Mr. Mellow? More Mr. Clean
Jack Johnson doesn’t agree with his image as a mellow guy, but that’s cool.
“I never thought of myself as mellow,” says the surfer-turned-music-star, who comes to The Gorge for a concert Friday.
“But I don’t mind – it’s not a bad thing to be called.”
The 33-year-old singer/songwriter with the breezy baritone and casual style, who often plays to thousands of fans wearing faded T-shirts and baggy board shorts, has become the icon of laid-back celebrity.
With album sales of almost 10 million – including 1.3 million of his latest, “Sleep Through the Static”, according to Nielsen SoundScan – he’s big enough to be targeted by “Saturday Night Live,” which spoofed him in a skit featuring Andy Samberg as the host of “The Mellow Show.”
Still, Johnson prefers to shun the spotlight.
“If you do too many interviews, you start to believe your own press, and eventually you’re in danger of becoming a caricature of yourself,” he says.
“When you’re always talking about yourself in interviews, it’s hard to find a balance between your public image and yourself.”
Johnson dutifully boards buses and planes to perform at venues around the world.
But every month, he heads home to his beloved North Shore in Hawaii, where he spends time with Kim, his wife of eight years, and their two young sons. There he trades in his guitar for a surfboard.
“At a certain point, being around a lot of people and playing shows isn’t healthy for me,” he says. “I need to get off of the tour periodically; I can’t be away from home for long periods of time.
“A lot of the songs get written while I’m in the ocean because I have time to think out there. There’s a connection to nature, and for me, it’s not a struggle to write the music when I’m surfing.”
Another thing he’s not mellow about: the environment. Though he understands that touring is a necessary part of his success, it leaves a deep carbon footprint.
“We wanted to more than just lessen our impact, but actually make a positive one,” Johnson says.
His contracts require that event organizers compost and recycle at least 50 percent of the waste generated, and purchase carbon-dioxide offsets covering the energy his show uses.
To reach out to fans, he has created a social networking site, allatonce.org, where people can talk about green initiatives, trade greening tips and organize carpools to concerts. As an incentive, visitors get free downloads from Johnson and other musicians.
“You’ve got to get them while they’re young,” he jokes, adding: “It takes time to see the effects of environmental activism, but it’s the right thing to do.”
The birthday bunch
Director Roman Polanski is 75. Actor Robert Redford is 71. Actor-comedian Martin Mull is 65. Comedian Elayne Boosler is 56. Actor Patrick Swayze is 56. Comedian-actor Denis Leary is 51. Actress Madeleine Stowe is 50. News anchor Bob Woodruff is 47. Musician Everlast is 39. Actor Christian Slater is 39. Actor Edward Norton is 39. Actor Malcolm-Jamal Warner is 38. Comedian Andy Samberg is 30. Actress Parker McKenna Posey (“My Wife and Kids”) is 13.