Jon Brooks
This episode features singer/songwriter & poet Jon Brooks from Ontario.
Jon has strong opinions which he isn’t afraid to express in his music, indeed, that is the basis of his music. He has the qualifications to back up his opinions having studied music, art, history and literature at various universities. In 2015 he graduated “Cum Laude” from York University’s Liberal Arts Program with a Bachelor of Arts Degree. He has extensively toured in Canada and the U.S., been the recipient of many awards and nominations and has already got 6 C.D.s under his belt.
His style of music cannot be easily described. His songs can be complex and intense. He has called himself a folk singer and rejects the notion of labeling his songs as protest songs although his lyrics have many and diverse targets dealing with a broad spectrum of today’s societal problems. Jon always believed that a song should be at heart, a protest of something unjust, but also be a unifying force of empathy. He regrets that, today, the idea of what makes a ‘protest song’ is something more akin to shouting, blaming, finger pointing, or a shrill and self righteous soap box style of telling people what and how to think and vote. This is not was his songs are about. Jon says that he essentially agrees with the Chinese dissident artist, Ai Weiwei: “all art is a matter of protest.”
We recorded Jon’s performance at his house concert in Haines Junction, Yukon Territory, in November 2017.
Thank you Shawn Taylor for hosting this event at your cozy home.