If you have any form of social media, you’ve probably heard something about a young man named Hobo Johnson. Maybe you saw his viral NPR Tiny Desk Contest entry for “Peach Scone”on your Facebook feed or read a tweet about how much someone either hates or loves him. People seem to enjoy basing opinions on one particular thing, but Hobo Johnson is not just that weird guy singing about peach scones and a girl that doesn’t like him back.
Hobo Johnson’s real name is Frank Lopes Jr. His alternate persona came from a time in his life where he was living in a 1994 Corolla after being kicked out of his house. He’s a child of divorce and watching his parents’ relationship fall apart shaped his view of love and it’s very apparent in his music. He is influenced by rap beats and folk punk music like that of The Front Bottoms. People often compare his music style to slam poetry and emo with hip hop influences.
His viral song “Peach Scone” has 3.9 million views and growing, and if you scroll down to the comments section there are mixed reviews. The song is about him meeting a girl and immediately feeling something towards her but, knowing she has a boyfriend, he pushes his feelings away, trying his hardest to be friendly and supportive while keeping his emotions inside. A lot of people are viewing this song as a whiney guy complaining about being in the friendzone. And it’s understandable that people have this opinion, but people write Hobo Johnson off because they assume all his music sounds like that– which is not true.
His album The Rise of Hobo Johnson (2017) explores his relationship with his parents, his past relationships that went wrong, and his hustle to become a successful artist regardless of what obstacles he must go overcome. He is articulate, his music is interesting, and he doesn’t follow the rules of what we think a song should sound like. He wants to create songs while being unapologetically himself and I think that’s something to admire. He is an extremely unique artist with an introspective view of life. In his song “The Ending” he says, “the way I listen to music is… like medicine… it makes me feel better about my life and… my dream is to do that for other people… you know, travel the world doing that and helping people like so many people helped me.”
So, even if you hate “Peach Scone” I ask you to please listen to something else like “Jesus Christ” or “Alone Forever” because that is the Hobo Johnson that everyone should be listening to. That is a powerful, emotional voice that deserves to be heard.