Ella Gibson is stitching together a sonic patchwork of introspection and growth in her Spring Sing encore.

Making her Los Angeles Tennis Center debut this Friday, the second-year music industry student is returning to the Spring Sing lineup with her new unreleased single “Patch.” Following last year’s virtual performance, Gibson said she has grown more confident in her vocal abilities, allowing her to embrace greater vulnerability within her lyricism. While staying true to the acoustic sound of her first Spring Sing, Gibson said she hopes to bring a renewed energy to this year’s performance, forging a deeper connection with the UCLA audience.

“It’s the biggest performance of my life up to this point,” Gibson said. “I’m really excited for years from now to get to talk about and be like, ‘When I was in college, I got to … participate in this tradition and get to meet a bunch of cool people and work with a bunch of students to put on this show because they love highlighting student artists.”

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Initially writing the track for a UCLA songwriting class, Gibson said the writing process for “Patch” spanned across three different sittings and time periods, mirroring her growth and evolving identity as a songwriter. The lyricism is rooted in the metaphor of a fishbowl, a concept Gibson first explored in high school, delving into themes of vulnerability and the weight of being constantly observed while navigating self-discovery, she said. As one of the first songs she wrote at UCLA, Gibson said her songwriting classes encouraged her to lean into vulnerability and authenticity in her work, allowing her to infuse more of her personal experiences into her songs.

While her previous Spring Sing performance of “Distance” reflected her identity in her first year, Gibson said “Patch” offers a more authentic perspective of who she is now as a songwriter. Gibson said the recording process of “Patch” resembles its ever-evolving nature as the song is continuously undergoing tweaks to ensure the final product resembles her creative vision. David Irish, producer of “Patch” and owner of Pot of Gold Recording, said that the harmonies and production elements are often built on top of Gibson’s prewritten acoustic sample, ensuring her lyricism maintains the primary focus.

“What’s great about her lyric writing is it’s very timeless,” Irish said. “I just turned 50, and I can relate to her lyrics, I’ve always been able to relate to her lyrics. … It’s not just rooted in a perspective of a certain generation.”

Irish said “Patch” explores a new sonic direction from Gibson’s previous releases, incorporating electric guitar and drum loops to add an upbeat texture to the song’s acoustic origin. The recording process has been a result of trial and error, Gibson said, as she balances preserving the song’s stripped-back roots with the sound she envisions for her future work. Connecting with the track’s original form, Gibson said she plans to perform “Patch” acoustically, delivering an intimate performance with just her voice and guitar.

Longtime collaborator and friend Savannah Tweedt said Gibson’s musical evolution is most evident in her shifting approach to music production, as she has welcomed experimentation throughout the songwriting process. Intertwining personal experiences into lyricism is a challenging task as it requires a great level of vulnerability, Tweedt said, lauding Gibson’s ability to craft lyrics that resonate with a diverse range of listeners.

“It (‘Patch’) was one of the first songs where I saw her starting to come out of her shell, just writing about other people or other things. It was something that was really true and real for her,” Tweedt said. “I think a lot of people resonate with wanting to fix things up and just make everything OK because you think that’s what’s expected of you.”

Since last year’s performance, Gibson said she has challenged herself to refine her vocal technique, allowing her to focus more toward the guitar instrumentation in this year’s set. With more stage experience under her belt over the past year, Gibson said she has grown more comfortable performing emotionally vulnerable songs, bringing her rediscovered confidence to the mainstage. Tweedt added that Gibson’s evolved artistic voice has enabled her to carve out her distinct sound, driven by the honesty and authenticity of her lyrics.

“She’s been working really hard to find her sound and what it means to say, ‘This is an Ella Gibson song,’” Tweedt said. “It’s been cool to see all of that come together as she grows and as I get to watch her grow.”

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Following this year’s Spring Sing, Gibson said she is preparing to release an EP, featuring “Patch” alongside other tracks written during her time at UCLA. Influenced by her own experiences, she said she hopes audience members resonate with her message that uncertainty is a natural part of self-discovery and personal growth in college. As Spring Sing celebrates a diverse community of artists and performers, Gibson said she encourages aspiring songwriters to trust their instincts and stay true to their artistic identity.

“I hope that by seeing a songwriter and a woman in music, people feel inspired by that,” Gibson said. “I personally feel the most inspired when I see women, like songwriters and producers and artists, performing and doing things that I connect to in terms of live music.”