Back in 2006 or so some friends and I got into John West. He’s a Baton Rouge native who had just relocated to Los Angeles and started on a small tour with a few other musicians. His positive outlook on life flows right from his soul right through his music for the world to see. It was something that I instantly related to. Even his lyrics are similar to the stuff that I write on regular basis.
When I first heard his music, I was hooked, and more importantly…inspired.
The way he takes life’s troubles and turns them into a positive is what I try my best to do. We had to have seen him at least 4 or 5 times over a few months. I remember seeing him in the back of a coffee house outside of Stockton, California. There were probably a dozen people there and that’s being generous on the probably. San Jose and San Francisco were a couple of other venues, his music led me to people that changed my life dramatically, and was a major change from my pessimistic ways back then.
Earlier this summer he signed to Island Def Jam, meaning no more Santa Monica Promenade performances, which is unfortunate because I just live down the street now. Maybe I’ll finally pick up the guitar and do the same while I’m here.
Although this new song, Already There, is like a lot of his new music since signing to a “big label” and sounds a lot different than tracks that made him one of my favorite artists (listen to tracks like Katrina, New Year’s Day, Saints n Sinners, Thought I Was, etc.), the positive message is refreshing. Big Sean seems to be pretty positive for a hip-hop artist also, but I really haven’t gotten into his music enough to speak on it.
I’m curious to know what other people think of this new track. Feel free to leave me a comment below.
To further show the drastic change between the blue-eyed soulful guitar and the corporatized sounds, check out the two versions of Loved You Tonight below.