Flea Shares the Music That Shaped His Childhood in New ‘Flea Loves’ Episode

It’s no secret Flea has an eclectic taste in music. Over the years, the legendary Red Hot Chili Peppers member has been inspired by so many different artists and genres. And in a new episode of his exclusive show Flea Loves on SiriusXM’s Whole Lotta Red Hot, Flea revisits the music that shaped him as a child – years before he would influence generations of artists himself.During the beginning of episode 3 of Flea Loves, the bassist reflects on the songs and artists in his father’s record collection. At age 6, he remembers being “enrapt by” Johnny Cash’s classic song “A Boy Named Sue.”

“Wait, ‘A Boy Named Sue’ – a boy can’t have a girl’s name?!” Flea recalls thinking in the episode. “So, right away that was strange to me at the time. And then when I would listen to it – it’s a story. And it gave me my first sense of a song as a narrative.”

Additionally, Flea shares his childhood favorites by The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Louis Armstrong, and more. Listen to the entire episode on the SiriusXM app and web player now.

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Flea Loves is a recurring series on the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ official channel on SiriusXM, Whole Lotta Red Hot. In each episode, Flea handpicks some of his favorite songs and shares stories about them.

Launched in 2022, Whole Lotta Red Hot features music from the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ nearly four-decade-long career, live concert audio from the archives, genre-spanning songs by their biggest influences, celebrity Guest DJs, exclusive commentary from the band and more. Check out more information about the channel here.