Jack Johnson is probably my favorite musician alive. Let’s just put that out there. So it’s only fitting that he also happens to be one of the greenest musicians out there, and this post is dedicated to him and all of the work he has done/is doing not only to bring the green movement to the masses but to be green himself. Because if you haven’t noticed, I think that if you are going to trying to be one of the prophets of the ecological revolution by bringing a culture of sustainability to the masses, you’ve got to practice what you preach (more on this later).
Well Jack Johnson certainly does just that. His most impressive feat is the creation of his solar powered recording studio, in which he recorded 100 percent of his new album, Sleep Through the Static.
The album materials are also made from 100 percent post-consumer recycled paper, and the concert tour that kicks off June 13 in Noblesville, Indiana will - thanks to Reverb! - be seriously eco-friendly as well. (I’ve signed up to be a volunteer in the Village Green outside the Mansfield, MA concert, so cross your fingers that I get this amazing opportunity to take part in this genesis if green popular culture).
But beyond what Jack Johnson is doing to spark green fire through his music, what sets him apart from a lot of those who are hopping on the green-band-wagon (which I still think is great), is that he seems to really care about the issues that we’re dealing with when it comes to “going green” - climate change, environmental degradation, etc. I think that one of the problems with the proliferation of green popular culture is that the message of the whole idea - sustainability, no-impact living - is lost somewhere along the way. But I could tell from his interview with the Wall Street Journal about the eco-concert tour, that Jack gets it, pointing out the inconsistencies of using megaevents like the Live Earth concert (they said "Live 8" in the interview but I think they meant Live Earth because the interview was in 2008 and "Live 8" hasn't happened since 2005) last year to spread the eco message:
"Half the battle is making people feel like it's cool to support things like this." Jack's on the money with this one. I think that this is the role that green popular culture plays: as a stepping stone towards a culture of sustainability in which it is taboo NOT to care. But in doing so, it's pretty hard not to be hypocritical as many venues of popular culture - music, fashion, marketing - are entrenched in wastefulness. So creating a green viral message in popular culture takes big changes in the traditions of those aspects of the culture - like eco-friendly concerts - themselves.WSJ: You participated in Live 8 last year. How do you feel about the effectiveness of those high-profile and, in a way, celebrity-driven events?
Mr. Johnson: I have mixed emotions with those things. They give you their word that they're doing everything as green as possible and I try to be optimistic about that. Half the battle is making people feel like it's cool to support things like this. But it depends on what angle you look at. People were flying in on private jets. And there's the oxymoron of a gigantic event meant to fight the impact of gigantic events...
And of course using celebrity power to get people involved. Jack Johnson just created the All At Once Community on his website, where members can connect with nonprofit organizations and are encouraged get involved with "your actions" - in social action by volunteering, "your voice" - getting politically active, and "your choice" by being smart consumers. There are also interactive discussion boards where members can connect with and learn from each others' actions and ideas.
When asked in a Treehugger interview why he uses music to reach people, Jack Johnson replied:
"It's kind of obvious in the sense that it's about the best thing for gathering a crowd and you know, everybody comes together and we are all seeing those same words. People sing along. It's a really neat feeling when you feel that you are in a room or you are in a place, whether it's outside or inside, you are in a place where everybody is in agreement on something.
You know, whatever the song is about, it's like you come together and it feels nice to feel like you have the same feelings as other people, so connected to people. And when you have that connection it feels like with this amount of people having this connection we can do a lot to make change, you know.
And so that's the nice thing about touring and trying to apply all these nonprofits to it, and the change aspect. It feels like you can do a lot when you are on tour and you see all these people kind of getting together for a common cause. It’s nice.”
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