( CNN ) -- Jason Mraz pulled up to the studio near Burbank Airport on his scooter , like a kid anticipating the start of a new school year . But in this case , it was the first day of rehearsal with his new band . `` I invited a lot of people to come audition , a lot of people that I love and have always wanted to work with , but I could n't hire everyone , '' said the San Diego-based singer-songwriter . `` I could only fill five positions . It felt like I was breaking up with people . I had to call people and be like , ' I 'm sorry , it 's not going to work out . ' `` The break-up theme is front-and-center on `` I Wo n't Give Up , '' the lead single off of Mraz 's fourth studio album , `` Love is a Four Letter Word . '' `` It 's not a break-up album . It was certainly written at a time when I was n't certain what was going to happen inside of a relationship , '' he told CNN , settling into a couch . He 's referring to his broken engagement to fellow singer-songwriter Tristan Prettyman . But the two-time Grammy winner says the message is more figurative than literal . June 2011 : Mraz , Prettyman split . `` It 's an album of love songs , but not just through the filter of romanticism . It 's also through compassion and empathy and love of our natural world . At the end of the project , I still did n't feel like these 12 songs summed up what love is . I was like , ' I do n't know . Love is a four letter word . ' '' And so is the word `` tour . '' Mraz 's `` Tour is a Four Letter Word '' kicks off on June 8 in Pusan , South Korea , and hits the United States the following month in Honolulu , Hawaii . In the meantime , he 's devoting much of his passion to the newly launched Jason Mraz Foundation. `` 'Jason , ' in Greek history , means 'healer , ' `` he pointed out . `` So I really wanted to take that on , not only in my music , but in my work in the world . '' Mraz sings at Sundance . The foundation supports a variety of causes , from education and the environment to addiction assistance and human rights . He 's also been outspoken about his support for marriage equality . `` Traditional marriage between a man and a woman , and trying to put that into a law or a rule , is basically saying that gay people are n't real . Well , gay people are very real . It is treating our gay and lesbian citizens like second-class citizens . I think it is the final step in the civil rights movement , '' he said . For Mraz , that 's what his song , `` I Wo n't Give Up , '' is all about . `` It 's about not giving up on a dream , or the integrity of who you are , '' the singer said . `` There is no dream too big or too small . Everyone has one thing that is worth fighting for . ''
Jason Mraz 's fourth album , `` Love is a Four Letter Word , '' has been released . The break-up theme is front-and-center on `` I Wo n't Give Up , '' the lead single . `` It 's an album of love songs , but not just through the filter of romanticism , '' Mraz tells CNN .