The first time I heard of Jon Bellion, I was sitting in the passenger seat of my friend’s car and while played “Timeless“. I didn’t know if it was because of the line that described him hanging out with Frank Sinatra and James Dean, something that resonated with me and my love of the1950s aesthetic, but something about it kept the name Jon Bellion on my mind.
Fast forward to about a year later, I’m attending an event called Bearstock, something that’s a post within itself, and I realize that Jon Bellion is set to take the stage as one of the headliners. However, at the time I had only known Timeless and let me tell you, when he didn’t perform it,I was distraught. Distraught, I tell you. After Bearstock, I didn’t keep up with him as much because I decided to be a late bloomer and obsess over Hot Topic focused artists during my sophomore year of college. Then he released The Human Condition.
If you’ve heard the name Jon Bellion, you’ve probably heard it followed by the radio DJ playing, “All Time Low“. While All Time Low was absolutely fun and I was excited that this guy I heard play Bearstock just a year and a half before was getting air play, I couldn’t help but think of the rest of him album.
Not to be a hipster, but I always thought that there were more songs off of his album that deserved just as much attention. “Woke the Fuck Up” , “Hand of God” , “Overwhelming“, and my personal favorite, “Guillotine“. Now, this is not an attack on “All Time Low”, I still jam out to it when it comes on my Spotify shuffle; this is basically me just saying that if you’ve only heard All Time Low, please do yourself a favor and listen to The Human Condition in its entirety.
Don’t just stop there though. Late last year, Bellion released his second studio album, Glory Sound Prep. While I still favor The Human Condition, there’s no doubt that this was still a well produced body of work. Another thing that I love about Jon Bellion’s branding is the art style that comes with it. However, knowing how much Bellion loves Pixar, this isn’t much of a surprise.
Now, on to what this post is supposed to be about.
After seeing Jon Bellion at Bearstock, I was able to work the show on his Human Condition tour stop in Atlanta a year later. While I was working it, I couldn’t help but sing along to the songs I knew and appreciate the backdrops of his performances. My personal favorite was the Miyizaki-esqu footage he used during Run Wild (what can I say, Howl’s Moving Castle raised me). Anyways, my point is, even though I was attending Jon’s show as an employee, I was still able to enjoy it as a guest due to the amount of energy and crown interaction he was able to give all of the concert goers.
This past Wednesday, with the help of the lovely people over at Capitol Music Group, I was able to see Jon Bellion perform while as a concert goer once again and let me tell you, this man brings it every single time. One thing I always say that I love about live shows is seeing how much the performers love performing and this still rings true for Jon Bellion.
The show opens with Bellion taking the stage and performing an electrifying version of JT, which then leads to Let’s Begin, and Conversations with My Wife. Jon Bellion’s positive intensity that he brings to the stage is, in my opinion, one of the best I’ve seen. He makes use of the whole stage and wants the audience to have as much fun as he does. He’s sure to bring attention to those he shares the stage with, this includes his extremely talented backing band and musical duo partner, Travis Mendes.
One thing that Jon Bellion did that I haven’t seen many artists do in my many years of concert attending is bringing attention to all the venue workers that help make the show happen. Halfway through his set he emphasized the help of the venue workers, those who help take tickets, check bags and clean the venue to help make all of this possible. Thanks for that Jon, it means a lot.
Jon closes out the night with Good Things Fall Apart and it’s almost the perfect juxtaposition to how Jon’s live performances are. Between bringing attention to his venue workers, doing an impromptu improv session with his backing band, being sure to bring attention to the opening band, and just providing an overall good time, Good Things Get A Seal of Approval from ThisIsHowYouMusic. Don’t think that works as well for a title though, it’s bit lengthy.
Thank you again to the lovely people at Capitol Music for providing ThisIsHowYouMusic with this opportunity. Be sure to check out Jon Bellion’s music and maybe catch his show if he’s in your area, you won’t regret it.
Follow our social media! We’re on Facebook and Instagram, both are @thisishowyoumusic.
ThisIsHowYouMusic 