Jonathan Traylor ’ s rise from a broken home and subsequent abusive stepfather , homelessness , poverty , and life on the streets of Dallas , has tempered him profoundly as a worshiper , songwriter , musician , dancer , and performer . He has amassed over 40 million streams globally and is currently opening for Jeremy Camp on this year ’ s Fall tour . This year ’ s Stellar Awards nominated him as Best New Artist of the Year . His 6-song EP I ’ m Here For You , has recently been released by Motown Gospel .
[ WM ] Jonathan , it is so good to meet with you today ! Thanks for this time .
[ Jonathan Traylor ] Thank you man . It ’ s good to be here .
[ WM ] I must start by saying I have so much respect for you . You ’ ve kept your faith and cultivated your talents despite so much hardship growing up . You ’ ve seen and lived through the good , the bad , and the ugly , and you write with perspective and life experience . What an amazing foundation you have ! How have those hardships shaped you ?
[ Jonathan ] I can tell you just off the bat those hardships made me grateful , you know ? So , every time you come to the show , or hear my music , or just kind of see me live , I walk with this smile . And I have this heart of gratitude because I ' m like , " God , I know the only reason I ' m standing or breathing or being able to do this is because of You ." And I think about my experiences and everything that I ' ve been through and it ’ s like , " God , you brought me through that ." For some reason , I had to go through that to shape my character .
And now I get to live this life . I ' m living in the goodness of God . I get to be a great dad , a great husband to my family . And it ' s just like , I ' m grateful . Because of what I ' ve been through and what I ' ve seen . What I ' ve experienced . It ' s like there ' s no other way to be when God brings you through something like that . And you look back and say , " Man , I ' m still standing , and I ' m still smiling , and we ' re good ?" I ' m grateful .
[ WM ] That ' s wonderful . The other way is to be is bitter and resentful , and that doesn ' t do any good .
[ Jonathan ] No , man .
[ WM ] So most of your songs are composed by yourself , which is somewhat unique these days . Do you prefer writing by yourself and in a non-collaborative way ?
[ Jonathan ] I don ' t mind collaborating and partnering with someone , but it ' s just something about ... I write different . I don ' t try to write in song form . I just write my emotions out , my thoughts out , my experiences out . In my quiet time , I write it all out . And then I put it in song form .