Pure Truth
by LISA BIRCH
After
just a few minutes of talking with Jason Pure, it’s obvious that he’s a natural
lover of words. In all his easy eloquence, he makes casual conversation almost
rhythmic with his effortless articulation.
Further
confirmation of his way with words comes by listening to the lyrics that anchor
his songs. Songwriter J Pure is in this music business to bring his brand of
authenticity to the game. His birth name, Pure, is a precise description of his
artistry—genuine, unadulterated, real.
After
writing songs for notable, Atlanta-based indie soul talent, including
Deonna Martin and Chimere, Pure decided to record his own project, “Seasons,”
which features his perspective of love and life lessons delivered across mixed genres
of soul, pop, rock and R&B. But whether creating lyrics for himself or
other artists, the South Carolina native has had a big-picture plan from the
very beginning...
Pure
strategy…
”Jason Pure loves that feeling you get when
you hear a good song, and Jason Pure the songwriter went through a time period
where he didn’t hear that very much, especially not on radio. There’s been a
resurgence of that feeling lately; there have been some good songs out there.
But for a time, it was kind of a barren dessert when it came to what was on the
radio…nothing gave you that real feeling. You could bob your head to it or get
crunk in the club, but if you wanted to feel something, it wasn’t there. So I
figured there’s no better way to change that than for me to get out there, write
songs, work with artists and hear my stuff on the radio. That would be a
proactive way of changing that landscape.”
Authenticity…
“In the music industry, promotion of an
artist is so image driven. Authenticity is a big deal because you have to be
true to yourself otherwise you can’t really hold up that image but for so long.
Of course, it is business, so while we don’t like to think about it, you do
have to kind of figure out how to package who you are as a person into
something that people would relate to. While authenticity is important, it does
come with a disclaimer, and that is, you don’t have to share everything…you
just package as neatly as possible so that it is palatable to your audience. And
in our tabloid, blog and gossip age where everything is out there, even the
stuff you don’t want to be out there, it’s kind of hard to draw that line and
create that barrier. And so authenticity sometimes can take on a negative
meaning. But it’s really about putting your emotions and true heart and soul into
your music so when listeners hear your creative works, they can really tell
that you put a piece of yourself on wax.”
Roots
and influences…
“Growing up, whatever mom and dad were
playing was what I had an ear for, and they were very much into R&B,
soul…the good classic stuff. Then later I was introduced to more classic and
alternative rock and country and that also became a part of my musical
spectrum.
From early on, Babyface was definitely an
influence, and Mariah Carey…the thing about Mariah that always fascinates me is
that she’ll drop these multi-syllable words, like ‘nonchalant’, into her songs,
and that’s not a word you would hear in a typical R&B, Pop song. I
appreciate the fact that she uses her vocabulary. So it encourages me to not be
afraid to use bigger words in the songs.”
Listening
to...
“Whoever is bringing something fresh and
new…Chrisette Michele; The Fray. I’m big on albums as a whole. I like singles,
and I know the industry is more driven toward hit singles, but I’m very much
about the art of the album. I like to go on a listening experience from
beginning to end. So anybody putting out a good album from jump to finish, I
really appreciate that.”
Putting
words to work…
“In writing for myself, I definitely want
you to take a journey; I want a story to be told. By the time you get to the
end of the album, I want you to feel like you’ve been somewhere and come
back…and hopefully you’re better for it.”
Fans
vs. listeners…
“I don’t like the word ‘fan.’ It seems to
kind of elevate you above them. I like the word ‘listeners’ because those are
the people gracious enough to give you their ear, their mind and their soul,
just to enjoy your music for a piece of their time. If you refer to yourself as
a fan, I won’t stop you, but I address you as a listener. I appreciate you
listening and enjoying and sharing that musical journey with me.”
Pure
dreams…
“I want to be involved in some big
projects. I want to have not only the respect of the industry, but I also want
to have credits. I do want to have some sales and income coming from my
songwriting. Writing songs is what I do, so it’s definitely rewarding to have
that be a moneymaker. And as an artist, I want to find my audience. I want to
have an audience say like an Eric Roberson, where he shows up in town and there
are people that listen to his CDs over and over again and they’re so happy to
hear him sing “Couldn’t Hear Me” for the thousandth time and they know all the
words.”
To
those grinding in the music biz…
“As far as living in Atlanta, you see a lot
of musicians out here hitting pavement trying to make something happen. Keep
honing your craft. Learn some music business. When you meet the manager or
producer you’ve been trying to get to, that person’s going to look at you like ‘What
can this person do for me?’ ‘How can I make more money off of this person?’
That’s only fair, because that’s how the industry works. So at the same time
you need to be prepared and ready to make it a ‘give and take’ relationship
otherwise it’s going to be a ‘take’ relationship.”
Pure truth…
“There’s always more than one thing that
makes a person whole. We are all jigsaw puzzles. For me, it’s definitely my
relationship with God; my family, who has always been important to me; and of
course, music, which is a humongous piece.”
©2008 VERTICAL FIX, LLC
