Filed under: Celebrity Eats, Music News
Only die-hard fans seem to know that Five for Fighting - the name behind hits like 'Superman (It's Not Easy)' and '100 Years' - is not actually a band. Five for Fighting, AKA John Ondrasik, explains exclusively to PopEater, "The label came to me and said, 'you know, the male singer/songwriter is the kiss of death. You need a band name.'" Whether the label's strategy was the key, Ondrasik has enjoyed serious success since signing with Columbia in 2000 - his album 'American Town' went platinum, thanks in large part to 'Superman,' the unofficial pop anthem of the nation's recovery post-9/11.
Now Five for Fighting is back with a new album. Ondrasik explains the concept behind 'Slice,' the way his work has evolved since 'Superman,' and what it means to make a record in 2009. Watch the video:
On listening to whole albums in the age of mp3s: " "I guess I'm still caught in the time warp. I still appreciate records from 1-13. I try to pay as much attention to the song that will never be on the radio, as the song that everybody's gonna hear. I mean I love records. You know my favorite records going back, you know, the songs that I loved weren't necessarily the hits."
On artists being featured in advertisements: "It is funny, because when I first kind of broke through, there was still the stigma of 'how dare you use your song in a commercial?' Now, Ray LaMontagne's in a commercial, you know - so if he can do it, we all can do it. And you kinda saw The Who do that, but these days, everybody's just trying to get their music heard. The game has changed. So whatever you can do to get your music heard, people are doing it. That kind of, 'don't you dare, you lose all your cred,' it's gone. Now people are just trying to find vehicles to get their music heard. It's a different business. People aren't buying records anymore. So we're trying to figure out how to get through these years."
On being called 'they' in FFF fan forums: "That's how I kind of know the fans that actually know the back story, and the kind of fair weather, 'know the hits' fans. You know, it's "they", or "he." The nice thing about it, is it's really allowed the songs to speak for themselves. It's never really been about me, I kind of hide behind the name. Most folks know the songs. Most folks frankly don't know me, and as a dad out in the valley of Los Angeles, that's fine with me. I just love making records, and to do this for a living, I feel very blessed."
"I'm kind of at that perfect level of celebrity, where I can do what I do, and people appreciate it, and people are very kind, they'll shake your hand at dinner and say thanks. But I don't have all the crazy madness of the cameras, that some of the folks I know do, that really don't allow them to take their kids to a Lakers game. Where it is right now is perfect."
On possible titles for 'Slice': "You know, I did a little silly contest, for some of the fans to send me their best titles, the best one I thought was the Twitter thing, 'What Are You Doing?' I thought that captured the age we live. Five for Fighting, 'What Are You Doing?' Considering we are all living on our internet platforms these days, I thought that would have been a little clever. But I was too excited about the song 'Slice,' and I thought that that fit the tone of the record, so we went with that. "
On his evolution as a songwriter: "You just hope to improve, as you continue to make records. There are songs that I wrote ten years ago that if I never played again, that'd be fine. There are songs that I've written in the past like - 'Superman's' a good example. I could not write that song now. But, I'm glad I did, when I did. As you evolve as a writer, your range of acceptability shrinks. It keeps shrinking, and it gets harder and harder. And eventually you kind of write yourself off the radio too, because you just aren't into that kind of mode, or that thing. But you know, for me, when you do write a song that you feel is worthy, you know, the first time you play it all the way through, is a great feeling."
