Jade Bates is an American singer and songwriter Born and raised In Costa Mesa, Orange County, California, USA
Pink, but punky pop-queen with a sprinkle of rock musician Bella Spinelli, better known by her stage name Jade Bates, is hard to put a label on. Orange Coast College’s own student-turned-popstar, Bates is redefining “Badass Women of OCC” in 2022 with her powerhouse vocals and “genre-fluid” music.

Bates has loved music as long as she can remember, first singing in the choir at her Catholic school.

“That sh*t sucked, and I did choir to make it better,” Bates said, referring to her Catholic school experience. “I was shy so [choir] helped me get out of my skin.”

Bates’ musical journey really kicked off in elementary and middle school when her parents enrolled her in rock school as an after-school program. There, Bates was set up with a band that she continued playing with until she was 16.

“Our band was called ‘Free Pizza,’” Bates said lightheartedly. “It was destined to come to an end.”

Positively reminiscing about her time in Free Pizza, where they played covers at venues such as The Coach House and House of Blues, Bates added that the band never actually gave out free pizza. “Maybe we should’ve,” she said with a laugh.

Despite the band’s time coming to a close, Bates attributed that experience to developing the passion for music that has led to where she is today.

“Performing made me want to get into this industry,” Bates said. “Performing on stage is the best feeling ever. I could break out of my shell and be a different person.”

Bates remembered one particular show at The Coach House with Free Pizza in which she reenacted Queen’s legendary rock anthem “Bohemian Rhapsody” that solidified her love of performing.

“At that moment I truly believed I was a different person,” Bates said. “It was a big rush of dopamine and seeing all the people react was amazing.”

After leaving her band, Bates went solo and began writing her own music.

“When people related to the music I wrote, it inspired me to keep going,” Bates said.

Bates describes her music as “pop with a little pop-punk,” but mostly “genre-fluid”.

She went with the name “Jade Bates” because Bates was her mother’s maiden name, and she liked the creepy Norman Bates-vibe. To go along with Bates, the name Jade immediately came to mind.

“Jade, I had always looked at as my alter-ego since high school,” Bates said. “I don’t know why, but I always said that was my alter-ego.”

During the pandemic in 2020, Bates teamed up with a producer she knew from guitar lessons named Lee Miles and began recording her music, releasing her first video “Kissing Strangers” eight months ago. Bates has since followed up with her second release, the anti-valentine anthem “Saint Valentine.”

“I always told people in high school I was going to make music,” Bates said. “So, when my first song came out, they were like ‘oh, she actually did it’ and it gained a lot of traction.”

Currently, Bates is working on recording her scheduled songs she plans to release throughout the year, while building a social media audience and trying to get the attention of a label. Bates’ next song, a slower ballad was released on Friday, titled “Oceans Away” on all her platforms, including Spotify and Apple Music.

In the meantime, Bates is finishing up the classes she needs for her psychology major, and trying to decide if she wants to transfer or focus on her music.