Jack Hody Johnson (born May 18, 1975) is a Hawaii-born singer-songwriter, musician, filmmaker and surfer who has achieved commercial success and a dedicated following, after the release of his debut album, Brushfire Fairytales in 2001.
He has since released four more albums and a number of EPs. His music is best described as acoustic/soft rock/vocal.
Johnson had learned guitar at age 14, and finding himself bedridden after a surfing accident where he had both his front teeth knocked out, he spent his time writing songs and playing guitar.
He'd grown up listening to influences such as Bob Dylan, Nick Drake, Cat Stevens, Ben Harper, The Beatles, Chris Burright and the Burden, Jimmy Buffett, Bob Marley, Neil Young, Sublime, and A Tribe Called Quest, and many of these elements influenced his songwriting.
However, it wasn't until he graduated from Kahuku High School on the North Shore of Oahu and started attending college at the University of California, Santa Barbara, that he began to develop his passion for music.
Johnson graduated with a degree in film, and his first breakthrough came after he befriended G. Love on a day of surfing. Love ended up recording Johnson's song “Rodeo Clowns” for his 1999 album Philadelphonic. Johnson sang and played on the track, and it became the first single from the album.
His four-track demo soon caught the ears of Ben Harper's producer and right-hand man, J. P. Plunier, who worked with Johnson on his debut album Brushfire Fairytales in early 2001 with Harper and his lap steel guitar making a guest appearance. Johnson also played rhythm guitar for the party band Soil
