Sing For Science | Live Podcast with Lucius x Dr. Ladan Shams

Join JAPAN HOUSE Los Angeles for a special co-presentation with Sing For Science, a popular podcast recognized as one of Apple Podcasts’ top 10 music interview podcast (past guests include Sia, David Byrne, and Kacey Musgraves). Inspired by the themes explored in our current “Looks Delicious!” exhibition, this live recording invites audiences into a dynamic conversation about how artistry, perception, and imagination shape the way we understand—and crave—food. To complement the program’s exploration of sensory experience, guests will also enjoy Van Leeuwen ice cream, a sweet nod to Lucius’s song “Ice Cream.”

The program features the acclaimed Los Angeles–based band Lucius, known for their intricate harmonies and collaborations with artists such as Harry Styles and Brandi Carlile. Their song “Ice Cream”—which delves into nostalgia, sensory pleasure, and emotional texture—forms a natural connection to the exhibition’s celebration of visual delight and the whimsical world of Japanese food representation. Joining them is Dr. Ladan Shams, Professor of Psychology, Bioengineering, and Neuroscience at UCLA, and one of the world’s leading experts on multisensory perception. Her research into how the brain integrates sight, sound, taste, and memory offers scientific insight into the very processes that make hyper-realistic food models so captivating.

Guided by podcast host and producer Matt Whyte, the discussion will explore how perception, creativity, and cultural representation intersect—echoing the craftsmanship and sensory artistry at the heart of Japanese food replica culture. This collaboration introduces JAPAN HOUSE Los Angeles to Sing For Science’s broad international audience, furthering both organizations’ missions to foster cross-cultural understanding through creativity, design, and sensory experience.

Courtesy of Dana Trippe

Known for their engaging live performances and spell-binding harmonies, Grammy-nominated indie-pop band Lucius are a mesmerizing experience of mirrored kinship and honesty. In 2025, the band released their fourth studio album, Lucius, which Rolling Stone called “the best album of their career.” Lucius' most personal and purposeful album to date explores relationships, motherhood, and life’s complexities with a unique vulnerability only made possible due to the familial nature of the band. The New Yorker praises, "The band’s new self-titled album reaches the pinnacle of a vibrant, harmonic enterprise," while Paste describes their sound as "girl-group revivalism, cosmic pop, and a kind of bicoastal harmonizing that once echoed through western canyons."

Lucius' self-titled record follows an impressive history of critically acclaimed full-length projects. Their debut, Wildewoman, introduced their signature dual lead vocals and retro charm. It was widely praised for the album’s throwback sound with NPR declaring it "perfect, magnetic pop music" Meanwhile, The Guardian called lead singers Jess Wolfe and Holly Laessig's voices “powerful … melding beautifully in harmony.” With the release of Good Grief in 2016, Lucius traded some of their folk roots for polished synth-pop. The band’s acclaimed 2022 record, Second Nature, marked a striking return, and was produced by Brandi Carlile and Dave Cobb. Released to overwhelming acclaim, the Los Angeles Times praised, “dazzling…Second Nature mines an ’80s-pop sound with lush synths and sleek disco grooves under the women’s laser-guided vocals,” while Relix proclaimed, “stunning…a 10-song, smart-pop masterpiece.”

Throughout their acclaimed career, Lucius has performed on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”, “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert”, BBC’s Later! with Jools Holland, PBS' "Austin City Limits” and “The Kelly Clarkson Show”. Holly Laessig and Jess Wolfe are some of the most sought-after collaborators in popular music due to their “otherworldly” vocals (Los Angeles Times). The duo have recorded and performed with many artists including Joni Mitchell, Mumford and Sons, The National, Harry Styles, Ringo Starr, Ozzy Osborne, Sheryl Crow, and Brandi Carlile including appearances on the Grammy stage and NBC’s “Saturday Night Live.” Lucius are Laessig, Wolfe, and Peter Lalish.

A professor of Psychology, Bioengineering, and Neuroscience and the director of Multisensory Perception Laboratory at UCLA. Dr. Shams received her PhD in Computer Science at USC and her postdoctoral training in cognitive neuroscience at Caltech. In 2008, Shams was featured by Chronicle of Higher Education as one of “five scholars to watch.”

Dr. Shams’s main expertise lies in the field of multisensory processing. She uses behavioral, computational modeling, and physiological measures to address questions at multiple levels of abstraction about how human brain processes sensory information. The current focus of research in Dr. Shams’s lab is understanding the role of crossmodal interactions in perception, memory, learning, perceptual preferences, and the relationship between perception and cognition. Shams’s contributions in multisensory perception and learning have been published in journals such as Nature, Current Opinion in Neurobiology, Current Biology, and Trends in Cognitive Sciences.

Dr. Shams has served on the program committee and advisory board of the International Multisensory Research Forum (the premier scientific meeting on multisensory integration). She is the associate editor of Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, Multisensory Research, Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, and Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience.

Courtesy of TJ Huff

Matt Whyte is a musician and creator of the Sing For Science podcast and event series. His music credits include composing for Netflix documentaries like “Tiger King”, “Fyre: The Greatest Festival That Never Happened”, and “Jim & Andy”, and fronting the late-aughts band, Earl Greyhound. Matt lives with his wife and two daughters in Cooperstown, NY.

Sing For Science is a Top 10 music interview podcast and live event series that pairs acclaimed musicians with leading scientists to explore where art meets discovery. Hosted by musician and producer Matt Whyte, the series has been honored by the Webby Awards for excellence in music and science communication.

Past guests include Emmy-Winning actor Bryan Craston, Sia, David Byrne, Questlove, and Kacey Musgraves, with live tapings at institutions such as the Museum of Science (Boston) and the New Museum (NYC). These events routinely sell out, drawing audiences that bridge the arts, science, and public culture.

Through high-level conversation and live performance, Sing For Science introduces new audiences to scientific ideas by connecting them to the emotional and creative worlds of music.

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