Singer Jason Mraz has attracted an international following thanks to an engaging, upbeat sound that comes, in part, from an “idyllic” childhood in Mechanicsville, Va., a white-picket-fence town he once described as “a good place to grow up.” His sound has attracted a multi-generational following.
The artist blends multiple influences from folk, pop, jazz, hip-hop and others into his songwriting. “I'm Yours,” Mraz's breakaway hit from his third album, We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things., has a distinct reggae flavor. The song has attracted fans as far away as New Zealand and Norway, and sold more than 5 million copies in the United States alone.
Mraz—whose name means “frost” in his native Czech—started out in community theater, once playing Joseph in the musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. For a short time he studied musical theater at the American Musical and Dramatic Academy in New York City, eventually dropping out to focus on songwriting. Those combined experiences helped catapult the 34-year-old singer/songwriter into his current career. Mraz, a vegan, owns an avocado farm in Oceanside, Calif., and supports multiple social causes. He's engaged to singer/songwriter Tristan Prettyman, but they refuse to marry on principle until gay marriage becomes legal. (Michael Muckian)
