Mason Jennings is in Tune with the Planet (Interview)

Being in tune with the planet is important when channeling authenticity through song. Musically and environmentally, Mason Jennings is in tune.

In his new song, Black, Mason Jennings humbly and effectively sings concern about the effects that the behavior of a distracted population has on the Earth, reminding us that "the future won't leave us alone". The song is featured as a bonus in the Patagonia Catalog.

Mason Jennings contributes much of his time towards environmental progress. Read further to find out about his affiliation and contributions with Brushfire Records (Jack Johnson's Label), The Surfrider Foundation, and Patagonia in this exclusive Planet Green interview.

PG: Brushfire Records seems to involve artists who to care very deeply about community and the environment in an action oriented way. Was that a big determining factor for you when you signed with them?

MJ: Yea, you know. I just really liked them all as people. They seem to be people who like to make choices, like you said, towards the community but also towards life long careers too. People who are in it because they love playing music and that's the central reason.

PG: You are currently on tour. Is that correct?

MJ: Yea, I am actually at home for a few days and then I go back out. I am just taking a little break.

PG: Is there anything you do to lessen your footprint while touring? Any type of alternatively fueled vehicle being used?

MJ: No, not so much. We do the van now instead of the bus. That's about the biggest thing we do. Taking a bus last year just seemed like overkill. The bus has to stay on all the time and it used so much gas. Now we take the van with a trailer and it seems a lot simpler that way.

PG: Much smaller, uses less gas.

MJ: Yea exactly. And you can turn it off.

PG: And at home? Anything you are doing to lessen your footprint there?

MJ: Just basic stuff like trying to use things as many times as possible. For me it is about curbing desire and not just buying unnecessarily.

PG: When you purchase music, do you prefer downloads, CDs, or vinyl?

MJ: I do the downloads now. I just like to have the ipod.

PG: If it were completely up to you, how would you choose to distribute your own music?

MJ: I think at some point it is going to be all digital. I was just thinking about that today. I am having a meeting with my management. We are still deciding if we should even be making CDs anymore. I know a lot of people like vinyl right now. It is about even. At least with my music, about half of it is sold digitally online and half is sold as CDs.

PG: That is a tipping point right there. Most artists are still selling their music through physical product. I would imagine that because of the nature of your label and your music that it would be a different marketplace than with more mainstream sales.

You recently participated in a series of beach cleanup concerts with the Surfrider Foundation. Are you a surfer?

MJ: No, I've tried but I can't get up you know. It is hard for me to stand on the board. I just care about it. There is so much water up here and I was born in Hawaii, so it just seemed like a really good cause.

PG: So surfing is not a prerequisite for being on Brushfire records?

MJ:(laughs) Obviously not I guess, you know?

PG: As long as you try.

MJ: That's right. You just gotta try.

PG: Can you tell us a little about the Surfrider Foundation and their mission?

MJ: Yea, they have headquarters all over the world . They mostly just work on keeping the water clean, so they do all different kinds of stuff from beach cleanups to helping educate people in different cities about how to keep the sewer lines clear of harmful stuff that gets into the ocean. They also go to battle for certain beaches that were going to be closed due to development. They protect certain rivers and things like that. They are always involved in lawsuits trying to save the natural world. It's a pretty cool organization.

PG: Was that tour put together specifically to raise awareness?

MJ: Yea, they were doing a 20 year anniversary, so they did 20 beach cleanups around the country. I did 5 of them. We did concerts for the volunteers who came out to clean the beaches.

PG: Is it in the United States only?

MJ: I only did the 5 concerts in the United States, but they do stuff all over the world. Australia, Europe, all over the place.

PG: You also recently took part in a film project called 180 Degrees South in which you contributed to the soundtrack. Can you tell us a bit about that experience?

MJ: Yea, it was really amazing. My friend Evan Maloy, who is a film maker, asked to meet with me and my friend James Mercer from the Shins to go down to Patagonia just to get inspired form the landscape down there. They are making a movie about Yvon Chouinard, who is the founder of Patagonia. Ivan and his friends are doing all these things to save the last of the wild places down there ... to keep the land natural...I just went down there and got inspired . The movie is going to come out in the spring. It was really amazing to be that far away from electricity and cell phone reception. It was on the very southern tip of South America. It was pretty awesome.

PG: Regarding the environment, can you name one easily realized goal you've made for the near future and one more challenging goal of yours for further off? Anything goes for this question.

MJ: I am not sure about clear cut goals. I'd like to figure out a way where it would be easier for me to tour without such a carbon footprint. It is hard because my job is traveling around. I feel bad about that all the time. So I don't know, the goal would be trying to find a way to tour without so much of a carbon impact. A long term goal is to make sure that my kids have a future where things are still OK and that the planet is still here, you know. I worry about that a lot. There are just so many people. I guess figuring out a way to slow down the overpopulation of this planet. I don't know exactly how to do that. It is just on my mind.

More Instrumental Interviews

Big Kenny from Big and Rich Says Mountaintop Mining a Big Mistake (Interview)

The Icing on Cake's New Album? A Solar Sonic Studio (Interview)

Not Just Another Celebrity Activist: Country-Bluegrass Singer Kathy Mattea Fights Mountaintop Removal (Interview)