Artist of The Month: Jon B!
Jon B. speaks to Aries from UrbanBridgez.com about his new release "Helpless Romantic," Being a father, how he really feels about Justin Timberlake & Robin Thicke and more!
Jon B: When I get done with one album, I really start working on more music. I go into my studio which is in my house in the basement and start. So I start writing and doing production for new songs. I always record a bunch of songs to get it down to the 14 that will make the album. I recorded like 150 for this album (laughs). But for the last three years I've just been really busy man. I've been working with people like Keith Robinson (Dreamgirls) and I did like 8 songs that are going to be on his album. He's a phenomenal vocalist as well as actor. Like with me I realize that I'm a good musician who can write, arrange, sing, etc. I'm not an actor, just a musician that's how I get down (laughs). Like I always know what I wanna do and how. During my time away I also became a father.
UrbanBridgez.com: Tell me about "Helpless Romantic."
Jon B: It's my baby, I mean literally my baby. I have a 15 month old, she's my princess. Having a family slowed me down in a sense you know. At the same time, I'm alot more focused and I think creative and I've defiantly matured. It's like I feel I'm older, but I'm going back to feeling how I did in my youth. With the album, I went back to the roots of what I was doing. Like what Ne-Yo is doing with the writing of real R&B. Kats like that are the ones who gave me the hunger to get back in this game. He does what I do and it was inspiring like with John Legend. He inspires me, so with artists like them it let me know my voice is valid and there's a spot for me. I'm so glad to be back. Everything I'm doing on this album is kind of like a throwback to the Cool/Relax album, taking it back to real R&B. That was without a doubt my most successful album, but fans tell me all the time, it's their favorite one. There is only one Hip-Hop influenced single on the album and that's So Sexy with Paul Wall.
UrbanBridgez.com: When will the fans see the video for that song?
Jon B: That's something we're working on now. We're planning it out to make sure it's right. It's like now having the control when it comes to all of that is different for me, but it's a good thing. I mean I've had a lot of videos but never had one where I was in complete control you know.
UrbanBridgez.com: I know you compared it to Cool/Relax, but how is this album different from your past releases as far as the maturity level?
Jon B: It's much more modern in terms of the production. I mean I can do things now of course that I couldn't do back then as far as production. At the same time it's soul records, like no club records. Everything on the album has a reason for being there, it all tells a story. It's not like the general R&B song like me saying "let me love you" (laughs). It's real experiences, like about me and my wife and having a child. "Helpless Romantic" is the theme song, it puts the whole album in perspective. The title track compares my love to the Titanic when it comes to my lady, "like saying I'm going to give you the ride of our lives." All of the songs have a theme and a reason.
I speak on my daughter & how it felt to have my first child. I share that experience on the album. I mean there are so many bad things we're going through these days like the Hurricanes but music is always there to relax us. It's like being in rush hour traffic and you just pop your iPod in and the music can just sweep you off to another place. I think music is more powerful than a Hurricane. Hell love can rock your body like a Hurricane (laughs). There's a song where I'm like paying homage to producers like Kanye West and Pete Rock, it's called "Say Yeah." Me and my wife just got back from Dubai, we were welcomed by a Prince who is like a billionaire. I did a show there & we just felt and were treated like royalty. So that really inspired the song, "don't tell me no, it's much easier if you say yeah." Like how I want my wife to always feel. Let me show how it's like to shop where ever you want, just do your thing and go somewhere fly (laughs) and enjoy our selves.
I have alot of water vibes on the album. Like in an interlude my wife did some spoken word. She doesn't sing or anything, but she does spoken word. Like she's saying it's easier to breathe and what it's like to be a Helpless Romantic. I have to talk about this. I did a remake on the album called "Everybody Here Wants You" by Jeff Buckly. He was another white soul man (laughs). His voice is on another level. He was just amazing, he wrote, arranged did it all. He was another one of the greats who died at the age of 27 like Pac, Jimi Hendrix and Jim Morrison. It's crazy because whenever I sing his music, I feel like it's my music. You know like just his deliverance and his lyrics. I'm new to doing covers as you know, but I had to do this one. This was actually the last song he recorded before he passed. I think it would of been such a huge hit for him. When people hear my version who haven't heard his, I'm sure they will look it up online and check it out. Then they'll know what I mean.
UrbanBridgez.com: Last time we spoke you mentioned being disappointed in the way your last album was being promoted by Sanctuary. Did that play a part in you deciding to leave the label.
Jon B: I really wanna start by saying, they did do a lot for me, but they just signed way too many artists at one time. I mean they signed me, Chaka Khan, Earth,Wind and Fire, Ray J and some more people. And it was the same story with us all. I think we all just figured because we were with Matthew Knowles we were good. But we wasn't and it wasn't him or anything to do with him. It was the actual label. He didn't control our checks. And now all of those artists I named are Indie. We had to adjust to that and now it's in our own hands. Like now if I don't sell or do well or whatever, I have nobody to blame but me! It feels so good to be in control of my career now for the first time. I mean I'm a man now, a father, a husband. It's up to me to make sure my daughters pamper gets changed, so I have to make sure I can buy them. I have to make sure my transfers are made on time into my account from my royalties, not anybody else.
UrbanBridgez.com: What do you think of MySpace?
Jon B: I love MySpace and the just the whole MySpace movement. They have a place that has allowed my company grow.
UrbanBridgez.com: Who are some new artists you're feeling and would like to possibly work with in the future?
Jon B: Alicia Keys, I love her. Erykah Badu for sure. Jazmine Sullivan, who I just met recently on radio promo. She's really cool and I love her voice. Ne-Yo would be another one I would love to work with. I want to do like a really huge record, like on a Pop level with Justin Timberlake. I think our voices together would be nice, just blending the two together into a nice track. The same with Robin Thicke. I think someone who would compliment my voice & style on a track together well is Mary J.Blige. I would love to work with her. Just her whole street style is something I understand and relate to. We're the same age, I've always been such a fan of hers and Kenny Green (of Intro, who passed away) the style they created in the early stages of her career. Take it back to the "Reminisce" days and the whole "My Life" album. That's when I started looking at album credits and seeing who did what & seen Kenny Green. He put me up on Production in a big way. So I always have to give props to him and of course Diddy as well for starting that whole movement.
UrbanBridgez.com: Do you feel like me that you helped pave the way for artists like Justin Timberlake and Robin Thicke?
Jon B: No doubt, I did! I was the first white artist with a #1 R&B song. As long as I've been doing it, I'm not known as a blue eyed soul singer or whatever. I'm known as an R&B artist. Nobody cares that I'm white, I made it past all of that into R&B. It wasn't like that before me with a male artist. I don't feel like I deserve an award or anything like that (laughs). I just think I deserve the opportunity to collaborate with them on a real level. It's not about competition or being competitive at all! I mean this is music, not sports. Leave the competitiveness for that, there's room for everybody in music! I miss the time when everybody shared the music, like with collaborations & just focused on making good music! I look at Justin Timberlake and Timberland and the work they've done and it reminds me of me and Babyface. It's the same thing. People often ask me what is my opnion of Justin and Robin and it seems like they expect me to say something bad. I'm like umm they're good (laughs).
UrbanBridgez.com: Any last words for your fans?
Jon B: I respect all the love they have gave me these 12 years. I'm on album #5 and it drops October 28th! Love is Love, peace!
