Fresh off the release of his fifth studio album “Yes!” Jason Mraz sat down with Larry King to counter critics who accuse him of being too positive and explains why his heart will always be in coffee shops.
The Grammy winner addressed his critics, and whether he’s as happy as his music would suggest. “When I hear people accuse me of being positive, they accuse me in a way that says ‘Well, it can’t be real. You can’t really be that positive all the time.’ And they’re correct, I’m not positive all the time. But I’ve used art and songwriting as an opportunity to transform my sadness, my depression, my melancholy into something more positive, through positive articulation and through writing these mantras set to music.”
On his fifth studio album ‘Yes!” Jason exclaimed, “This is my best work yet!” The album is a collection of more mellow tunes than his previous work. Fun fact: Mraz was surprised that “I’m Yours” became a chart-topping hit, “Maybe this is a kid’s song. Maybe I’ll save this for a kid’s album.”
Here are some quotes:
“I like peace. As a songwriter, I found that when I sang in a hotel room I wouldn’t express myself as loudly or openly. I was nervous about the thin walls. So something was very compelling about the wilderness, where I could be as loud as I wanted to be.”
“I love positive articulation. That’s my favorite thing in the world.” — on his decision to call his latest album “Yes!”
“I tried to write fictional tunes and they just don’t fly.” — on writing from a personal place
“I think YouTube artists should get out of the computer screen and spend some time in the real world in the coffee shops.”
“I grew up listening to doo-wop music with my dad. My mom loved the crooners, the Frank Sinatra’s, the Tony Bennett’s. So I always had that, but when I pick up a guitar what comes out, it’s me.” — on finding his own voice among influences.
“That’s my only objective when I’m making an album is I have to love it and it has to be beautiful.”
“I’m Yours surprised me big time, and the fact that we just saw a young man playing it on a ukulele is exactly what I thought of it when I wrote it. I said, Maybe this is a kid’s song. Maybe I’ll save this for a kid’s album.”
“Surfing stopped me. I fell in love with the sea. It seemed strange to me to come out of the ocean and light a cigarette.” — on what stopped his smoking.
“Especially before I’m going to do a big tour in front of thousands of people, I always needs to go back and at least do one coffee shop show just to remember, ok, this is who I really am. Don’t let yourself get carried away out there.”
“For me, singing opera onstage is more a parlor trick.”
“Know that the music itself is the reward and not some award on your shelf or the number of lights that you get. You’re not your lights. You’re the quality of your art.” — his advice to young musicians starting out.