Exclusive Interview: Pop Culturalist Chats with Jonas Myrin

Music has the ability to heal the world. It’s the driving force for why Jonas Myrin became the singer, songwriter, and producer he is today, and what a career he’s had.

Since getting his start in 2002, he’s worked with everyone including Barbra Streisand, Idina Menzel, Andrea Bocelli, Lauren Daigle, Nicole Scherzinger, Natasha Bedingfield, and more. He’s played an instrumental role in thirteen chart-topping hits and has racked up millions of streams around the world. Did we mention he also has a Billboard Music, Dove, and Grammy Award?

In 2020, he embarked on an exciting new chapter in his career as his own artist.

Pop Culturalist had the pleasure of speaking with Jonas about discovering his passion for music, his debut single, and the song he wrote for Three Wise Men.

PC: How did you discover your passion for music?
Jonas: I grew up living in a number of places around the world. Everywhere from Sweden to South Africa in addition to traveling to Russia, Iceland, Lapland, and many others. Although things like culture, languages, and places were so often changing around me, the piano always stayed constant. No matter where in the world I was, there was always a piano. As a young kid, the piano was this place that I could always go to and just be and write. It was a friend and safe place to express my feelings.

PC: Who or what has had the biggest influence on your career?
Jonas: I think that what has had the biggest influence on my career has been this desire to help and heal people through the power of music. I’ve always had this sense that music is something bigger than us and that it can be used for a greater purpose.

PC: You’ve had a lot of success already in your career. When you look back, is there a particular moment that stands out?
Jonas: Wow, there have been so many special moments, from winning my first Grammy in 2013 to getting to work with some of the childhood heroes that I grew up listening to, like Andrea Bocelli and Barbra Streisand. Growing up, my mom and dad would play Barbra Streisand in the kitchen. She was one of their favorite singers. It was surreal, years later, to then be working with her and David Foster in her Malibu studio. Moments like these make all of the years of hard work worth it!

PC: You’ve written and produced for a lot of different artists. How have those experiences prepared you for this chapter in your career?
Jonas: Writing and working with so many different artists—across such a variety of genres—has given me the gift to understand the power of a song. Regardless of the genre of music it is, what matters at the end of the day are the lyrics and melodies that are left when you strip away the production. It all comes back to writing something from the heart, something that is authentic and real. And if it is real to you, it will be real to other people.

PC: In 2020, you released your debut single, but it wasn’t initially the song that you were planning on putting out. Tell us about the inspiration behind “Not Alone” and why it was important for you to make the pivot.
Jonas: So, we had planned to put out a different single, but as we began to face the realities of the pandemic, there was one song in particular that really stood out since it had given me and my friends strength throughout the lockdown. It was a song called “Not Alone”. It talks about when you’re standing on the corners of the road and you’re feeling like you’re sinking like a stone, that hope never lets us go. So many people have reached out and just said thank you—individuals who have been struggling with anxiety or depression or just feeling really isolated. They have shared how the song has helped them to remember that they are not alone, no matter what they are going through.

PC: Your song “Just a Breath Away (Noel)” is being featured in the Three Wise Men. What can you tell us about the song? Is the writing/recording experience different with you’re working on a track for a film?
Jonas: I love writing for movies! There is something so powerful when you put together audio with visuals and you get that powerful marriage of picture and song. I wanted to write a song that was talking about how sometimes the person you love is far away, but no matter where you are, you can look up to the stars and realize that they are seeing the same stars as you, and they are just a breath away. That is the message behind “Just a Breath Away (Noel)”.

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

PC: A band or artist that fans would be surprised to learn is on your playlist?
Jonas: I love finding new artists from around the world. As of late, I have been listening to a South African folk artist, Bongeziwe Mabandla, who sings in Xhosa. I just love the sense of melody, rhythm, and complete feeling in his music, and it takes me straight back to growing up in Africa. He’s a truly beautiful singer-songwriter.

PC: First album you bought?
Jonas: Gangsta’s Paradise by Coolio from the movie Dangerous Minds. As a young teenager in Sweden, I just loved that song and the whole soundtrack from that movie.

PC: First concert you attended?
Jonas: Abraham Laboriel, one of the truly great musicians in the world who has played for artists like Michael Jackson, Paul Simon, and Ray Charles. He came to my hometown in Sweden and did the most incredible show. I remember sitting in the audience and thinking that one day I wanted to do the same thing—share my music with the world. Not so long ago I was lucky enough to have dinner with him. I got to tell him about the moment when I saw him play as a kid, and how it inspired me and gave me the fire in my belly to pursue music.

PC: An album that changed your life and why?
Jonas: I think it would have to be Stevie Wonders’ Songs in the Key of Life. My parents loved Stevie Wonder and this album would be played non-stop during my childhood. To this day, this is still one of my favorite albums—there is not a bad song on this record.

PC: A venue on your bucket list to perform at?
Jonas: I’ve had the privilege to perform at some of my favorite venues from Madison Square Garden to Red Rocks Amphitheater in Colorado, but I think it would be a dream to perform here in my hometown in LA at The Hollywood Bowl. That is still a bucket list venue for me.

PC: A must-have on the road?
Jonas: When you’re touring, there is nothing worse than bad tour bus coffee, so I have learned to bring my own coffee beans, grinder, and press machine. It is a lifesaver on the road to be able to make your own good coffee when you need it.

To keep up Jonas, follow him on Twitter, Instagram, and Spotify.