Bob Marley Beach. That sounds pretty iconic. Bob Marley Beach. If you love, of course, who doesn't love Bob Marley? But you could also visit his studio, which is also nice. Negril is incredible. You know, there's the cliffs on Negril.

16:19There's some hotels that you can jump into the water from there. Montego Bay also is amazing. And I would say, listen, do your research, of course, on Kingston. but and I haven't been in a few years so definitely do your research but I think it is worth a visit if you can even if it's a day maybe it's a drive through to somewhere else um but you know and you know they just had that horrible storm so I think it's a place that we all should be thinking about spending some money again and getting their economy strong so I really recommend it there are some iconic recording studios there as well oh my god g-jam yeah that's on my list of life we I've thought about this I would love love to record in G Jam Studios yeah I actually think um is it Goldenyeye I think they might have a studio there as well I'm not sure that's also on my list I've never made it there so that is on my list yeah there are some amazing hotels in Jamaica Jamaica Inn as well oh yes another one that sounds so nice yeah and so your debut album and then going back to your kind of career trajectory, went straight to number one.

17:25Yes. And suddenly, like we say, the world kind of opened up to you. And were you just then from that point onwards like it was in those days? And I guess it probably is still now, like on the plane, place to place to place. It was faster than fast. It was like warp speed. Was it overwhelming or was it fun? It was very overwhelming. It was fun. It was also fun. It was all the things. It was all the things. It was amazing. You know, here I am. These are the, these, this is what we talked about. Me and my friends, I took my friends everywhere, which was a mistake. But a mistake because you got up to no good?

18:01Well, a mistake because you got up to no good. But also, you know, things, life changes. And some people are supposed to be on your path and some people aren't. And when you're that young, when you're a teenager, you kind, you want everyone involved. But things do change. And it became, it went from, whoo, this is amazing to, wait a minute, why are they making more money than me? And then it went to like arguments and, you know, it's, it crumbled by my first tour. It was like, yeah, this is not going to work out. But it was also still incredible. You know, I was in rooms with people I'd watched their video, the videos of and songs that I sang and like, you know, it was incredible.

18:48What was the most surreal moment as a music fan yourself? Like what was the most surreal studio? Because you had so many amazing claps. I had so many. Tell us, like, let's talk through some of them. Yeah, I mean, I would say my most incredible moment ever is Prince, of course. May he rest. I had gotten a call from my manager at the time saying, hey, so Prince wants to do a song with you. And when he calls, you basically have to drop everything and go to the studio. And I was just like, yeah, right. Prince doesn't even know who I am. Like, how would he know who I am? And it took weeks. It did. I kind of almost forgot about it because I was like, this is never going to happen.

19:25And then I did get the call. And he was at Electric Lady Studio in New York. And I went to meet him. And I was just like, wow. Like, he's really here. In awe. The nicest, most down to earth, incredible person. um and he has a he has a kind of like diva reputation but actually all the artists that I've met who've worked with him say that he was so nice he was literally the nicest person he was so chill and so celebratory of people as well and of their artistry which was like for me I was like what do you mean you know who I am like that was incredible yeah um but in that same night I'd he invited me to come do this record and that same night he left because he was going to a Lenny Kravitz concert he brought Lenny Kravitz back to the studio and I was like what is going on what is happening like craziest night of my life um but yeah you know and is that intimidating when you're kind when it's somebody of of that stature yeah because being creative is essentially being vulnerable isn't it as well and so is it easy to kind of like vibe or is that what makes them and you great I was so what's the word I won't say it wasn't cocky or arrogant but I especially being young I was like yeah I'm supposed this is this is right yeah this feels right like you know I didn't really I was always respectful I was always so in awe and in the respectful way but I also deep down weirdly I had this thing about like this is I knew I was supposed to be here meant to be yeah where I was meant to be yeah and so let's think about some of these other ones like Missy Missy oh my god what was that like I mean incredible another again very um incredible person who was so and still to this day we don't speak I mean it's been years but anytime we see each other she's always been so supportive of me as an artist um and I remember that call as well of like hey we want to get you on this remix that was huge for me um it was myself uh missy and nas and this was a huge record yeah um and the fact that i was able to be on this record on this remix was like oh my god on a hype williams like video set as well was yeah beyond beyond the music videos were so epic then they were epic that's because they were like million plus yeah budget that's when the music industry had lots of money I used to love making the video I know oh my god that was such a good show that was such a good show yeah that was a really good show what was your favorite music video to make oh that's a good question favorite probably honestly probably tambourine um iconic track thank you only because I it was the first video I had a lot I did research for the video I wanted it I knew I wanted it to look a certain way it was the first female director as well that I had had and actually is that true no maybe second female director I need to go back because there was one video that I did that had like two directors on it but this was the first one her name is Miss Molina she's incredible and we really collabed on this video and I think for me even the fat down to the fashion it was like I knew I needed to wear this and you know so that's probably my favorite you had like a real vision for it yeah but I mean you write all of your tracks yes as well and I think it's so easy for people to always just assume that artists have like tracks written for them yeah but from the very beginning like you've always been like writing yeah I mean when I was younger it was a huge thing especially coming from hip-hop it's a thing of like who else can write your lyrics yeah when I go in now I do have someone that I write with because I don't have that same thing where I feel like I have to prove something to someone um and and also I think it is good to have another ear in um I think it was easy for me to write back then too because I did have so many collaborators with Rough Riders um so yeah it was a different time then because I think a lot of back then especially in hip-hop people would be like oh you don't write you're not really an emcee if you don't write your own lyrics yeah back then also you you were often the only woman in the room right and how did you navigate that I mean thankfully I was a tomboy so I've definitely always been able to yeah I've always been able to hang with the boys like you know if we if there was like play wrestling I wanted to be Hulk Hogan like I was like I'm not gonna be a girl wrestler like um I was always a tomboy always really able to hang with the boys and it just never really bothered me did jay-z once say like all female rappers won't be as successful yeah he he called yeah he definitely called me and said you know just manage your expectations basically right um and because most female rappers don't do that well just historically and i don't think it was out of mollusk i think it was more out of i don't know maybe he's trying to give me a heads up in a way looking out for you maybe looking out for me so but I also took that as my as fuel of like let me show you yeah I'm I've always been like that like I love that underdog thing I'm like no problem it's fine you're determined I'm determined always yeah and do people when they then circle back to you say yeah you're right I've had two apologies in my career and I and it and it helped me because Because I think, you know, you go through your career.

25:05And for me especially, I think because I was the only female in some of those rooms, I got a lot of pushback on ideas. I got a lot of pushback on, you know, it's just certain things of people just being like, oh, yeah, that's cool. But I don't know if it's going to work. That kind of thing. And I had an A &R call me and I had a video director call me once and apologized to me. And it just was like, oh, good. I wasn't crazy. you know it's that validation of like okay I know what I'm talking about um I needed that I'm I'm happy that happened yeah like a kind of vindication vindication yes exactly exactly well in this kind of introspective part we move on to chapter three which is the place where you learned the most about yourself where might that be okay so this is I love this question because I can't of course looked at some of the questions before I'm it has to be London it has to be London and I say that because my so much of my life this is my home now yeah um you know again coming from Philly I've been here now almost 12 years my son is born here my husband's from here my friends are like this is my life my career is my son has such the English accent um you know and I think it's that a lot of my music has been here.

26:22When I first started my career, I would come here and do promo and all kinds and fell in love then. And I'd go to Brixton for the dance hall parties, blah, blah. And, you know, I just I've always loved it here. And to live here and have a life here as a woman, as you know, a mom, as a wife, for sure, this is where I know me. This is who I am. This is what feels like me. Today's episode is brought to you by Airbnb. If you travel even semi-regularly, you'll know that moment of locking your front door and heading off and your home is just sitting there while you're off on your adventures. More and more, I'm hearing from listeners and friends who found a really practical way to make the most of that time hosting on Airbnb when they're away.

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27:44Your home might be worth more than you think. Find out how much at airbnb.co.uk forward slash host. Thank you to Airbnb. And so you met your husband here. I did. And he works in the travel world in a way as well. Yeah, exactly. Can you tell us a little bit about what he does? Because you've been on some cool, really epic trips with him. Yes. So Gumball 3000 is driving a rally. It takes place in seven days, which is insane. But you and it's every every year is somewhere different around the world. So this year actually is from Miami to the World Cup in Mexico City. Awesome. Yeah. But like the 20th anniversary was from London to Tokyo.

28:28We got married London to Ibiza. Then we got married in Ibiza. So it's incredible. And then he was just in I missed this one because I couldn't go. but Vietnam to Cambodia. So it's such an incredible adventure. And I'm not just saying that because it's my husband. So you're driving, doing these epic road trips, essentially. Yeah, basically. That's the best way to say it. And like pent-up cars, is it? It's whatever you want to drive. Whatever. It's whatever you want to drive. There are a lot of supercars, for sure. Yeah. A lot of race cars, supercars, that kind of thing. But there are people who enter vintage cars.

29:06and there are people who enter buses. Like it just depends on your personality, what you want your week to feel like as well. There's lots of, which I love, there's lots of women that are, lots more women that are doing it as like, whether bachelor trips or bachelorette trips or, you know, just like adventure trip, girlfriend trips. So yeah, it's really cool. So what's been the coolest road trip you've done? What would you recommend? Because we, my listeners love a road trip. Oh, my goodness. What's the best itinerary? You know, I guess as an American, I will say we do have some really good road trips.

29:44If you are up for doing 3 ,000 miles, going from East Coast to West Coast is special. I've done it a few times, and it is actually really special. You get to see a lot of parts of America and a lot of different kinds of people. Maybe not this year don't do that, but maybe soon. Sometime in the future. Sometime in the future. But it is a great, that is a really classic Route 69. You know, it's a classic road trip. Yeah. And did you go on the one, the rally, which went through North Korea? Were you on that? I did not. No, I didn't know him then yet. Oh, you didn't? No, we didn't know each other then.

30:23I wish. Because that would have been wild. Insane. The videos of that and the fact that he got into North Korea with all these people is insane. Yeah. Well, I would say the rally that the first rally that I did was from where was it? It was from London to New York, actually. And I wasn't able to drive. I was driving through Canada, through Quebec. And I had something was wrong with my passport, basically. And he knew this secret way, not secret, but this other way to get around through another way of going through the border. And I'm like, how do you know these things? Like, what is it? How does he date them?

31:05He just does. It's truly, we've been together 16 years and I'm truly impressed. Yeah. Like how, there's like, how did you find this information? And I will say, yeah, any road trip for Gumball is pretty epic. You know, there's great people on it. There's tons of people you would never meet in a room. You know, so many interesting people, but then also the camaraderie of just people who want a great adventure for the summer. So what was that drive like from London to Ibiza? It was good. I only did a bit of it because I was like, I'm going to fly the rest. You were like, I'm getting married. I'm getting married.

31:38I need at least three days. But it was good. It was my bachelorette. I had my best friend and my cousin. And he did his Fiat 500s, like the Italian job with his friends. Yeah. So he had a few of those. Oh, my God. How fun. And then you got married in Ibiza. Then we got married in Ibiza. What made you choose there? It was, one, there were a lot of people on the rally we wanted to invite. So I'm like, hmm, this works. It works out well. Convenient. It's convenient. And I was, I have to say I was opposed to it at first because he suggested it. And I was like, all I know about Ibiza is people getting really crazy.

32:18And I do not want my wedding like that. But I visited once in February or something like that, like low season. And I fell in love. And I was like, actually, this might be okay. And there are so many beautiful, calm parts that have nothing to do with that wild. It's the best. And now it's one of my favorite places. Even for my son, he will be like, are we going back to Ibiza? It's his first vacation. And it's become a very, very special place to us, for sure. What part of the island? We like the north. The north. The north side. Very calm. Much more calm. Yes. And how do you spend your time? What's a perfect day in Ibiza for you?

32:53Oh, my God. Oh, God. I'm ready to go now. Um, slow mornings, of course, beautiful produce, breakfast, fruit, um, a swim, a chill. Uh, we usually don't leave because we'll do a huge, if it's a lot of us, um, because I have four bonus kids as well. And plus the baby. So if it's, if it's all of us, then we're chilling at the house. Yeah. Um, and then a dinner, a nice dinner somewhere, beach club, maybe we only go out if we're there for like we'll do like eight to ten days we probably only go out three times three to four times and that's it so just and that really allows you to relax just relax you're not having to sight see you're not taking things off you can just we do a boat trip we always do one boat trip we have to go to um formentera we do one formentera always oh i've never been over to formentera i've always wanted to go it's very cool the beaches are incredible but i've never made it past the restaurant in the beach so I don't know what's on the other side of the restaurant actually yeah it's very small yes but um but there's some really cool hotels there actually now I think there's a new one that just opened up sometime last year so but yeah I don't know about staying on Formantera but I recommend visiting how old is your son he's four four yeah and um how has your traveling adapted to having a little one yeah he changes a lot doesn't it it changes a lot he's a very good traveler though he's been traveling since he's four months so he is very equipped with the plane he gets very excited um he knows when we're going to the airport he's like oh i get to see some planes yeah snacks also he knows travel day is snack and an ipad day yeah it's like free for all It's free fall.

34:39I flew with my baby yesterday, so I know exactly what it's like. Because, you know, it's like, what do you do? Yeah. Just let them be. Where everybody's a bit stressed. It's like, you're on this plane for a while. So, yeah, he's – it did take some adjusting. I flew with him by myself the first time at four months. And I was like, why did I agree to this? Why did I agree to this? but you know it gets easier and easier thankfully. Now we're going to move on to the big chapter Eve chapter four is your all-time favorite destination it's a tough one. That is hard all-time favorite destination all-time favorite.

35:24I know it's like picking between kids but it's what you feel like today. Today it would have to be Ibiza then yeah it would have to be Ibiza. Those happy memories. Happy memories. It's great. It's a great place. You can get what you want. You can be chill. You can go into the crazy. It feels so nice there as well. There's a feeling of that island for me that is, as soon as I get there, I'm like, yes, this just feels nice. it's an energy to it even when it's crazy um I usually prefer to go at the top in the beginning or the end but even when it's crazy there's something about it um and it's just beautiful it is a really beautiful place even my son even knows as Vedra the rock he even knows that rock yeah yeah so I it would have to be a beat though gorgeous yeah what about a favorite city Ooh, favorite city?

36:21Apart from London. Apart from London. Probably New York. New York was a lot of my beginnings of, it's first of all, super close to Philly. I'm from Philly. Super close to Philly. So I spent a lot of my first music years in New York when I got signed to Rough Riders. And it's a second home. And New York's just New York. It's just a great city. Yeah. Do you have any go-to spots that you always go to when you're there? Neighborhood-wise, Soho, Tribeca. Those are probably my two favorite city. I mean, two favorite neighborhoods. And usually I rely on friends now of like what's new because there's something new every time.

36:55It's hard to keep up. It's hard to keep up. Yeah. But Soho as a whole, if you want it somewhere to go for food, for shopping, people sightseeing, Soho is a great place to start. Yeah. And as we're chatting about all time favorites, what is your all time favorite track on Scorpion? Oh, my goodness. And that's also hard. I think, I mean, probably it's between Blow Your Mind and Who's That Girl, but probably Blow Your Mind in the sense that that's the one that, you know, I won a Grammy for that I wrote 100 % of everything on that record. So yeah, and it's the record that I kind of fought for, you know.

37:35In what way? With having Gwen on the record, I really wanted her on this record and people didn't want her on the record and it happened. Because they thought it was like an unlikely pairing? Yeah, they did. They did. And, you know, so I little did they know. Yeah, exactly. I mean, I knew. Were you already friends or did you just have a vibe that feeling that it would be the right chemistry? No, I just had a feeling because I was always a fan of No Doubt. Always. I loved No Doubt. And I just kind of had this feeling of like, she's with boys all the time. I'm with boys all the time. We're going to hang out and just be girls and like, you know, have a good time.

38:10And I knew she'd be cool. I could just tell by her vibe. and we were thankfully label mates which made it easy to at least make the phone call yeah do you find it kind of surreal that I mean it's been 25 years nuts and it's one of those things I saw on Instagram the other day when people say 20 years ago I think oh that's in the 80s but actually no it was like 2000 it's nuts how time flies yeah but I don't think I mean this is a massive generalization but I don't think tracks like the tracks that are on Scorpion have the longevity these days you know what I mean these are iconic tracks that people play are still playing on the radio all the time or singing to themselves no I agree I agree and I'm not just saying that for me I think there was that that that time it was the time where music was oh it was just really good there are a lot of iconic records that came out from that time but also you know with production like Dr.

39:12Dre, how can you go wrong? Swiss Beats, like, you know, there's just, it was just different. It was just different. And not that, I mean, there's so many incredible artists, thankfully out right now, but it's just different. When you reflect on the legacy there, like we're looking at that album now, like, how does it make you feel? It's funny because saying it's 25 years old is weird. I mean, I have to say, you do not look any older. Oh my God, love you. Like you have an age to do. Please tell my niece.

39:45But yeah, it's incredible. It's truly incredible. I feel proud. You know, I do feel proud of myself, I think. And it does make me happy. You know, I had like I said, I have four bonus kids. And now there are times where I get drunk videos of them at the club dancing to my songs, which I love. I'm like, this is so cool. But I'm also like, be careful. um you know it's really cool that you know it's it's it's generations old it's great it's cool that people still want to hear it you know I toured last year and um and there were you know moms and their kids and there were younger kids that came on their own that just wanted to see us perform and I was just like this is great it's great yeah feel lucky yeah it's wonderful it's wonderful I mean it's an amazing legacy and what about future music yeah so as as we were speaking in between um it's never off the table yeah music is my first love I think it always just has to feel right and intentional especially now um where I am I'm not trying to compete with anyone I've really had the most amazing career but it also is you know I love it I do I always will And we have talked about doing some remixes and reimaginings of some of the stuff on Scorpion and possibly some new music.

41:01It's never it's never a no. Yeah. Nice. OK, well, we'll have to watch this space. Very exciting. Yeah. So chapter five is your hidden gem. So that's a place that you love that maybe my listeners wouldn't know so much about. One of the gumballs we did, we drove through Slovenia. Oh, wow. And it was in the summer. And it was insanely gorgeous. I don't think it's such a hidden gem. It is. You think so? I think so. I think it's becoming more popular. Yes, I see a little more on it. So where did you go through Libyana? We did. We went through Libyana and... Did you see Lake Bled? I didn't. I wish. Oh, I'd love to go there.

41:41I wish. It was so... But where we went through was so lush and so beautiful. Yeah. And the highways were incredible. like everything it was so clean and gorgeous and how many days were you there one day we drove through yeah literally drove through i can't remember where we were going but slovenia that would be my that would be my choice yeah that's a really good chart actually and also it's not if you're based in the uk yeah it's not far it's not far to drive yes but no it's not actually i would love to go to lake bled yeah so lake bled is the one that is the big lake that has the church on the island in the middle doesn't it and i think whatever time of year you go it just looks magnificent it's insane like a castle from frozen kind of vibes or just as you say really lush and just lush and green and beautiful yeah i also didn't realize that slovenia's got really amazing wine country as well oh i didn't know that yeah and forests and yeah very diverse country yeah yeah beautiful oh well maybe we'll both be going there next year yeah let's go next well very much in contrast our penultimate chapter is your worst travel experience chapter six or the place that you just never go back to oh that's a good question where would i never go back to um yeah i don't have knock on wood um oh you know where actually i just thought of a different hidden gem that was actually really amazing oh tell us tell us kazakstan oh i did a show in kazakstan last which which was so, I said yes to the show just to go to Kazakhstan.

43:16I was like, I don't care. Yes. Because I'm like, when am I ever going to go to Kazakhstan? It was truly incredible. And the people were amazing. That is so interesting because Niall Rogers, who also came on the podcast recently, also chose Kazakhstan as his hidden gem. Yeah, no. Drawing musicians and musical talent. It was one of the best. It's a party that they do. I don't know if he did the same thing. It was a festival that they do every year. It's a white party, a giant white party. And I performed at this festival. and it was really incredible. Really incredible. The food was great. The people were amazing.

43:47Yeah. And what was the landscape like? What did it look like? Well, we were in a city for most of it. The hotel was kind of far. So it was still really pretty. Architecture was really cool. There were lots of cool architecture. But yeah, just really different. I wish I had more time to explore. The hotel we were at, it was very mountainous behind us and beautiful. Yeah. I mean, it's not really on the tourist trail. It's not on the tourist trail, I know. It was kind of ruined by a TV show hit. Did you hear about that, the Ali G show? Yes, of course. And so it kind of, I think, gave it a bit of a bad rep.

44:23I mean, it's pretty much what my whole crew said when we said yes and everybody thought about Ali G. And what's crazy is it's nothing like that. Yeah, it's so unfair. It's so unfair. Please go to Kazakhstan. They were amazing. It was great, yeah. But there isn't a place that you can think of that you wouldn't go back to. I not not really I honestly don't have anything in my bones that I'm like oh I can never ever go back that's nice that is nice actually also I think that probably shows your disposition as a traveler are you quite a relaxed and easygoing yeah I'm yeah I'm kind of one of those people like well that happened you know if something happens part of especially maybe doing gumball actually because there have been times you know your your flat tire is part of the right is part of the the experience you know um your car breaks down and you can't catch up for two days is part of the experience so i maybe that's why but i'm also very much one of those people too who just like you know everything happens how it's supposed to because i think it keeps me sane do you have a memory of um a performance where you were in a destination that wasn't home where you just felt uh chemistry with the audience that kind of had a synergy with the location almost where the environment really like played into why it was so meaningful or memorable oh that's okay like a cool setting yeah um last year when I was on tour I did a lot of amphitheaters um and I think amphitheaters are always so nice yeah the best one was in Colorado actually in Colorado by the way is beautiful um it is a really gorgeous place um and it was a very very cool venue it was way up high so lots of people needed oxygen um but it was the the amphitheater itself was kind of sunken down and it was it was just a very cool place to be you felt kind of really enveloped um and that was cool yeah I bet but I love the amphitheater there's an energy then like you kind of feed off that energy because everyone's all around you.

46:33You're all, they're all around you and everybody's fully in it, which is really nice. Yeah. Yeah. But you didn't need any oxygen to perform. No, I didn't. Thankfully. I mean, it was, it was. You don't want to be too lightheaded when you're talking. It was a lot. And I will say they, you know, the green is very legal there. So it was smoky, but, but it was nice because I don't partake anymore. So it was like secondhand. It was fine. It's good. That's amazing. Eva, it's been so fun chatting. Thank you. Thank you for having me. We are on to the final chapter. Yes. And that is chapter seven, the destination at the top of your bucket list.

47:12Oh my goodness. This is hard. This one also is hard to be honest. I've been, this is a place I've been to already. I want, I really can't wait to go back, but obviously there are tensions at the moment, but Oman. Oman is incredible. It is beautiful. I've driven through it on gumball, but we've also gone and stayed, for a vacation in Muscat and have been able to drive and have taken boats out on the water. It is truly so beautiful. The people are incredibly kind. The food is insane. And it's calm. There's a calmness there that I've never felt in any other place that I've ever been. Wow. And it's, yeah, it's a great, great, great location.

47:58Great destination. So you're hoping to go back? Yeah. That is on the list. Yeah. Yeah. Did you go up into the mountains? We did. The first time we went, we were up in the mountains for gumball. We drove up into the mountains. And it is, I mean, it's incredible landscape. We drove through the mountains and there were places where there were oases at the bottom of the rocks. And like palm trees. And there were like wild camels just on the road. Like it was, it's a truly special place. Yeah. And it feels far from home. and it feels but it's also quite accessible exactly it's so yeah it's true it's so accessible to get to I met some Americans there too which was really interesting I was like what you doing all the way out here girl but it's good it's a great place well if anybody wants to find out more about Oman I recently released a Oman Uncovered Destination Special so we're big fans of Oman on the podcast as well so well I hope you make it back there when you can yeah definitely and in the meantime we're just going to be listening to scorpion yay thank you so much eve those were your travel diaries what an honor and a pleasure thank you thank you thank you oh thank you so much eve it was lovely to chat i hope you enjoyed that one eve's scorpion 25th anniversary edition red and black splatter 2 lp is out now i'll of course be back next week with a brand new guest so don't forget to hit follow or subscribe on your podcast app so that you don't miss an episode.

49:32To find out who's joining me next week, come and follow me on Instagram. I'm at Holly Rubenstein. You'll also find me on TikTok at Holly Rubenstein as well. In the meantime, have a fabulous week and safe travels. Today's episode is brought to you by Airbnb. If you travel even semi-regularly, you'll know that moment of locking your front door and heading off and your home is just sitting there while you're off on your adventures. More and more I'm hearing from listeners and friends who found a really practical way to make the most of that time hosting on Airbnb when they're away. It's not about doing anything full time, it's simply about unlocking the value of your home during the periods you're not using it.

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