Do You Hear What I Hear

Jimmy Iovine talking to Rick Rubin on Tetragrammaton podcast. The backstory is Iovine’s dad loved Christmas, so when he died, Jimmy decided to make a Christmas album (it became A Very Special Christmas):

“and I just like, for example, Whitney Houston. I went to North Carolina.

She did a show there and she met me in the studio on the way to soundcheck. Let me tell you something. I didn’t know miracles existed until I recorded that woman’s voice.

She walked out there. She sang a song in church. It was Do You Hear What I Hear as a kid.

She knew the song. She went out there. I can’t explain this to layman, but you didn’t need a microphone or tape.

It was so powerful and extraordinary. She sang it in one take. She comes in and says, what do you need?

I said, I’m not going to tell you this, but she said, I’m going to sing it one more time. She did all the backing vocals. She was gone in an hour.

And it was so inspiring. If you get a chance, you should listen to it. Do you hear what I hear?

Let’s listen to it right now.

That’d be great. When you hear this, it’s going to blow your mind.

She makes it sound completely effortless.

Really beautiful.

Just comes out.

Well, she’s a miracle. I mean, she’s a miracle. What an incredible, incredible gift she had, and she gave everybody else.”

Tetragrammaton with Rick Rubin: Jimmy Iovine, Nov 26, 2025
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/tetragrammaton-with-rick-rubin/id1671669052?i=1000738489216&r=2927

Listen here.

Merry Christmas everyone. Remember to let your children smoke one cigarette today.