John Mayer - A Short Biography

Known almost as much for his high profile relationships and his willingness to feed the press a controversial sound bite, John Mayer always seems to be in on the joke, when the rest of us aren't.

Perhaps that is his appeal, we all wish to live as freely. Oh … and then there's his massive talent for singing, song writing, and guitar playing. These might just factor into his appeal as well.

Born in Connecticut in 1977 to parents Margaret and Richard, John took up the guitar at age thirteen. It is said that a neighbour gave him a cassette tape of Stevie Ray Vaughan, which began John's love affair with "the blues". An accomplished guitarist, John intended to study music at the Berklee College of Music in Massachusetts, but soon left school to get a real life education. He moved to Atlanta, Georgia and immersed himself in the music scene there, performing and writing songs.

By March 2000, John was attracting all the right kind of attention. He signed with Aware Records, a label seeking out new artists. Aware had a relationship with Columbia Records, who eventually produced John's first studio album, Room for Squares. By 2003, John had his first Grammy win: Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "Your Body Is a Wonderland".

John's follow up studio album, Heavier Things included the hit "Daughters" giving John his first number one single. John's third studio album, Continuum brought further accolades including two more Grammys. It featured the song "Waiting on the World to Change", which struck a chord with many with its lyrics of both discontent and hope.

Battle Studies is John's most recent release, and is the basis of his current worldwide tour, it features the hit single "Who Says", and according to John, 'it incorporates a lot of the lessons, a lot of the observations, and a little bit of advice'.

No stranger to self-promotion, Mayer makes the most of today's social media outlets. He's got a Twitter following of over three million (@johncmayer), treating his followers to quips, jokes and the occasional apology. In his recent interview with Playboy, John revealed his thoughts on porn, dating black women, his sexual relationship with Jessica Simpson and more.

In overly candid detail, the interview didn't come across as John had intended, angering many and causing accusations of racism. Treading lightly, but only for now, John Mayer is on his world tour, performing his unique blend of bluesy-pop, twittering for his millions of fans, and likely gathering a few more followers along the way.

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