Happy Birthday to Jason Mraz!

So, who is Jason Mraz, you may ask? Well, let me tell you. He was my friend in elementary school. We "went together" when I was in 7th grade and he was in 6th (it made sense then, but what is what the "going together" thing? We rarely went anywhere together at the time). We became good friends. The summer I turned 15 (that would be good 'ol 1991 in case anyone is wondering), we had our birthday parties together in my backyard. You see, my birthday is June 13th and Jason's is June 23rd...only 10 days apart. It was an awesome party. My parents borrowed a flat bed trailer from someone and we had our chorus teacher Mr. Dalton (Dr. D was his DJ-ing name) DJ the party. We were involved in show choir (as were many of our friends), so there was much in the way of live music and performances as well. The electric slide was enjoyed by many. What can I say? It was a blast!

OK - so I had a friend when I was younger and we had a birthday party together...so what? Well, Jason followed his passion and has made a career for himself in the music business. This guy has quite a detailed summary of Jason's life/career on his blog. Have you ever heard "The Remedy" or "Curbside Prophet"? These were from his debut album. He just released a new album called "We Sing, We Dance, We Steal Things." (Don't ask me about the title - I read somewhere it was the name of a piece of artwork he admired and he got the artist to do the cover for the album, etc.) There are many great songs on this latest work. Some of my serious favorites are "I'm Yours", "Lucky", where he duets with Colbie Caillat (love her song, Bubbly), and "If It Kills Me." I know I would love his music, even if we didn't have a history as friends. I honestly believe that vocally, his one of the most amazing artists out there. Live he is more amazing than recorded. If you don't know it already, you should check it out. I mean it.

So we didn't hang out during high school. He went to live with his dad and went to a different school in our county. We saw each other around sometimes, though. After I finished with college and moved back home, I found out what he was up to and couldn't believe it. We've seen him live several times since then and spoken to him backstage. It is pretty fun to hear a friend's music on the radio or see their video on VH1. Humor me and check out those songs. I know you'll love them too.

And, HAPPY BIRTHDAY JASON!