Our guest for THIS INTERVIEW is an incredible two-time Grammy and Billboard Award winning singer, songwriter, and composer who has famously worked with a host of music legends and recording industry icons including Barbra Streisand, Andrea Bocelli, Natasha Bedingfield, Lauren Daigle, Idina Menzel, David Foster, and Celine Dion. He is currently capturing hearts and lifting spirits with his Capitol Records debut single “Not Alone”. His wardrobe hits all the right notes too.
Please welcome to THISENT.com … Jonas Myrin!
This is totally a writer question: Is it good or bad to feel alone while you’re writing?
When I’m feeling alone, I often go to the piano. It has always been a refuge and a safe place for me, bringing comfort and sometimes just being a friend that can listen.
It’s amazing that even in a difficult or challenging time, that a song can be birthed from a place that can later help and bring hope to others. That is what I love so much about music: that it can take our pain and turn it into purpose.
That’s such an encouraging answer, Jonas. Thank you for that. Tell us about something you’ve read or heard recently that impressed you by how beautifully it was worded.
I read a quote by Leonard Cohen that says: “Blessed are the cracked, coz they let the light in.” I just love that analogy, that sometimes it is in our cracks and brokenness where we can actually find and allow the light to shine through.
You’ve got Grammys, you’ve got a Billboard award, and you’ve worked with legends! But how do those accolades compare to you completing a song exactly the way you envisioned it?
There is something really special about writing a song for your own voice, from your own heart. It’s scary and it takes a lot of courage to release those most inner thoughts. It’s like putting your diary out for the world to read!
But there is something really special about writing music from that authentic and real place. I feel so grateful for all of the incredible artists and writers from around the world that I have had the opportunity to work with. They have each played an important role in making me the person and artist that I am today.
Jonas, you’re quite the well-dressed person. Meticulously detailed. Do your outfits tell stories about you?
Ah, thank you!
You’re welcome!
I have always had a passion for art, and if that comes through in my music, interior design, photography or fashion – for me it is all about expressing and being yourself.
I love wearing different styles and colors, because of what I want to explore and find in the moment. If I am writing for a specific type of music for example, I may sometimes purposefully put on something that helps me find that feeling — that is what I love about fashion – it’s just another expression of art, where you get to be the canvas.
Very cool. Life is art. Okay, tell us about the most obscure place that you’ve drawn song inspiration from.
I was on a flight once, when suddenly I had a song idea. When I get a song idea I need to quickly record the melody into my phone, or else I will forget it. Everyone around me was sleeping and I couldn’t leave my seat without waking somebody up, so I put a blanket on top of my head and began quietly singing the new melody into my phone, trying my best not to wake anybody up.
As I was singing, the person next to me knocked on my shoulder and said, “Oh I’m so sorry that you’re crying, are you ok?” And I just laughed and said, “Oh my, totally fine. I’m just trying to record a song idea (30,000 feet above the ground, in the middle of the night, with a blanket over my head.” That was hilarious.
How are you handling the pandemic when you’re not occupied by working?
It has been a bit of a day-by-day journey for me this season. Some days it’s been amazing to have the time and space to just be, reflect, and to just breathe. And then other days, you can just feel the anxiety and weight of the world on your shoulders. It’s been a blessing to have been able to pour myself into creativity and really use this time for my music and art. I’ve ended up releasing four songs in the last four months!
Wow! Which of your songs, or any song, would you recommend to someone coping with anxiety brought on by the current state of the world?
I would recommend “Not Alone” — the song that I released this summer. With all that we have been going through this year, I felt like I needed to put this song out. It was an anchor for me with everything happening, and I felt that I wanted to pass it on and share it with the world.
The response to the song has been incredible. So many people, struggling with depression, anxiety, and even suicidal thoughts have reached out from around the world and shared that this song has helped them and given them strength and comfort just knowing that they are not alone: even in the darkest night, or the tough situations that they may be walking through.
The song reminds them that they are not alone. So I am super grateful for that, that a song can uplift, and even in our loneliness, unite us.
That’s powerful and so rewarding. What’s something positive that has come out of the pandemic for you?
I learned how to make sourdough bread! I have never baked in my life, but there was no bread to be found in supermarkets here in LA during the first lockdown in March/April. I had to pull out some recipes and learn how to bake! I was able to get my hands on this 140-year-old sourdough starter from my neighbors. It was so much fun to learn a whole new craft. The best thing that I made was sourdough pizza base, which I can truly recommend.
We’re going to have to try that. How have you surprised yourself while working on your album? And what should we expect from your LP?
I feel that I have fallen in love with music all over again, working on my new solo record. There is something so powerful about having the time and space to be able to create from a place of total freedom. Having this blank canvas in front of me every day and getting to dive deep and be true to whatever I want to write has been so special. I can’t wait to share these songs, and the new EP, in 2021.
One more thing: Can we borrow that dope white hat you’re wearing on the cover of “Not Alone”?
Absolutely, anytime! |THIS.
[By Mr. Joe Walker]
