We caught up with the brilliant and insightful John Conlin a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

John, appreciate you joining us today. Are you happier as a creative? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job? Can you talk to us about how you think through these emotions?

Music is definitely not an industry one should get into with the intent of making loads of money really quickly. It’s definitely an uphill battle and requires a lot of hard work and mental fortitude; sometimes not knowing what your next move is or where your next paycheck is coming from. With that being said, I’d never trade it for a regular job. I love what I do and love that I get to create for a living. Even though most of my income doesn’t come from my personal artist project, I still find so much joy in producing and arranging vocals for other artists. I love being a part of a creative process and taking songs from an idea to a fully realized project, whether it’s for me or for someone else.

John, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I’ve been a songwriter for easily a decade now, but started doing it professionally about 4 years ago. I love writing for myself but also love writing with/for other artists. I’ve definitely got the writing process down to a science and am able to spit out catchy hooks without really thinking too much about it. Being able to play a part in the execution of someone else’s creative vision is such an incredible experience. A couple of years ago, I got into vocal arranging and production, which is basically creating the supporting backing vocal parts. I work in pop music and one of the things that makes it magical is how background vocals add so much to a song’s mix. I grew up listening to artists like Katy Perry and her producer at the time, Max Martin, is an absolute machine when it comes to producing pop vocals. I’ve definitely taken inspiration from him.
I also put out my own music and play a lot around the Southern California area. I love performing, it’s probably where I feel most at ease and free.
I definitely wear a lot of different hats throughout my week (artist, songwriter, arranger, vocal producer), but I never get tired of it. I love working with other artists and contributing my hookwriting and vocal arranging skills to a song.

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

The biggest goal for me is to be part of a successful song/album. Whether the song is being sung by me or a different artist isn’t really important to me, I just want to be part of creating a song that becomes a bonafide megahit (ala Bad Romance by Lady GaGa or Billie Jean by Michael Jackson). I’ve spent years flexing and building my creative talent as a writer (I challenge myself to write at least a full song per day). I go out frequently to network and build a community with other artists in hopes of increasing my chances of writing with as many people as possible. The more you write, the more opportunities you get, the greater your chances become of getting into a songwriting room for a bigger artist.

Alright – so here’s a fun one. What do you think about NFTs?

I’m not necessarily opposed to the idea of an NFT and “digital” ownership (after all, not even 10 years ago, we were all buying digital copies of music for $1.29 on iTunes when we could’ve just been ripping the audio from youtube). I think there’s a better incentive to purchasing NFT’s when the artist also offers a physical/tangible product with it. For example, “If you buy 5 of my NFTs, you get a signed vinyl of my next album” or “If you buy 2 of my NFTs you get to come to my show for free and get a backstage meet and greet”. The real issue I have with NFTs is the carbon footprint that comes with it. I wish that this whole blockchain thing didn’t require the use of so much energy and honestly, I’m still a little lost as to how storing pixels and codes comes with such a negativeve ecological impact.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.johnconlinmusic.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/johnconlinmusic/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/johnconlinmusic/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnbconlin/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/johnconlinmusic
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/johnconlinmusic
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@johnconlinmusic

Image Credits
Sequoia Emmanuelle (hair and makeup Tatiyana Elias) Holy Smoke Photography (makeup Sammy Singleton)