|
Jason Mraz
|
| Jason Mraz | |
|---|---|
 Jason Mraz performing at Point Nepean on March 18, 2008
|
|
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Jason Mraz |
| Born | June 23, 1977 |
| Origin | Mechanicsville, Virginia |
| Genre(s) | Rock, pop rock, alternative, blue-eyed soul |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter, musician |
| Instrument(s) | Vocals, guitar, mandolin, ukelele |
| Years active | 1999–present |
| Label(s) | Atlantic (2005-present) Elektra (2002–2005) |
| Website | www.jasonmraz.com |
| Notable instrument(s) | |
| Guitar | |
Jason Mraz (IPA: /ˈdʒeɪsʌn mɜrˈæz/1, born June 23, 1977) is an American Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter, born and raised in Mechanicsville, Virginia. Mraz's stylistic influences include reggae, pop, rock, folk, jazz, and hip hop. He has played with various artists, including Jack Johnson, Dave Matthews Band, James Blunt, Gavin DeGraw, Paula Cole, John Popper, Alanis Morissette, The Ohio Players, Rachael Yamagata, James Morrison, Lisa Hannigan, John Mayer, Jewel, Colbie Caillat2, and Ingrid Michaelson.citation needed
Contents |
Biography
He attended a performing arts college in New York City for a short time, studying musical theater before moving to San Diego.
His first single, "The Remedy (I Won't Worry)," was co-written by music production team The Matrix. Mraz's friend and former roommate Billy "Bushwalla" Galewood also collaborated on the album, co-writing "Curbside Prophet" and the album's third single, and "I'll Do Anything".
In June and July 2005, Mraz opened for Alanis Morissette during her Jagged Little Pill Acoustic Tour. On July 26, 2005, he released his second major-label album, Mr. A-Z, for Atlantic Records. It entered the Billboard 200 album chart at number 5.3 In December, the album earned a Grammy Award nomination for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical, while its producer, the prolific Steve Lillywhite, received a nomination for Producer of the Year.4
Mraz began his long-running tour in support of Mr. A-Z at the San Diego Music Awards on September 12. The tour featured a variety of opening acts, including Bushwalla and Tristan Prettyman, with whom he had co-written the duet "Shy That Way" in 2002.5 Mraz and Prettyman dated, ending their relationship in 2006. They also co-wrote the song "All I Want For Christmas is Us".citation needed
In November 2005, Mraz opened for the Rolling Stones on five dates during their 2005–2006 world tour. Also in 2005, Mraz was one of many singers featured in the fall advertisement campaign for The Gap entitled "Favorites". The music-themed campaign also featured other singers including Tristan Prettyman, Michelle Branch, Joss Stone, Keith Urban, Alanis Morissette, Brandon Boyd, and Michelle Williams.6 In December 2005, Mraz released the first part of his ongoing podcast.
In March 2006, Mraz also performed for the first time at a sold-out (one month before the actual performance date) performance in Singapore with Toca as part of the annual Mosaic Music Festival.citation needed
In May 2006, Mraz toured mostly small venues and music festivals in the U.S., along with a few shows in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The tour included a May 6, 2006 acoustic show with P.O.D., Better Than Ezra, Live, and The Presidents of the United States of America. Mraz was featured as a headlining guest of St. Louis's annual Fair St. Louis and performed a free concert at the base of the Arch on July 1, 2006.
In December 2006, Selections for Friends, the live, online-only album recorded during the Songs for Friends Tour, was released. Selections for Friends features Jason's favorite songs from the Schubas Tavern and Villa Montalvo shows he played in July 2006.
Jason Mraz began 2007 by debuting his new single "The Beauty in Ugly", an earlier track penned by Mraz entitled "Plain Jane" that he rewrote for the ABC TV show Ugly Betty. The song was featured as a part of ABC's "Be Ugly in '07" campaign.7 He has since released a song in Spanish entitled "La Nueva Belleza (The New Beauty)".8
In 2007, American Idol contestant Chris Richardson performed "Geek in the Pink", which subsequently garnered the song mass recognition and increased downloads at the American iTunes Store. It was also performed later that year by Canadian Idol contestant Greg Neufeld.citation needed "Geek in the Pink" peaked at #22 on the U.S. iTunes Store on March 10, 2007, but it was ineligible for the site's Hot 100.citation needed
The tape-recording of bootlegs during Mraz's shows is explicitly supported by him and his management.9 Mr. Mraz is a loving person interested in people's health and the health of our planet, to turn his beliefs and love into action he is rumored to follow a vegan rawfood diet. He also smokes. 10
Jason is currently promoting his latest studio album, We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things. which was released on May 13, 2008. Mraz's single "I'm Yours" has been #1 on AAA radio charts in the US for 3 weeks as of 6/15/08. The single was a B-side to Mr A-Z, and was made famous by recordings from his live shows. In September 2008, the song became Mraz's first Top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking so far at #6. As of October 14, 2008, the album has been certified Gold by the RIAA, selling in excess of 500,000 copies in the US.
Mraz performed "A Beautiful Mess" with a full orchestra at the Nobel Peace Prize Concert in Oslo, Norway on December 11, 2008. 11
Discography
Studio albums
- Waiting for My Rocket to Come (2002) #55 U.S. (Platinum)
- Mr. A-Z (2005) #5 U.S.
- We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things. (2008) #3 U.S. (Gold) #35 UK
EPs and other releases
- A Jason Mraz Demonstration (1999)
- Live at Java Joe's (2001)
- From the Cutting Room Floor (2001)(2002)
- Sold Out (In Stereo) (2002)
- The E Minor EP in F (2002)
- Tonight, Not Again: Jason Mraz Live at the Eagles Ballroom (2004) #49 U.S.
- Wordplay - EP (2005)
- Extra Credit - EP (2005) - Digital EP
- Jimmy Kimmel Live: Jason Mraz - EP (2005) - iTunes
- Geekin' Out Across the Galaxy (2006) - Digital Live EP
- Selections for Friends (2007) - Digital Live LP #22 Top Digital Albums
- iTunes Live: London Sessions - EP (2008) - U.K. iTunes12
- We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things.. - EP (2008)13 #101 U.S.
Singles
| Year | Title | Chart Positions14 | Album | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Hot 100 | US Pop 100 | CAN | UK | GER | NOR | NET | ITA | SWE | AUS | ||||||||
| 2003 | "The Remedy (I Won't Worry)" | 15 | – | – | 79 | – | – | – | – | – | 63 | Waiting for My Rocket to Come | |||||
| 2004 | "Curbside Prophet" | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | ||||||
| "You and I Both" | 110 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |||||||
| 2005 | "Wordplay" | 81 | 59 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | Mr. A-Z | |||||
| "Geek in the Pink" | – | 90 | – | 128 | – | – | – | – | – | – | |||||||
| 2008 | "I'm Yours" | 6 | 5 | 4 | 55 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 3 | We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things | |||||
| "Make It Mine"[A] | – | – | – | – | TBA | – | – | – | 24 | – | |||||||
| "–" denotes singles that did not chart or were not released. | |||||||||||||||||
- Notes
- A^ Current single.
Lucky
Guest contributions
- "Curbside Prophet '04", from the New York Minute Soundtrack (2004)
- "I Melt with You", from the 50 First Dates Soundtrack (2004)
- "Summer Breeze", from the Everwood: Original TV Soundtrack (2004)
- "Dramatica Mujer", with Alex Cuba Band from the album Humo de Tabaco (2005)
- "Shy That Way", with [[TristCollection (2005)
- "Unravel", "The Boy's Gone", and "Plain Jane", from the album Hear Music XM Radio Sessions Volume 1 (2005)
- "The Joker/Everything I Own", a duet on the Happy Feet soundtrack with Chrissie Hynde (2007)
- "Slummin' In Paradise", background vocals for Mandy Moore, from the album Wild Hope (2007)
- "Something to Believe In", with Van Hunt and Jon McLaughlin from the album Randy Jackson's Music Club, Vol. 1 (2008)
- "Beauty in Ugly" (Ugly Betty Version) (2007)
- "Long Road to Forgiveness" (with Brett Dennen, from the album Songs for Survival) (2008)
- "Silent Love Song", from the benefit album Fire Relief: A Benefit for the Victims of the 2007 San Diego Wildfires (2008)
- "Rainbow Connection", from the album "For the Kids Too" (2006)
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 2002 | San Diego Music Awards - Best Acoustic | Won |
| 2003 | San Diego Music Awards - Artist of the Year | Won |
| 2003 | San Diego Music Awards - Song of the Year | Won |
| 2009 | Grammy Award - Song of the Year for "I'm Yours" | Nominated |
| 2009 | Grammy Award - Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "I'm Yours" | Nominated |
References
- ^ See inogolo:pronunciation of Jason Mraz.
- ^ See [1].
- ^ Zahlaway, John. (August 12, 2005. Jason Mraz books headlining fall tour LiveDaily.com Accessed July 1, 2007.
- ^ Fast Facts: 48th Annual Grammy Nominees December 8, 2005. Accessed July 1, 2007.
- ^ Jacobs, Jay S. (2005). Tristan Prettyman Rides the Crest Accessed July 1, 2007.
- ^ July 31, 2005
- ^ iTunes iTunes: Jason Mraz: The Beauty in Ugly
- ^ iTunes iTunes: Jason Mraz: La Nueva Belleza
- ^ http://www.jasonmraz.com
- ^ http://music.yahoo.com/read/news/22942530
- ^ http://nobelpeaceprize.org/concert/index.php
- ^ U.K. iTunes - iTunes Home: Music: Rock: Jason Mraz: iTunes Live: London Sessions - EP
- ^ Via Atlantic Records - Jason Mraz releases/Tour talk!
- ^ "Billboard chart positions - singles". allmusic. Retrieved on 2008-09-19.
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Jason Mraz |
- Official Jason Mraz website
- Jason Mraz at the Internet Movie Database
- Jason Mraz channel at YouTube
- Official Jason Mraz iLike Page
- Jason Mraz collection at the Internet Archive's live music archive
|
|||||||||||||||||