{"id":31315,"date":"2026-02-01T00:11:32","date_gmt":"2026-02-01T08:11:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sandiegotroubadour.com\/?p=31315"},"modified":"2026-02-01T10:43:00","modified_gmt":"2026-02-01T18:43:00","slug":"the-magic-and-music-of-julia-sage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sandiegotroubadour.com\/the-magic-and-music-of-julia-sage\/","title":{"rendered":"The Magic and Music of Julia Sage"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Julia Sage. Photo by Kristin Albright.<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Ever since she was a little girl in Santiago, Chile, Julia Sage could do two things really well: connect with the realm beyond and sing. It only makes sense that she developed both of those unique skills as she grew up to embody the woman she is today. Julia Sage is a gently fierce force who takes all of her life experiences, her dealings with spirits, and her love of music and channels them all toward being a captivating singer-songwriter and a dynamic energy and sound healer.<\/p>\n

Maybe it\u2019s best to start at the beginning.<\/p>\n

Early Years<\/strong>
\nJulia recalls living under the Pinochet regime as a child. \u201cI grew up during a long dictatorship, so life was challenging and what I would consider a bit traumatic, now that I know better. I remember that the economy was rough on the working class (as it usually is) and how that affected access to food. One of my earliest memories is crying about being hungry and my mom having to ask a neighbor for help to feed me something. I was close to my mother and felt loved and cared for, but she was old fashioned and had a bit of a temper. Yet I can\u2019t blame her in any shape or form. She had six kids to raise and most of the time by herself since my dad always had to work really hard to support the family. But he was there for me, had a great sense of humor (my mom did as well), and taught me good values. Neither one of them was anywhere close to perfect, but that side of my childhood felt safe and protected. My parents did their best to provide love and care.\u201d<\/p>\n

Part of that love and care included family parties for holidays where there was always dancing and music, which Julia loved very much, \u201cI was always singing when I was little.\u201d Though not an only child\u2014her brothers and sisters were much older\u2014she had to entertain herself much of the time. It\u2019s one reason she feels that she became a creative person. In school she kept great grades and participated in school plays and choir, \u201cJust singing; I didn\u2019t play an instrument back then. One of my brothers had a band when I was a young child\/tween, so I\u2019m sure the fact that I wasn\u2019t allowed to touch his guitar made it even more appealing to me.\u201d Her dad bought her her first guitar as a birthday present in her early teens. \u201cAs soon as I got it, I started writing songs as I taught myself how to play it. Most of my early songs were songs of protest.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the same time, Julia recognized another gift, one that seems to run in her family. \u201cI\u2019ve actually been very sensitive and in touch with the other side since I was a kid. My grandfather used to do astral projection. My grandmother used to read palms and do tarot card readings. Since a very young age I used to have (and still have) very vivid dreams (and a lot of them) where I would see light coming out of the palms of my hands. I used to dream of people before I met them. These dreams were always about saving or healing people (and animals)\u2026 people I did and didn\u2019t know, it didn\u2019t make a difference. It always felt like a powerful burst of energy full of goodness. This was before I even knew about energy healing and all that. I would see mythical beings, too. I used to joke that I was a superhero in my dreams. I would, in my own weird way, meditate without knowing what I was doing, mainly through drawing, writing music, and connecting with nature. The sense of wonder that I used to have since I was little has never gone away.\u201d<\/p>\n

Julia sang in her high school choir every year, and she also played basketball, soccer, tennis, and table tennis. She was also singing and making some appearances outside of school. She had a multitude of influences from around the world and was interested in different styles of music like classical, tango, and opera. \u201cGrowing up in Chile and the amount of amazing songwriters we had (when a country is in turmoil, as you know, creators are creating), it\u2019s probably a huge part of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

After high school, she was given an opportunity she couldn\u2019t pass up: the chance to be in Venus, the first Chilean all-female heavy-metal band. \u201cI played a few shows with them, recorded a cover song in the studio, and we had appearances on national TV (including S\u00e1bados Gigantes<\/em>, which was a huge variety show in South America). We opened for a national act and played a couple of shows after that, but I decided to concentrate on going to college. I bet my life would have been a lot different had I kept being a part of it; it\u2019s one of those \u201csliding doors\u201d points in my life for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

So instead of chasing her rock star dreams, Julia sought her education, the first of several forays into higher learning. She was an advertising and graphic design major, and she also did film photography. While in school, life happened. She fell in love and got married (\u201cway too young!\u201d) He lived in the U.S., so she came with him. The marriage didn\u2019t last, but she eventually found her way to San Diego in the late \u201990s after visiting a friend and realizing she could wear t-shirts in January. It wasn\u2019t long before that she also started playing shows in town. \u201cMy very first shows were at coffee shops. I remember opening for Gregory Page at Java Joe\u2019s when it was in OB and playing at Twiggs several times. I opened for Randi Driscoll there and played improvised duets with Jon Ciccolella (RIP).”<\/p>\n

Now let\u2019s fast forward to her more recent past and what\u2019s going on these days.<\/p>\n