Jason Mraz looking for the good in tough times
Putting out an album during the pandemic proved disconcerting for Jason Mraz.
On one hand, the San Diego troubadour — who launched his career with the 2003 Top 20 hit “The Remedy (I Don’t Worry)” — was excited about the new, reggae-flavored direction of 2020’s “Look For the Good,” his seventh studio album. But with public attention elsewhere and his inability to tour, that void limited his sense of how it was received.
“It’s a mystery to me,” Mraz, 44, says by phone from Oceanside, Calif., where he maintains a sustainable farm growing avocados (used by the Chipotle chain), passion fruit and coffee beans. “It’s been really hard to gauge whether or not this album has been heard or absorbed or whatnot. There’s nothing like go- ing on tour to get that feedback. People will tell you directly how it’s affected them.
“I haven’t had that experience yet. I’ve seen a few comments online, but nothing that’s deeply personal. So I’m a little in the dark.”
Mraz is being enlightened now, with his Look For The Good Live! Tour, featuring a 12-piece band. He accompanied the outing with an expanded edition of “Look For the Good,” with guest appearances by Tiffany Haddish and reggae singer Sister Carol. Mraz hopes the album’s positive messages have provided continuing solace during troubled times.
“The music was before we knew 2020 was going to be a somewhat heated and energized year, with the pandemic and all the social issues,” Mraz explains. “In a way the pandemic
was a way for us to reset and think about how we wanted to readdress the world moving forward. I hoped music would help amplify the change we needed in the world, or comfort many people in need in the world.
“The challenge was how to get the music out there to help people, but it was not a time to say, ‘Hey, look at me! Download my new album!’ Hopefully moving forward people will hear this (album) and the songs will help, however they’re needed.”