Songwriter & Producer- JP CLARK

JP Clark has spent years helping shape some of the biggest records in alternative pop, rock, and hip-hop — working alongside artists like Bryce Vine, blink-182, blackbear, Lukas Graham, Thirty Seconds to Mars, and more while generating over 3 billion streams worldwide. But after years behind the scenes as a songwriter and producer, JP is now stepping fully into the spotlight as an artist with a sound that blends alt-punk energy, emotional honesty, and modern pop production.

In this episode of Caught On The Mike, JP opens up about the pressure of hitmaking, the lessons he learned from legendary songwriter busbee, the mental side of the music industry, and what it means to create authentic art in an overstimulated digital world. From songwriting sessions to personal identity, this conversation dives into the highs, burnout, evolution, and realities behind a career most people only see through streaming numbers and credits.

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Transcript

SPEAKER_01 1:06

Ladies and gentlemen, this is Caught on the Mike. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to another exciting episode of Caught on the Mike. Today's guest has quietly helped soundtrack the last decade of alternative pop, rock, and hip hop. From multi-platinum hits with Bryce Vine to collaborations with Blink182, Blackbear, Lucas Graham, 30 Seconds to Mars, and The Used, his work has generated more than 3 billion, yes, billion with a B streams worldwide. But now, after years behind the scenes, he's stepping fully into his own spotlight with music that's raw, reflective, and built for a generation overloaded by the digital world. This is Songwriter, Producer, and Arist and fellow Clark, JP Clark. Welcome to the show, my friend. Thank you very much, Mike. It's a pleasure to be here. Dude, I am so stoked. As I was telling you, four singles already released so far this year. I have gotten in the weeds of all four songs in the last week. I absolutely love it. You know, you've got a lot of other work that's out there. Bryce Vine, you know, amazing stuff. Like, how did you get into the production side of business, let alone like creating your own music?

SPEAKER_00 2:30

Yeah. Um, you know, honestly, I started playing in bands. It's like kind of the classic, like, you know, it's like, I don't want to be a solo artist, I need friends around me, you know, thing. Um, I first got, I was kind of forced into production because uh one of the first bands I was in, we were recording an album, and halfway through the producer um and his band got an opportunity to go on warp tour, and he was like, sorry, I'm out. Um when I get back, you know, like, but it was kind of like uh it kind of was like we're done. And I was like, well, you know, that sucks. So I guess we'll go back home and we'll try to link up with all there's like two or three like local producers in every town, I feel like at that time that like record everything. Maybe we'll get time with this guy, Tim, or whoever. And then I was like, you know, I feel like this is like a sign, like I need to learn how to not ever have this happen, like not ever be like relying on anybody else. So I like I first asked him, I was like, can you show me how you were making the vocals sound so good? He's like, here's auto-tuning, here's how I draw, like all the stuff. So I got one like you know, one like lesson on the way out, which was cool. But we got home and like started, you know, I just like produced the rest of the album and it was kind of like out of you know, just like necessity, I guess. Yeah, and I next thing I bought a Yamaha keyboard and I sampled every single sound out of it. And at the time, like most of the stuff we were doing was not like very pop-oriented, like it was not really cool to like repeat sections, or you know, it's like how like progressive and weird, like let's confuse the audience, you know. And I, you know, I don't know why, or like that would be cool, but like that's kind of like how things were. It was just a very different like landscape then. Like, even the thought of how things are on like you know, TikTok now of like performing just like lyrical, like lip syncing to a song, unless it's a music video, would be like you'd get beat up for that in my town, like literally. And so yeah, I just like you know, fully immersed myself in like, you know, like wow, I can not only produce stuff, but it doesn't have to be from an instrument because it sounds way better if I get it from this keyboard, rather than having to deal with the acoustics of you know, my mom's nice but not acoustically treated, you know, basement. And so then like I kind of discovered the hook of like, you know, all right, this part's kind of cool. And it it all seems now so obvious, but at the time, you know, I just like it wasn't that obvious. I didn't know that there were sessions that like people, you know, I I thought everybody was in their mom's garage writing their own stuff, you know, right? Even Brittany Spears, you know. And so like, yeah, it just once I understood that I started to really study like the Swedish stuff and like how you know like symmetrical and like almost like mathematical it is, and yeah, that's that's kind of how it started. And and I'm still doing it now. I guess that was 23 years ago, so 23 years later, I mean in my Jordan year of producing.

SPEAKER_01 6:03

Dude, I love that. You know, it's it's funny when you were talking about how abstract things needed to be back in the day. I remember when a band and one band in particular. Yeah, one of the non-intentional one band in particular that comes to mind is like Finch's What It Is to Burn, and then Finch's Say Hello to Sunshine, like how different those two albums are, and how the mid-2000s to the late or early 2010s things kind of had to go this weird abstract art art for the artist's sake direction.

SPEAKER_00 6:41

Finch is was great. That was a that's a good one. Yeah, I love I loved Finch, yeah. Still do, man.

SPEAKER_01 6:48

Yeah, yeah. I still crank that album. Well, you've gone from New York to just outside Nashville while building a career across multiple genres. How much did your environment shape the way that you hear and create music?

SPEAKER_00 7:04

So, in between that, I spent 12 years in Los Angeles. Wow. And that uh I would say like um the move to Los Angeles definitely, you know, I I kind of had some cuts and like I had some success um prior to moving when I was uh when I was 23, my band signed with RCA, and I would send in songs not really knowing what I was doing, and they ended up, you know, I think one got cut by Chris Allen, another by Adam Lambert, and there's another band called 2am Club. And so I was like, I had like some songs out that I like, and again, I didn't really know that people were in like sessions, like writing stuff. And so like I think that whoever signed me next thought that like I totally knew what I was doing. So I signed like this publishing deal and I moved out to Los Angeles, and then I like totally didn't get anything for like years. Like, I don't think I like I had absolutely nothing happened. I uh didn't understand like the room vibes, like of just roles of like how you know, just like the puzzle that exists when you walk into a studio or a day of like how, you know, like how do we put together something like it's it's a weird, it's a it's a weird job too, because a lot of times it's like you're you know, you're expected, you show up hopefully on time in LA, usually never on time, but like you meet, you kind of do all the regular where you from, maybe find one common ground, something, you know, just the high hellos without just going like, hey, let's write something intimate right now. Um, and then you try to do that, you you know, write something like significant um that will, you know, actually mean something within a few hours, and that might be your only chance that you get, you know, obviously, like sometimes you vibe with somebody and you have repeat things, or you start to turn into a crew or whatever, all that exists, and that's where I think a lot of the magic really happens. But there's a lot of these like kind of speed dating things at first, and it's just a weird job. Like, yeah, uh Los Angeles taught me a lot, but it definitely kind of like chewed me up and spit me out real fast. He ended up like 20. I was out there for like four years, and I kind of was like, I think I'm done. Like, I I you know I had a cool run. I was in a band, it was fun. I moved out to Los Angeles, it was fun. I tried this thing, it was fun. I still owe a bunch of money. Thankfully, it's not a loan, it's an advance, and I don't actually owe the money, but like, you know, it's you guys can stop sending me the mail that says I owe you money, I get it, and it's probably never gonna not exist. But um, but I quit really, and um I started a cannabis business with my dad, because at the time it had just been legalized, and I was like, what other place can I possibly look? How I like I was just nervous because I didn't go to college, you know, I kind of blew off life, you know, a lot to just like pursue whatever it was that you know it was artists first and then into this like industry side thing, you know, I quit. And and in that time, uh something I don't know what is responsible who I mean I know specific people, but like what it was that happened. But right before I had linked with this kid Bryce Vine, and we were just homies. We met at a party and you know, did the classic um Yo we should work, yeah, we should work, we should work. And we finally did work. Um, and first song we wrote was a song called La La Land. I had no idea that that would someday become a song that was very meaningful for him and and for me and uh a few others, and you know, at that time though, he also was in like the beginning of his career. I'm actually not totally sure of where he was at, but he wasn't you know what he is now. He was, I think, playing college shows and had a thing, but like not a thing thing. Right. And so I quit. We were homies, but like I don't think like we lost touch, sort of like not, you know, just how it happens sometimes with the creative community. It's like you can't stay up with every single person unless they're like your childhood friends kind of vibe. But like six months later, and then and I was out. I was like, I was like, man, I'm like out, you know. Like I don't even think I wrote a song in that time, like not on purpose, but I was just like defeated, you know, just like I'm out of like that. Wow. I tried, but uh yeah, somebody texted me, was like, yo, this song Drew Barrymore is number 40 on hot hot 40100 radio, whatever it's called. And uh and I was like, oh, that's a scissors song. Like it's not that, it's not our song, but cool. And then I looked and I was like, sure enough, it says Bryce Fine, and um that moment just like was the reignition of just everything. You know, I didn't change, but like that validation or whatever of just and I watched, you know, as uh every Tuesday everything would come out with the new stats and just saw it climb and climb and climb, and all of a sudden, like my publisher was calling me back, and all of a sudden I was booked, you know, eight days a week and um for the next few years and went on a little bit of a run, but I didn't really change, you know. I was still the same, it's not like I got any better overnight or anything like that. But uh that was that was the moment that was like the thing that happened. I don't remember what your first question was, how I got to that, but that's all right, man. But that's that's that's that's how I got to LA, and then you know, now years of that, and then now I've found a much more like peaceful vibe here, I think. You know, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 13:06

Yeah, and it's crazy because you know, you talked about the the Michael Jordan years 23 years ago getting into this business and then the evolution since, you know, even having hit songs like La Land and Drew Barrymore by Bryce Vine, you've seen a lot of changes in the industry as well. What's been the most compelling one from your time starting to now?

SPEAKER_00 13:31

Yeah, uh actually I would say I got very lucky. There, there's one um like there was a time like when I was signed with RCA and also when Bryce had that song, that like first record happened, where labels would still sort of identify with their ears a song and go, This is a hit, and we're gonna chase it, etc. Done, right? And also lucky on that song was a writer, Julia Michaels, who at the time was very popping. And so radio knew her name, and he was the first signing. It was actually an imprint through Warner called Sire. And so he was the first signing to this lady, Rainey Hancock, who's an amazing, she's so dope. Um, she was like, she needed that song. Like, she's like, we need this song, you know. It was her first thing, her first, like, it was all their first like real like record that they went for, um, without ever testing, you know, without TikTok, you know, without any any sort of like knowing, just just just knowing in your gut or your ear, like this is a this is a really good song. And so the changes, like, I would say is like that. I I think I got really lucky that like is if that song had been like a year later, it would have had to hop through every hoop and jump and thing to like and get everyone dancing to the certain thing, to the what to the this, to the that, to the challenges, to the whatever, to try to move that needle to like get it to go to that next level. So that's the I would say, you know, through everything, like the largest change is like, you know, it's now a much more number quantified, like everything is algorithm, you know, it's the math of everything is is is much more important. Not that it was not there at that time, but it's unheard of now for a label to hear a song from an artist and go, we think this is a hit, and they're gonna go you know to radio. No, they are told by the world already, essentially, the risk is very little, and that's just what the model has turned into is like, you know, it's like it needs to check the boxes that it that that it is gonna work. We don't want to like hope it's gonna work or like believe it's gonna work, like we need to know it's gonna work. So that's the biggest change, at least from that angle. Um, if you want other angles of how things have changed, but from that side of things, how things break, that's that's that's been one huge one.

SPEAKER_01 16:04

You know, from a consumer standpoint, it's easy to kind of sit back and you know shit on the streaming model and such, but if you wanted to find a silver lining to it, I know back I come from the hardcore punk rock world back way back in the day, like genre was your identity. And I feel like I've brought this up a million times in the show, but the streaming model and the TikTok model has actually broken those walls down to where consumers actually just look at music as music now and being so broad with the genres that you work with, I'm sure that's something that you have found advantageous as well and noticed as well.

SPEAKER_00 16:44

Yeah, I mean, I, you know, for everything that I just said, like I totally understand, respect, like if I was in charge of if I was Mr. Music and you know, I I was, you know, calling the shots, like, yeah, I would, I would also use the tools of like research, you know, to find out what is, you know, up, you know, so like I get it. It also is like an age of like, you know, somebody that it's those overnight, you know, it used to be what was it, like 10 years for an overnight success was ever was that term. Like that's for sure not a true thing anymore. It could be like, you know, maybe 10 days for an overnight success. Like, not success in your career, but as far as having like a a meaningful moment, like they happen all the time now, which also comes with its own, like a lot of there's a lot of quick, like one hit, there's a lot, I forget what period of time it was Motow a while ago, but in the one-hit wonder, like there's always been, but it's like it is there are a lot of things that are just kind of in and out. But um, but yeah, I I also I think it's an exciting time though for an artist. You don't need to have like it's finally, I think it's broken it down to where you don't need to have a budget to at least start something. You don't need to have, you know, fancy anything. If you have ideas and and you have, you know, a couple, you know, it's it it's really in you can make stuff on your phone, like whatever it is, very simply. I I think there's like you know, a way for anybody with an idea to get it across now, so which also makes it a very saturated world. I don't know if it's like a hundred thousand things are uploaded to Spotify a day or something. Some of them are rain sounds and whatever. Um but at the same time, like I think it's hard it I actually will say, I think it's harder for true talent to get lost now than it was maybe prior to this new age. Um I think it's maybe it still happens, sure. But like I think if you're like really talented and you do post a lot and do like like if it's real talent and it's like actually, you know, like it will find its audience kind of vibe. Whereas in the past, you know, it's like I think we can all probably know somebody or like whatever, like it's like that, you know, he was so good or they were so good, like she was so good, but like never found the break or whatever. So I think maybe that that that one like hurdle has sort of shortened, it's still there, you have to jump over it, but it's a much smaller hurdle now. So it's like if you're if you're good, there's an opportunity out there, but there then there's a lot of people out there though that have you know the same access to all the same things.

SPEAKER_01 19:37

Yes. So you've worked with artists ranging from Black Bear to 30 seconds to Mars. How do you adapt creatively without losing your own identity in the process?

SPEAKER_00 19:47

Honestly, think think I I've always tried to just approach like anytime I'm working with another artist, like I feel like I just show up as like a member of your band, you know, of just like I don't have like my laptop with concepts, and I'm not gonna like ask you, like, Mike, so what have you been going through this week? What's a theme that emerges when you wake up in the morning? Uh and and there's like no shade on any of those like tactics, because like those are great questions if they're honestly answered, right? But I think like I've tried to include myself or just really approach from like an artist perspective, like we're jamming, and I don't want to get like too like hippie with it, but like of just like you know, all right, let's just break it down. Like 99% of the stuff, if you're a songwriter that you walk into, like it's never gonna see the light of day, or it's it's it's it's a large number. So if you wanna, you know, like let's have some fucking fun with it. Like, if am I allowed to curse? Um I use fucks and shits as punctuation marks, bro. Yeah, so like let's just like let's like if that's what we're up against, like let's just have some fun, right? Um so like yeah, I I think I I don't really adapt in the sense of like you know, I don't change up an approach. Well what I will say is like try to identify quickly like roles in the room. Like I I think early on, maybe like in LA when I was saying I was like not really doing that well, I was maybe like too dominant or like wasn't listening enough or like whatever it was. But I now look at everything like a puzzle in a really weird way of like when I'm walking into a room, whether it's people I know already, a mix or it's all strangers, which it's less of that stuff. I try to not do as much like all new people. I like to have at least, but I will, you know, like how do you expand? You're always down to meet somebody new, but I take a quick inventory as fast as I possibly can. And if hopefully it's accurate, of like who's who's kind of good at what? And like, you know, if I guess I don't think this is not the way that I'm thinking about it, but I this is explaining I think what I'm thinking about is like if I know like homie over here is like really nice with lyrics, like maybe I don't have to just like be trying to shove every concept I have like down everyone's you know throat of like we should you know, or if you know somebody shredded in the guitar, like I cannot play the guitar today, or if you know, you know, finding like what what what am I the best at here? What is like you know, allowing every piece to kind of like exist. And I also kind of feel like, you know, if which thankfully I'm very, you know, like that's what I've worked for or like towards over the last five or six years is like eliminating sessions where I feel like the puzzle pieces aren't there, but it's because it's like if if if I feel like I need to be like very dominant, then it's probably I'm probably not in the right room. You know, it's probably like you know, it's like you want to be challenging, you want to be with people that are, you know, like yeah. So yeah, that's that that would be I think the main, yeah, it's it's more just approaching it from an artist perspective. I just I always feel like, you know, if you write a song, whoever you are, if you write a song and if it resonates with anybody, then somebody else will want to sing it too. Like if it's if if it's something that's real, like real recognized, real, like I don't know. It just it's like I never had success trying to be like, I'm gonna be Jared Leto for today and pretend like I'm in 30 seconds to Mars. Like it was that I kind of like tried that early on, the whole like, you know, like to like look through someone's eyes, but I never personally found success. I know people with very some stories, some very interesting tactics in that in that world, but for the most part for me, it's just like, you know, if I just I can't really speak to anything I don't know about, you know. So I I hope that I at least but I probably and I think we've all been through like even if I'm in love right now, that doesn't mean I don't know what heartbreak is, you know, and so yeah, so that's kind of I can tap in at least to knowing if it's for an artist, like if they are in a place that I'm not at, well, I can then kind of you know go inside enough to like return to an earlier version of where I may have felt some something similar.

SPEAKER_01 24:37

You know, that approach means you've probably taken a lot of personal inventory and like gone through a lot of growth and mental growth on your own. So at this point, with over three billion streams attached to your work, what's the mental side of chasing success in the music industry that people outside of the industry probably never see?

SPEAKER_00 25:03

Like, think the biggest thing, like I said earlier, is like it's like the math on this shit is like crazy. And so if you if you're looking for a good odds industry, like it's like go sign up somewhere else for sure. I think like you know, I've heard different approaches. I've heard people like one song a day, regardless. Whatever. I've heard, you know, I have I have a friend who he's just a free spirit and is on a wave, and he only probably writes 10 or 12 songs a year. He's in the studio a lot, and he's kind of I'm not gonna say who he is, but like, but like three or four of those get cut every year, and they're like meaningful songs. Like, so he's just tapped in when he wants to be. So so his like his batting average is actually like really good, you know, if you think about it like that. But the mental aspect of it, it's like, yeah, it's just like don't like you just can't get too caught up in how not good of odds the whole thing is because it's just like it if you can just figure out, and it sounds simple and easy, and it's just not, but like if you just can just figure out how to have fun truly, um, without kind of being like you know, like you want people to, you know, you are like if you are, you know, getting paid or whatever, it's like you know, you do need to respect people's time. And you know, I can only tell like I'm not gonna sometimes I get a little carried away on like tangents or like you know, jokes or whatever, and I'm like, oh shit, like I just wasted this like I'm paying for this studio every hour, but whatever. But like, yeah, I think just mentally of like, you know, just yeah, find find the angles of like how to approach your creative process that aren't too fatiguing, like aren't too exhausting, and you know, just work smarter, not harder. I started asking myself a few years ago every session, like, why am I there? Who is like who is the person, like what is the room, like what is the objective, like what is the real kind of goal here? I get all that kind of like businessy stuff out of the way, so that if it's a yes, then I that's I clear all that out and then I just go in and have fun. But yeah, I think just you know, the mental part of it is it is tough. Though there's been a million times where I'm like, the well has dried up, there is no more songs, and then it's like two weeks later I'm just smiling in my car with you know 10 new, like whatever. So it's like all those ups and downs happen, like writer's block is real, burnout is real, you know. Um, you know, take breaks. Like, I I I don't think I don't really believe in that. It's not like it's not like if you're a bodybuilder, if you don't work out for a month, like you know, you're gonna lose all that. Like, yeah, if you if you stop doing your craft, you will lose that that thing. But like, yeah, it's it's it's okay to like I'd say to sum it all up, work when you are actually feeling inspired to work. And if you're not, um, it's okay. You don't need to like I don't want to show up anywhere and have it be obvious or not give my best because it's like then it's work, then it feels like work, and you know, I'm still a kid just trying to have fun. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 28:33

Yes. You know, running down the list so far this year, brain cells, numb, the following, girls, and I'm sure there's more on the way. After years kind of on a more behind-the-scenes role, why was right now the right time to fully step forward as JP Clark the artist?

SPEAKER_00 28:52

That's a good question. Um I have been I have been like my first band that that that was like successful, not actually commercially, but like successful in the sense that we signed a deal, which really just means that the work begins and then we never really got to work. But um I was asked by the manager we had hired at that time, and because I had written all the songs myself. I had a drummer who wrote his parts, like so I I didn't write the drums, but like the songs were kind of mine, and I shared in them with everybody. And he asked me, he's like, Do you want to like the band was called Young and Divine? And he's like, Do you want to be like like on stage y'all will be up there? But like, do you want it to be like like you, and then you hire everybody, and you know, it's all all yours, or do you want to split everything with everybody? And like at that time was the easy answer. I was like, I I need my homies, like I want to split it like we're a band, like you know, everybody wrote this, you know, like everybody is up there sweating, like whatever. And I think I was just like, you know, I don't know, it's fun to be in a band, but um, I was also scared, I think, too. Like, I I was just not fully, you know, I don't know, like I guess convinced with myself that I was able to do anything alone. So that was like, you know, I I would lean more towards it was fun to be in a band, but there was definitely an angle of like, you know, yeah, it's scary, the idea of like me by myself, you know. And like over the years, like, there's been so many times, like over the last 15 years, like of I did like a solo young and divine thing in 2017. Weirdly got like a lot of like playlisting at Spotify. That was when they were like kind of playlisting newer artists a lot more and it wasn't totally infiltrated. I did like 20 million streams in like a year on there. Um, and then it just like fell off because like the majors came in and it was over. And then after that, you know, I had like different names. Like I'm trying to think of like slopes was one, but I don't even know what that means. Like I was trying to find out like what's my name, you know, like like someone like you know, Black Bear, you know, like he just like that's that's bear, you know, like that that's him, or like and like anybody who has just sort of that thing, and I think I wanted that so bad, and I could was like searching for it, and like the whole time, you know, like just ignoring like I think names matter, like you know, if you look at a name like Blink 182, like it's like a wild name. Like, you know, I don't think someone would sign like say, like, that is the that's the reason that band, that name, that's why that happened. You know, it's like it just synonymous with like them, and that's why it happened. So I think like in the last two years, I've just become the most comfortable with myself and already having like a brand in the fact that like I was saying earlier, like I feel like an artist just working with other artists and kind of like you know, jamming. And so it was just like, I guess I don't know, I finally felt comfortable to say, like, yo, this is just me. Like, you know, it's like this is just like there's no like moniker, there's no artist name, there's no alter ego, there's no like anything like this is just really me. And that's what led to this. I wish I had done that when I had that run in you know 2017, but like it is what it is. But yeah, that's that's kind of the reason. Like, I I've I've been every year for the last literally like seven years, it's been like, I'm gonna put out stuff this year, and then it's like I get all into this frenzy of like things and I think about it, and then like TikTok gets too crazy, or I make one video where I think I look stupid, or like any I I can, you know, I can just like self-sabotage so well, like something happens, and then I just then I get busy, or like some somebody else, I start to work with somebody else for their stuff or whatever. This year I just I don't know. Uh it just maybe because it's the Jordan year. I don't know. It was just like here I go. So it's it's it's out now, and now it's officially and it was easy to brand into like, you know, it's like, yeah, I do stuff like I'm I'm just this dude that produces and writes and sings, and sometimes it's for other people. Sometimes I sing them myself. Hopefully I get to sing them with other people. So that's sort of long story, medium story short, long story medium of how of how I was just like, let's just do me.

SPEAKER_01 33:50

Well, you know, finding comfort in your own skin is really important as an artist, but thinking about the external, what types of conversations are you hoping that people have after hearing this batch of songs?

SPEAKER_00 34:05

Well, a I will say this, I'm just gonna be a hundred with you. I really am the kind of a like I so badly wish that I was doing like projects in the sense of like, you know, I live on 60 acres, like getting a weird RV and going up to one of the areas of my thing and like making the RV sessions project or whatever, which I might do that. But like right now, just with the landscape of social and how it kind of works and stuff, and like just some like discussions I've had with a very intelligent friend of mine who is very good at the TikToks. Um I'm just kind of like sort of exercising the muscle right now of like putting out consistently, not being too precious on songs, really kind of like I guess you could say, like, you know, warming up for like, you know, hopefully what will be a long run, maybe a marathon. And so I hope that you know, right now I hope, you know, if there are people talking about songs that I've put out, I, you know, like I would just hope like that they're like, I would like to hear way more, you know, uh, because it's like that's where I'm kind of leaning towards. And I think I started it three days ago, but I'm just kind of doing like an idea, like a hook a day, like it could be anything, it doesn't have to be a hook, but like something I'm recording it, da da da, it's up and just kind of like shooting stuff out, and like, you know, and that totally I think I said earlier, do not do the one song a day. But for me as an artist, it's a different thing, like when you're pitching songs, but like it's just me like throwing that, like I was so scared for so long to even put out a video of myself, you know. And so it's like me just like really just trying to like get as relaxed as I can and just like into a rhythm, you know, just so that you know, you know, we I I just feel like we live in that time now where it's just like you don't know what is gonna be the that, the this or the that. And so, you know, I hope the conversations, if any of them, maybe there's only a few, uh, are just like, yeah, I hope hope there's more. But I I um, you know, even the like if I'm being real, the four songs you've mentioned, um uh Brain Cells was written in during COVID, 2020. Um was written in 2022, maybe 2021, but no, num was written before COVID, sorry. That was like 2019. What was the other one? The following was before COVID. That was, you know, again, probably you know, 2018. Girls was a song with my band 7715. That was prior to COVID as well. So um, all the new stuff, I have tons of new stuff. I'm literally just like, you know, kind of like there's a lot of stuff. So I'm trying to get like get it kind of you know up to speed. Like, it's why I'm kind of doing this this new one-a-day thing, because there are they're more like present ideas that I have, like right, like right now. So the last two that I've like put up, they're just hooks. You can you can hear them. Those are just like from the last two days. Like, I did it that day and it's up that day. So I think I'm moving more towards that. So yeah, I I hope that people are sticking around, but this is literally just the beginning. I'm gonna I'm gonna be throwing darts.

SPEAKER_01 37:43

I love that. Dude, and and I love I love how how diverse your sound is because that batch of songs that I mentioned blends alt punk energy with polished modern pop production. What artists or records help shape that balance or influenced you?

SPEAKER_00 38:00

That's a good question. You know, I think that's where collaboration for me has been a major lift. Cause like I think if you listen to like my real early stuff, like Young and Divine rock album on RCA, which is like songs I wrote in like 2005 to 2007 type stuff. Uh, you know, you can really hear like um, I don't know, just like I it's funny because like my dad like loves that stuff. He's like, you know, just would you ever think about bringing those songs back kind of thing? And I'm just like, I'm like, they're so square, you know. It's like it's so like me, like, you know, but it, you know, they're they're they're cool, like they're at that time they were cool, you know, they they fit and it was cool, and I'm not ashamed of them. I I I love them as what they are, but they don't have anything to do with like where what I am now, like literally 20 years later. And so, you know, I think like when you ask like what shapes sort of like that sound, who I've got, it's more like almost who I've got to work with. I had a collaborator that we had a band called Astro Safari USA, and they his name is Jace Levi. And Jace was a rapper that I found on MySpace, and same like hometown I was like kind of like producing a little bit when I had that Yamaha you know keyboard and all that. And Jace and I I ended up like I produced one song for him that I ended up singing the hook on. He was really just a rapper, he didn't have much sense of like melody at the time, but he's like like MM flow style is good. I mean, I'm I'm not gonna put him on the like I'm it's uh he's really good. We actually we covered uh Rap God, is that what it's called? I think yeah, we did uh if you look that up, I'll send it to you after. Like you'll you'll hear him. But anyways, the whole point of that, he introduced me to a whole thing, like a whole like, like, dude, you don't have to sing like, and then there was four, and it was just like I was all of a sudden like you know, he would write lyrics out and stuff. I'd be like, oh, there's that's so I can't fit all that in. And he'd be like, well then you just gotta be like this and like that. And you know, I it just like opened my mind to just like you can fit anything, like any amount, like you just have to, you just have to like finesse it, you know, and so that was a major, that was a major kind of like change for me from just like a pop rock style, straight ahead kind of like rock guy to having like you know, somebody that really had uh, you know, I would say a degree in cool flow kind of stuff. And so that was a step like up. I then I was in Sweden for like two summers straight and studied like not with Max Martin, but with one like kind of crew away, like uh, and a lot of those guys are like very similar. They have like very similar um, I won't say they all are, but there's this there is this like Swedish like mathematical thing of like you know, notes you use in the pre, you don't want to give them away. There's a couple rules, and there you can kind of hear it in the songs if if you know what you're looking for. And so that was another one that kind of shaped like you know how I looked at stuff a lot. And then I'd say the final thing was when I just started really working with artists one-on-one, and like me kind of being me with that tool set that I had, but now I get every single day an opportunity to add a tool to my toolbox. I feel like I try to be a sponge, even if I feel like I'm the guy that's like, you know, I I got this. Like, I'm always kind of just like low-key. Like, if somebody does something that I haven't like seen or heard before, I'm like, that was dope. I'm just like, not like, you know, not an idea, but just like a trick, you know, of like of something. It's like I'm always adding to the toolbox. So, you know, I don't know if it's any specific records or anything like that, but I think it's more the people that were around to shape into like just you can really hear it if you just listen to like the old young and divine stuff, and then like any of the new stuff, you're just like, I get it. Like, you know, you're you're yeah.

SPEAKER_01 42:34

It's transcending through experiences more than anything else. Yeah. Yes. So at this stage of your life and your career, how has your definition of success changed from when you first got into it?

SPEAKER_00 42:49

That's a good question, too. Um, that's a tough one. Uh, I would say, like, well, there's so there's obviously like just very easy, like, if it's a chart, if it's uh if it's something that's like easily able to be quantified or like measurable, right? Uh those are easy ways to like look at success, but like, you know, it's so much deeper than that. For me, success at this point is God, I this is probably gonna be the like one clich, like, wow, he really is a cliche with that one. Uh it's like, you know, at the end of the day, did I make something completely from an inspired reel? I wanted to be there, I had fun place, it was a good hang. And all those boxes are, you know, like I don't know, sorta like sorta checked or all the way checked, but like at least that. But then like if any of those one if any of those experiences translate into something that creates I think there's two sides to it. Obviously, like I do have you know, bills and a mortgage and stuff. So, like, you know, it's not I definitely didn't get into this for money. Like, I I wouldn't recommend songwriting specifically. Like, you can, you know, I don't know, crypto, get into something else if you really want to do something like, but like, you know, and if any of those experiences that I mentioned also turn into something that's able to help me pay the bills, or uh even like further more if it's like meaningful to somebody, like actually has an effect on their life or something, like you know, like it's not a lot, but occasionally I'll, you know, I have the the off fan that's like looks into the credits of a song or whatever, and we'll like kind of like whatever that stuff means a lot, and I feel the greatest sort of like success more when like I'm at a show and someone comes up and is like, I know you, and I'm like, that's wild to me, you know. Like I can thankfully I can walk around anywhere and that doesn't happen like very often, but the occasional like that that feels good, and you know, success to me is more of just like if if you're if you're really having a great time and it's able to also translate to helping you pay your bills and maybe some positive change in the actual world or even one human being, that to me is success.

SPEAKER_01 45:22

That kind of goes to that old saying that if you enjoy what you do, you'll never work a day in your life. 100%. Yeah. Yep. So what's one thing people misunderstand about you when they only know you for your credits and not your whole story?

SPEAKER_00 45:38

I think, you know, I think right now with the attention span of everyone online, I don't even know if anyone is understanding anything yet. Um so so I will I might have to circle back with you on the answer to that when I have a couple things pop off. But you know, yeah, I think like that's a that's actually like a really good point, though, in general, is like in this like very quick, you know, you have two seconds, three seconds to get someone's attention. How do how do I make somebody understand what I'm doing? Like, yeah, like you know, I think you see somebody singing or doing something with like, oh, it's a musician, like whatever, but like, you know, how do you really tell the story? Like, you know, I sometimes you gotta spell it out, like I, you know, on-screen text, like, you know, I whatever. And and and that stuff like is hard for me because like I don't like to I don't like to put like credits or any you know accolade type stuff into videos to I just have a hard time with that. Um so yeah, I mean I I I think it's like I'm I'm actually trying to figure out the answer to that question, like how to make people understand what it is that I'm doing. Um so yeah, I don't have an answer yet, but that I like that you asked it because it is very relevant and something that you know I think about.

SPEAKER_01 47:04

Yes, I I think we all do from the different angles and perspectives of life, and that's a really good call out because the instant gratification world really makes it challenging now versus what it was even 10 years ago, let alone 20 years ago. You know, I and let's be honest, we're we're both of the age where we experienced the MySpace era. That changed everything. Like people say Facebook did, but really my the MySpace, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 47:33

Changed everything. Yeah, Tom changed everything.

SPEAKER_01 47:36

Yeah, props up to Tom. You need to bring that shit back.

SPEAKER_00 47:40

It did make a comeback, actually. Rec I thought recently-ish, but I had yeah, I um I haven't heard anything for I don't know if it came all the way back, but um, yeah. Not yet.

SPEAKER_01 47:53

But hopefully, like it was so good for artists back in the for that. It was just how we got shows.

SPEAKER_00 48:01

Yeah, yes. I remember we would go on there and literally, like, if we were on the road already, just like blindly connouring, you'd have off days and you'd look for shows that were happening, hit up one of the bands for the you know, hopefully the promoter, if there was any kind of access to their contact, and see if possibly you could just get any spot to you know play. Like, obviously, not gonna get paid or like anything. Maybe they had pizza or like whatever, but like, yeah, that was for that, or like that we uh it was called Spider. I don't know why I remember this, it's called Spider X or something, and it was like a friend at Earth. Yes, informer, yes, I remember that, and it it it worked, it found like real, real, you know, people and stuff like that. So yeah, that was and like pure volume is that is that yeah, that one, but like not like my butt was like that was I will say I remember this one thing, this girl had a show one time, because like you could have at one point you could have a song on your page. Yeah. Do you remember that? You could have one song, and we're playing this show. I don't remember where. There's like seven bands, and it's like probably like a total of a hundred and fifty kids there, but at any given point, probably only 40 or 50 inside, with like a hundred outside, like smoking and doing whatever we were well, whatever kids were doing at that time. And we're done playing, we were like hustling CDs at that, you know, point, like trying to sell an extra t-shirt out in the parking lot or whatever. And this girl I remember playing, I was like, like, you know, I think I asked, like, sorry, like we just played. She's like, Oh no, I didn't see her set, sorry, like whatever. I'm like, cool. Well, here's our band, like da-da. And I play one of our songs. She's like, that's my profile page song. And I was like, Oh, we just played. It was like the perfect example of like, like this, you know, it's just like song over artist kind of vibe. It was like the beginning of that happening, yeah. Which happens all the time now, but yeah, that's my space.

SPEAKER_01 50:09

Dude, I love it. I love this conversation. My closing question that I ask every single guest that does my show because I love their perspectives based on their experience, is what's your advice for making the world a better place tomorrow than what it is today through your lens?

SPEAKER_00 50:25

Save the soil. You know, that's an important one. Um, carbon footprint, clean up after yourself, have um some uh awareness of future generations. Uh it's really easy to um, you know, not think about that, but you know, um there's just wow, it's a loaded question. It is. Yeah. Uh soil is a big one though, I that that I just kind of got into recently about like how things can get really bad if our soil gets bad the way things are grown. It's it's a whole rabbit hole. But yeah, I mean reuse your shopping bags at the grocery store and all the little things. I mean, even just the little things, even if it seems like, you know, you know, it's it's not it. It's like if if everybody tries a little bit, it it uh it adds up to a lot. So, you know, I try my best. I'm definitely not the most I have an electric car. Uh I reuse my shopping bags, but you know, there's probably more things that I could be doing, but like just having you know some some like respect and compassion for the future generations, um, you know, that unfortunately all this is so political and controlled and whatever, but there are things that you can individually do that matter, and as long as you're doing your best, that's the best, that's all you can really ask for, you know. So yeah, I don't know.

SPEAKER_01 52:01

I love it. Yeah. I love it. Tell everybody where they can find you and your music online, my friend.

SPEAKER_00 52:07

Yes, yes. Um, you can go to Instagram and my name just at JP Clark on TikTok. I am P Z P E must unfortunately taken on there, and my mom calls me that. Um Spotify, same thing, just my name. Um, I'm working on getting my Google search results up soon. So hopefully you can just type my name in in the next month and just everything will pop up. But uh, if anybody's watching this, we'd love to connect. So love it. I love it. Yeah, man. Thank you so much for having me, man.

SPEAKER_01 52:41

That was a absolutely, and I'm glad we're friends now, and I'm glad we share a last name. JP Clark, thank you so much for doing the show. The world's a much better place with you and it, my friend.

SPEAKER_00 52:51

Oh man, that's a very kind, that's a very kind statement.

SPEAKER_01 52:55

Once again, I want to thank JP Clark for joining me on the podcast today. His credentials are very impressive. His music can be found on all streaming platforms. Go check it out right now. You can hear his fingerprint.