Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer, Chad Smith, sat down with SiriusXM host, Kat Corbett, to discuss Californication 25 years later. During the interview he discusses the making of Californication and how he is “forever thankful” to Pearl Jam.

The full interview is available on SiriusXM’s Whole Lotta Red Hot on the SiriusXM app. Video and transcriptions below, courtesy of SiriusXM’s Whole Lotta Red Hot.

On writing the song "Californication": "This is kind of a lesson in perseverance of like, you know, and I want to credit Rick Rubin as well. He's like, 'I know there's a song. I know there's a song in there like melody and the words are great. You guys gotta just find the right music for it.' And I remember we went to the studio, I don't know if it was the first day or whatever it was like, and, I think John, I think maybe we had tried what we were, had to that point wasn't working. And John went home and maybe the next day he came back and he just played the very simple chords that you hear today. And it was like, ah, that's it. You know? So it's one of our most popular songs ever. And it's like, you just never know, right?"

Why Chad Smith is "forever thankful" to Pearl Jam:

Smith: "On this record on the inside sleeve, I don't know if it's in there, there's a picture of us all hugging and you probably could see, let's look it up.

Kat Corbett: "It's in here."

Smith: "There's like a Pearl Jam road case on the side. That's the one. And that's the RFK show before we went on, that's right before we went on."

Corbett: "Oh yeah. I think this is, I mean, it must be the, yes, there are logos upside down and it says Pearl Jam on the cases."

Smith: "So we're forever thankful to the Pearl Jam guys."

Corbett: "That is so wild. I would've never, ever seen that."

On May 28, Red Hot Chili Peppers kicked off the last leg of their wildly successful Unlimited Love Tour with an incredible sold-out performance in Ridgefield, WA at RV Inn Style Resorts Amphitheater. Special guest Ken Carson opened the show ahead of the critically acclaimed rock band taking the stage with an “Intro Jam,” into “Dani California.”

Over the course of the show, Red Hot Chili Peppers performed classics “Californication,” “Scar Tissue,” “Suck My Kiss,” and more, along with popular tracks “Aquatic Mouth Dance, “Eddie,” “Black Summer,” and others off their two #1 studio albums that were released in 2022, Unlimited Love and Return of the Dream Canteen.

The tour follows recent sold-out performances in Tokyo, Japan at Tokyo Dome and continues across North America. It also includes several festival dates and wraps up on Tuesday, July 30 in St. Louis, MO at Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre.

Dates:

June
18 - West Palm Beach, FL - iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre
21 - Tampa, FL - MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre
26 - Raleigh, NC - Coastal Credit Union Music Park
28 - Virginia Beach, VA - Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater at Virginia Beach

July
2 - Burgettstown, PA - The Pavilion at Star Lake
5 - Cincinnati, OH - Riverbend Music Center
12 - Buffalo, NY - Darien Lake Amphitheater
15 - Toronto, ON - Budweiser Stage
22 - Cuyahoga Falls, OH - Blossom Music Center
25 - Noblesville, IN - Ruoff Music Center
30 - St. Louis, MO - Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre

More info and tickets here.

(Photos - Alive Coverage)