John Anderson

GOCCM: Pleased to see you again John.

JA: Yes, it’s good to see you too.

GOCCM: You are close to home tonight.

JA: Ya, I know. It’s wonderful. This is a shock. This never really happens. I always have to drive an hour to get to half of my shows. And I have a nice 5 minute drive to this one. It is great. I am just down the road.

GOCCM: Better than our 5-hour one.

JA: Much, much.

GOCCM: Your bio mention that your passion was on the baseball field before being transferred to music. And I saw that field in the video, I love that video with the baseball theme. When did the transfer to music happen?

JA: About 5 years ago. I picked up a guitar and starting playing a pop song, even though I have grown up listening to country all the time, like John Denver in the car going to baseball games. But it was a pop song Thinking Out Loud. I played it and my mom was like, you should sing while you are playing the song. I was like, I can’t do that. I don’t know how to do that. What are you talking about? I ended up figuring it out. I sent her a recording. She loved it and then I started doing open mics around Barrie and then going to festivals and bigger and bigger and now I am here. I had 40 shows booked for the summer and then Covid hit and we had to change our plans.

GOCCM: You have won quite a few singing competitions. Tell us what that is like, that process.

JA: It’s awesome. I like getting to know the contestants. It’s great to be able to just go around and talk with other musicians. I feel like a musician is rather specific to be able to relate to. So to talk to those who are going through the same things and doing all the same sort of steps that you are, it is really nice to be able to relate to people like that. I love that side of things. The biggest one I went to was Magna Hoedown which I ended up winning in 2017 I think. That was an awesome experience because I played in front of about 5000 people. It was incredible. I was very nervous the first time I went but then I did it again the year after and it was a lot more smooth sailing from there.

GOCCM: I am interested in the Josie Awards nomination for best vocalist in any genre. This is an American award, is it not?

JA: That was awhile ago. I don’t even remember if it was American or Canadian.

GOCCM: Well I have seen a bit about it on social media. It seems to me that people get awarded it in Nashville.

JA: Well, there you go. That would be amazing if it was. Now I have to do some research and double check.

GOCCM: Okay, tell us about your song “We’re Just Young.”

JA: This is my newest single released to country radio. You can request it from your local station or stream it on any streaming platform you have. I had a great time doing this. This was the first professional writing scenario I was ever in.

I wrote it with Beverley Mahood and Chris Henderson. I was at a hotel in Toronto, and it was so surreal because it was the first time I was ever writing with people who have been in the industry for like decades even. I had a great time writing and recording it. It was the first time I recorded too.

I got to record with The Agenda, which is an amazing Canadian band, great guys. They play with everyone. It’s crazy. So it was an awesome experience, an awesome opportunity to do that. I had a great time.

GOCCM: Chris Henderson from Saskatchewan.

JA: Yes, I think he was the Male Vocalist of the Year in Saskatchewan.

GOCCM: Great guy. He’s been on the CCMA board too.

So, is there some young love going on in that song’s writing?

JA: (laugh) I think personal experiences from all of the writers. I was very young when we wrote it. I am pretty sure I was younger than 17. In the song is a line about feeling that love like you’re 17 and I was actually 16 when we wrote it. So I was punching a bit above my weight class there.

I think everyone can relate to that young love. I think everyone has a relationship or friendship memories that you look back on and you just feel better.

GOCCM: I married my young love.

JA: That’s so amazing.

GOCCM: Yeah, we started going out when I was 15 and he was 16.

JA: Oh my goodness. How long have you been together?

GOCCM: We were married 40 years when he passed away.

JA: Wow.

GOCCM: Yes, it was wonderful.

JA: That’s incredible!

GOCCM: I often say that a lot of teen marriages don’t work out, but if you have the right one…

JA: You don’t hear that often.

GOCCM: No, but that was a long time ago. (laughter)

So, at 19, you are young but your career is off to a great start and we really look forward to seeing where it takes you.

JA: I look forward to seeing you with me.