Interview with Jon Hayes
Jon Hayes is an alternative musician.
Why did you want to do music professionally?
The seed for wanting to do music as my full-time profession started when I was eleven years old, maybe earlier. I started learning how to play guitar, immediately started writing songs and at the same time started dreaming about "making it big" in music with bands my brother and I started. I had been impacted so much by the music I had grown up listening to and loved the idea of being that artist for someone else. I loved writing, I loved performing, and I loved all that was connected with being an artist that I just knew I wanted to do this professionally.
What inspires your music?
Right now it's anything that gives me a deep emotion. In a recent chapter of my writings, it was often heavy subjects: pain, sorrow, doubts, questions and that still holds true today at times (as you'll be able to tell on my album "Between You and Me,") but I've started being able to write with a broader emotional and style palette which is a reassuring thing to see in myself.
What things get you in the mood to write songs, or do lyrics come spontaneously?
I think it often coincides with a deep emotion. Like I said, that's often been the sadder side of things for me but I'm seeing now that nostalgia, reconnection, relief,happiness are all pretty inspiring to me as long as I make a convincing enough melody and set of lyrics to fit it. My process is often sporadic, I'll have an emotion or an idea of what emotion I want to sit into and will usually get initial lyrics and melody at the same time. I'm often writing in my head while I'm at work from scratch or from some simple idea I had vocally or on guitar previously and fleshing out the feel and sound of the song. From there, I continue to chew on the song in my mind, recording voice memos on my phone to keep track of my notes and then eventually I'll sit down with my guitar to flesh it out more or even record a demo on my computer to flesh out the arrangement. It happens in different ways at different times: sometimes guitar first, sometimes melody and lyrics, but it's all connected to a feeling I'm wanting to explore or express.
How do you want your music to affect people?
The greatest compliment I could receive is that one of my songs deeply touched someone else's heart and for me to feel in their voice that my music connected with them the way Switchfoot, NEEDTOBREATHE, John Mayer, or so many other artists' music has touched me. I would love people to feel like my song helped give voice to feelings they didn't know how to articulate, this feeling of "I didn't know I needed to say that, but there it is: he just said it and I totally feel the same way."
Do you test out your songs before releasing them? How do you do this?
Yeah, I test out my songs pretty naturally! I get excited any time I have a song that I really dig, and so, naturally, I send a demo to any one of my friends I think will say "dude. I dig this." haha. I've got a good group of friends who's taste I trust, so if the song sits well with them and I know I love it too, then I know my gut is right and it's a keeper.
How do you prepare for a gig?
It differs if it's a solo gig or a full band gig. For solo, I'm at a point where I've been up on stage enough and have played my current chapter of music enough times that I don't have to practice since I'm playing every week right now. I'll just try to think through my setlist and think about how I want to transition and then feel it out and change according to the feel of the moment. For full band gigs, my guys and I are still building a foundation so we're in the practice phase right now of trying to take our time sitting into each of the songs and getting them to feel solid and hit just right. After that's done, we'll start figuring out setlists and transitions; making sure everybody knows what to do when and what parts of the show they need to cover. Lots of taking our time, communication, and building up group-instincts.
What is your favorite song that you've written?
Right now, it's "Nursery Lie" or "Between You and Me,". I'll focus on the latter since it's just released and it's the title track of the record. Verse one of this song is something I'm very proud of lyrically. I was deeply inspired by Kevin Klein's lyrical approach in Valleyheart's first EP "Nowadays" when it came out. He had this way of treating lyrics like camera angles; instead of doing everything as a close up or a mid or wide shot of whatever he's focusing on, he does super tight close ups to where you focus on individual elements of the subject he's talking about and then your mind is able to figure out what he's talking about in the end by filling in the cracks. But he does this in an obvious,intuitive way, it's not overly poeticized to where the subject gets lost or buried. Listen to "Nowadays" by them and pay attention to the verses to see what I mean. I didn't intentionally emulate this, but it ended up coming out in the lines "Between you and me, I'm getting older. I'm still so young, but there's a weight on my shoulders; that I have carried since I was eight years old. Fifteen years can be a lifelong load." There's this ping pong effect in the lines that takes the meaning of concepts and stretches or spins them and these details that are gained without having to specifically say them, such as my age at the time of writing this song. I was really satisfied by the effect these words had on me at least.
Has there been a reaction to one of your songs that you've been surprised by?
Perhaps in moments rather than overall. I say that because as an artist just getting going, I can have all these grand expectations that don't get met. I've probably had a lot of times where I've thought "Man, why is this not getting the recognition it deserves?" rather than the opposite. But, there was a time where I was over one of my closest friends' houses after a gig and his roommate came up to me and complimented me deeply on "Nursery Lie". Haha, he went on to say that he thought it was one of the best songs ever written which was definitely a surprise for me.
What are some ways that you promote yourself?
I started off with a lot of self-promotion, messaging people mostly and posting on socials. Over time I learned about playlisting and facebook ads which I started using with Nursery Lie's release and have done one or both for each release since then. It's helped a lot, and now with playing more consistent gigs I've had a more consistent budget to put into advertising. For the release of my most recent track "Between You and Me,", I was able to hire a publicist, Olivia Long, which is how I'm talking with you now!
What would you say has been the biggest challenge of your career?
Honestly, getting over insecurity and finances. The first challenge held me back from just getting going when I first got started five years ago. The second caused some of the insecurity because I couldn't afford professional recording time, professional artwork, etc. and so I had to do what I could with what I had and what I could learn on my own for the first chapter of my career.
What have been your favorite places to tour?
Festivals! A well presented festival with an outdoor stage gives you the images you crave to see as an aspiring artist: a wide open stage with gear spread across it, people waiting at the barrier to listen to the set, and green grass and a bright, sunny sky. You feel like a "real" act for a minute, even if you're not that big yet haha. I'm trying to book a lot of outdoor festivals next Summer for this reason haha.
Are there advantages to being an independent musician?
Absolutely. As an independent artist you maintain creative control over your project. You get to listen to your gut, your desire, and the counsel that you trust. The right record label can excel your career immensely, but being independent ensures you get to be the artist that you want to be. You get to keep all the profit too, which is a plus. *wink*