When a teenaged Jason Mraz left the comforts of home in Mechanicsville, Virginia, for New York City, he was seeking fame and fortune on Broadway rather than on the pop charts — Mraz was briefly enrolled as a musical theater student at NYC's American Musical and Dramatic Academy. The pull of the stage couldn't compete with the pull of a guitar, however, and after developing his chops and his songwriting craft as a Central Park busker, Mraz moved to Southern California. There, he quickly became a fixture of San Diego's singer/songwriter coffeehouse scene, gigging primarily at notable hotspot Java Joe's, often accompanied by percussionist Toca Rivera.
Mraz's breezy, entertaining, cross-genre approach adds hints of jazz, reggae and hip-hop to a pop sensibility, and he's developed a reputation as a poetic lyricist with a knack for striking turns-of-phrase. His music was first showcased to a worldwide audience on his 2002 major label debut, Waiting For My Rocket To Come, which contained the hit singles "The Remedy (I Won't Worry)," "You And I Both" and "Curbside Prophet." That album was followed in 2005 by Mr. A-Z (which contained the humorously self-aware hit single "Wordplay").
After touring extensively for Mr. A-Z, Mraz took a year off from the road and any studio work in order to re-focus on his writing. The result of that well-rested effort is his current album, We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things. The album was recorded in London with producer Martin Terefe, best-known for his work with Coldplay, and features lead single "I'm Yours," as well as "Lucky," a duet with singer-songwriter Colbie Caillat. The album derives its title from a piece by U.K. artist David Shrigley, who also designed the album's artwork.
Provenance: Mechanicsville, Virginia
Latest Release: We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things. (2008)
© 2008 Nigel Music Media LLC. Used by permission.
Jason Mraz
