Cody Lovaas’ passion and drive to create honest, no-nonsense music has launched him on his way towards a promising future. The 20 year old singer/songwriter/surfer had an early beginning, learning how to play the guitar at seven years old. After an initial bad experience taking up the new skill, his second guitar teacher’s love for music really resonated with him and completely changed the way he felt about music.
At age 12, he started to write his own songs and began performing a week or so after. Lovaas gradually latched onto music as it was introduced to him, thus making it a leading force in his life.
A year later, he was playing at a local coffee shop in San Diego. Little did he know at this performance that he would be discovered by Jason Mraz, who just happened to be in the crowd that day. This interaction completely shifted his focus from doing anything other than music to music being the only thing he wanted to do.
“From the second I wrote my first song, till now, I’ve been the same person. I’ve been the same person since I was 12 every time I’ve picked up a guitar, grabbed pen and paper or got on a stage. There’s never been a fallback plan or another option.”
The Californian has been taking big strides in the last few years with his music and through it all, his love for surfing keeps him grounded. No matter what is going on in his life, he can rely on the ocean to center him. Music allows him to express his feelings and find answers that surfing can’t do.
“Surfing came into my life before music did, but music came in a stronger way. Growing up in San Diego, I was completely immersed in the culture of surfing. I’ve surfed almost every day since I was six years old.”
The authenticity of Lovaas is what makes him stand out. You can hear different genre influences in the production of his songs, but he brings the guitar into the forefront. Having this solid guitar foundation keeps his earlier acoustic beginnings in sight.
Jack Johnson, Jason Mraz, and John Mayer all influenced Lovaas growing up, which in turn produced his earlier acoustic pop/rock sound. There are still elements in his music today that can be compared to this, however his musical evolution and growth has changed as he has grown himself.
Even when his sonic world is changing, he can rely on the guitar to bring him back to his roots. Lovaas incorporates other musical elements in his work, making it sometimes hard to pinpoint his sound into one genre.
“The way I see music changes with each and every song I listen to. Different colors, shapes, emotions and inspirations.”
“I’ve always been very inspired by the thought of writing itself. As a songwriter, I feel almost empty if I don’t have a song. I’m inspired by my life and I am always incredibly focused on writing the most honest and true song to tell my stories.”
Writing songs is truly his passion, which is obvious in the emotion of his lyrics. Lovaas’ creative process is raw, stripping it back to just a guitar and his voice. This is where his uniqueness comes from. Starting simply with an idea can often lead to the most incredible songs.
“For me, it doesn’t matter where I am as long as I have a voice memo recording non stop, my guitar, paper and pen. As far as writing goes, it’s never the same. Sometimes it starts with a guitar part, sometimes it starts with a groove, sometimes it’s a melody, and sometimes it’s just a random feeling. The only thing that is constant through my writing is the raw honesty with telling my story.”
Lovaas’ dream is to tour the world with his music, which he very determined to make happen. Already having a few tours under his belt by opening up for Jason Mraz, Ziggy Marley, and Switchfoot, there is nothing holding him back from sharing his stories to the world. There is so much that is learned when touring, so having these experiences early on in his career has given him a glimpse of what being an artist can entail.
“What an amazing experience. Jason is such a down to earth, humble guy and it was one of the greatest experiences of my life. Getting to go into these theaters filled with people that he has created relationships with through the songs he has written… and getting to tell my story to those people was a very beautiful thing.”
With an emerging artist as talented as Cody Lovaas, you will want to delve into his music. His debut EP is scheduled to come out early next year and he can’t wait to share this new era of music.
Above all, the most important thing that Lovaas wants to portray through his work is honesty. To tell his story and hope that along the way listeners can be touched by his work. His carefree, natural sound makes his music easy to listen to and brings in an aurora of emotions.
Check out his visuals for ‘Bodies’ and ‘Lie’ below.
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