Jon Crawford | ‘For What It’s Worth’
Ambition runs through Jon Crawford‘s veins.
Every day the New Jersey lyricist utilizes his 24 hours by honing into his natural-born talent. Sure, life can be a battlefield. But Jon demonstrates that his pen is mightier than any sword known to man.
“My sound carries sharpness and clarity,” he adds. “In a world full of wannabe’s and aspiring artists, you need to have that professional-grade quality. Not just sound, but in content and subject material as well.”
He defines himself as “a regular kid who beat the odds and statistics of young black men coming out of Camden, NJ.”
The emerging rhymester has been making noise for quite some time, building a massive fanbase in New Jersey, New York, and Philadelphia. Amidst hitting the books at scholarship at Montclair, he still finds time to release multiple projects. A true testimony to his prolificness.
Music called to Jon at 12-years-old. While he was living in Penngrove, he met a local engineer who helped kids make music. One day, the engineer invited Jon over to watch the process and have a go at putting records together. During his time there, he learned how to record properly. Then he began going to full-blown studios.
“I tried to record anyway I could,” he adds. “I think one of my most memorable recording periods was when the Macbook first came out, and it had Garageband installed. I was in high school, and one of my friends had one. I would go down to his basement and record straight off the Macbook into the Apple headphones and do remixes of songs that came out. Looking back on it now, those experiences and that hunger made me sharper just in my recording process and as an artist. I was preparing myself for what was to come.”
The sounds that radiate the four walls of the studio give Jon the inspiration he needs to create.
“My main focus as a writer, emcee, and lyricist is creating timeless content and sounds for not only my peers to enjoy but all age-groups,” he says. “Older, paying my respects to traditional hip-hop. Younger, with a more current and refreshing sound. All with the intent to listen to multiple times throughout life and each time go back to dissect each piece in different ways and different feelings compared to where you are in your life and journey.”
Artist-wise, he admires Tory Lanez for his writing and rapping ability, Drake for his hits and depth, and J. Cole for his story-telling technique. Trippie Redd also inspires him because of his unique voice and songwriting skill, DVSN, for their production methods and Brent Faiyaz. Faiyaz’s producer, Nascent, helped Jon with his 2017 project Circle of Life. In the future, he’d love to work alongside Benny the Butcher.
His latest album, For What It’s Worth, beckons the question of one’s willingness to go the distance to accomplish their dreams. As Jon states in “Prelude,” it’s also “a direct reflection of his inner thoughts and struggles to showcase his feelings and composition.”
“I had to take a step back and realize what this album meant to myself, where I was headed, what it would take, what I wanted to portray as an artist in my sophomore LP, and how the masses would receive it,” Jon continues. “I have the singles and club records, the trap records, the deep-cut r&b samples, the Socratic Intro, the thought-provoking story-telling and laid back demeanor in “Karma,” the “If I die” oath on “November 21.” I wanted people to hold onto this. It’s a staple in my career.”
In closing, For What It’s Worth shows that Jon never settles. Regardless of who comes in and out of his life, he pushes through. This album’s themes also focus on former and current relationships, whether platonic or romantic, his money-making mentality, and inward-looking thoughts.
“For What Its Worth took about 2 1/2 years to create after losing an entire project prior, documenting the series of events. I found my producer in Denzel Stone on Soundcloud in 2019, reached out to him because of his talent level, and built our friendship and business relationship. He handled the intro, track #3 and helped executively produce the project along with Melanie Bonilla and Shane Pope. My videographer, Jamyr Greene, is someone I discovered in my journey at Montclair, and we’ve been best friends and creating ever since. My engineer at the time, Amir Corsey, engineered the entire project, and I met him in high school.”
Two records that I’ll be breaking down are “14 Racks” and “Anxiety.” In all seriousness, though, you need to stream the entire album.
“14 Racks” is a charged-up hip-hop record with eerie sound loops and bass. In this record, Jon showcases his top-tier rhyme patterns as he does a subtle flex and puts haters to rest.
He raps, “That just shows you ain’t in my lane/That just proves we ain’t the same. Nowadays, gotta ask myself fore I measure you, what will I really gain?“
Additionally, he drops warning bars for individuals who try to test him, saying,
“If you pull out, you better not hesitate n*gga/Hope you got a shell in it.”
“Anxiety” finds Jon dropping introspective rhymes over an R&B-type beat with an old school sample, piano loops, and subtle bass. He tells all about encountering fake people who try to pass off their actions as sincerity and the thoughts that weigh heavy on his mind.
“Who do I turn to when I’m lost? I gotta dig in my soul/Dog I been going through hell, feel like I’m lost in the smoke,” he expresses along with “Anxiety, I feel it finally exposing me/My lifes changing, and lately, I been panickin’/Hoping it pans out, losing faith in my dreams is damaging.”
Be on the lookout this summer. The Dead Poet Society, Inc. camp & More Life Records has some great things in store!