Jonah Marais: Pushing Through and Thriving with “The Jonah Marais Mixtape”
Written by: Keyali Mikaela
When you think of Jonah Marais, it’s easy to picture the energetic stage presence and catchy melodies that have captured the hearts of fans worldwide. But there's more to Jonah than meets the eye—or the ears. With The Jonah Marais Mixtape, he’s stepping out in a way we haven’t seen before, blending raw emotion with his signature sound. This project marks a new chapter for Jonah, one where he dives deeper into his personal experiences and musical influences, showing us a side of him that’s both vulnerable and refreshingly real. We sat down with Jonah to talk about the inspiration behind the mixtape, the challenges he’s faced, and what’s next for him as an artist. Spoiler: He's just getting started.
Next Wave: Looking back on the creation of The Jonah Marais Mixtape, what are you most proud of?
Jonah Marais: I would say I'm most proud of pushing through the hard stuff. I think that these last couple of years have been some of the hardest trials of my life. Just mental health-wise, it hasn't been easy, but I'm proud of pushing through and getting here, and I'm proud of the music.
Next Wave: Do you have a favorite track on the mixtape? And if you do, why does it stand out to you?
Jonah Marais: I think right now I would say "A Million Midnights," because that's one of the two new ones that are coming out tonight. They've heard the other three. So I don't know. It's just a cute song. I love the melodies in it, and I think people are gonna connect to it.
Next Wave: Can you walk us through your creative process for the mixtape? How did you approach songwriting and production?
Jonah Marais: Yeah, I didn't do any of the production. That's my producer, Ryan. But the songwriting– I actually mumble a lot, and that's kind of my way of doing it. It's like I'll find some chords that feel good, and then I'll just sort of mumble my way through it and kind of come up with melodies. That's something I found that I'm really good at—coming up with melodies. And then sometimes, you know, a word will come out that feels right. Or you can actually kind of get a vibe between the beat or the instruments and the melodies. You can kind of get a vibe of what this song feels like, and then try to write that. Once we have something working, we go in and put words to it. I think the hardest part is actually finishing it. A lot of times we'll have a section of it done, and it feels super good. But then there's an open verse, and it's like, alright, we have to keep the rest of the song at that caliber that we all believe in that part. So it feels like a little bit of pressure to make sure the song is good all the way through.
Next Wave: Were there any songs that were really close to making it onto your mixtape that just didn't quite get there?
Jonah Marais: Yeah, definitely. I mean, we have so many songs that I've made over the last couple of years. These are just the five that made sense for this. But I think that all of them are in the running for the next project and the next project. It's not like these are the top five and none of the other ones are coming out. So, there are definitely other ones that had the potential to be on it. But these are the ones we went with.
Next Wave: Do you think any of those will make it onto the tour set list?
Jonah Marais: Yes, there's definitely gonna be unreleased stuff on the tour set list.
Next Wave: Speaking of tour, what are you most looking forward to on the Young and Optimistic tour? And how does it feel to be able to go on your own headlining tour?
Jonah Marais: Feels amazing. I've honestly been looking forward to touring since 2020, you know, when COVID kicked in. After that tour got canceled because of a bunch of lawsuit management stuff with the band, then the band falling apart. Moving forward into this, that's been the light at the end of the tunnel—I can't wait to tour. It feels amazing that it's finally happening. I'm really looking forward to the actual connection and meeting people on the road and singing songs together. I think it's gonna be really fun.
Next Wave: Do you have any cities or venues that you're particularly excited about playing on tour?
Jonah Marais: Boston's always so fun. I love Boston. But the last show is in Minnesota, which is my hometown, so that'll be its own whole kind of finale that's always such a party and so fun. And I think LA is going to be amazing on this tour as well, just because I've gotten the community here—this is where I live. I would say those three shows, but I'm honestly just so stoked for all of them. Atlanta is crushing it in terms of the amount of people that are interested in coming to the show. So, I think they'll all be amazing, and I'm gonna make every show special in its own way. I'm excited.
Next Wave: Are you excited for all of the fan interaction that you're going to be able to do on this tour?
Jonah Marais: Totally. That's my favorite part of all of this, is just meeting people, hearing stories, and connecting. It's the best. That's a reminder of why I'm doing this.
Next Wave: Young and Optimistic, while it's the name of the tour, is also the name of your independent label. Where did you get the name from, and what does it mean to you?
Jonah Marais: The name actually came from a lyric of an unreleased song that we wrote a little over a year ago. It's just a part that says "young and optimistic." When I was thinking of names for the label and whatever, I felt like that, as a catchphrase, is a good one. It also describes me—I'm a pretty optimistic person. I try to see the good in things and come into even really hard situations thinking, "This is gonna be good. Come on, guys." So, I feel like it fits well.
Next Wave: How do you feel that you have grown as an artist while creating your EP?
Jonah Marais: I think I've grown so much in terms of confidence, walking into a studio session or getting on the mic and coming up with melody ideas. That was a place where, coming out of the band, I wasn't fully confident. I think that's developed a lot in the last couple of years. I've also gotten a lot better at understanding myself and proving to myself that I'm strong and can get through the hard stuff.
Next Wave: What do you think some of the biggest challenges were while making this EP, and how do you think you overcame them?
Jonah Marais: Mental health was the biggest challenge for me. How I overcame it was by talking about it and putting it into the music. That first song, "Twisted Lullaby," is really about those voices in your head that are trying to drag you down and tell you all the bad things and the imposter syndrome and all of that. Feeling like crap was what was holding me down, and I'm glad to have pushed through that.
Next Wave: What are you hoping that your fans get out of The Jonah Marais Mixtape?
Jonah Marais: I just hope that they have a good time listening to it, and it becomes a soundtrack to some good memories. When I hear certain songs, I think back to a chapter of my life or a snapshot of when I was listening to that song a lot. I hope it seeps its way into people's actual physical lives. I hope people will vibe with it. I think it'll be really fun, and I'm excited to perform it on tour. It'll be great.
Jonah’s “Young and Optimistic” Tour kicks off August 22nd in Portland, Oregon. Get tickets here.
Follow Jonah on Instagram, Twitter, Tiktok and Facebook. Stream “The Jonah Marais Mixtape” on Amazon, Apple Music and Spotify.
