Interview: John Harvie
The resurgence of punk rock continues to reshape mainstream music like never before and, while some artists are idly enjoying the ride, singer-songwriter John Harvie is confidently leading the pack with his thunderous vocals and hard-hitting, rock-influenced tracks. After releasing “Bleach (On The Rocks)” following a viral TikTok cover at the end of last year, Harvie has caught the attention of punk rock music fans across the globe with his punchy lyrics and stomping, earworm melodies. Earlier this week, I chatted with the fearless John Harvie to discuss his new song “Alaina”, his unparalleled work ethic, and the wildly exciting return of a new era of rock music.
Photo by Blair Reinlie
There is an addictive edge of rebellion that stems from John Harvie’s music. Angsty belts atop heavy pop/hip hop beats give listeners the perfect blend of early 2000’s rock and new era genre jams. Harvie released his first song “Gentleman’s Way” in 2019 and in December 2020, John posted his infamous TikTok cover of Fall Out Boy’s “Sugar We’re Goin’ Down” which ends in a hilarious coughing fit. After posting the video on TikTok to make himself and his friends laugh, Harvie woke up with 13,000 new followers who wanted to hear more from the talented, Tennessee-based 21-year old.
“It was absolutely wild. When I woke up to that reaction, I thought ‘Wow, people besides my friends and family might actually give a shit about this… let’s keep it going!’ So then I posted a cover of ‘This Is Gospel’ by Panic at the Disco, got half a million views on that video, and it really hit me that it was go-time. It was time to be consistent with this.”
As his singing TikToks were gaining hundreds of thousands of views, Harvie was diving into new co-writing sessions with songwriters on a weekly basis. Don’t be fooled, however, by the well-humored punk rocker. Harvie has truly been putting in the work to make his dream a reality. During this time of online growth, Harvie’s day would start as early as 6:30am, he would then create TikTok content, drive all the way to Nashville for a co-writing session (a commute he traveled 4-5 times every single week), and immediately head to work his night shift job at UPS. After arriving back home at 1am, his day would start all over again the next morning, an exhausting schedule that Harvie says he wouldn’t change for the world. Despite the tiring routine, he says that he knew it would be worth it if he kept pushing himself and his craft. And wouldn’t you know it… his impending success was right around the corner.
Like many singer-songwriters, the worldwide pandemic gave Harvie the opportunity to connect and create with fellow writers and artists like never before. After only a few writing sessions, Harvie struck gold with “Bleach (On The Rocks)” which he released on April 23rd of this year. Punk rock lovers fell head over heels for the loud, in-your-face style of the song and began comparing Harvie to the likes of music legends All Time Low, blink-182, and Brendon Urie of Panic! at the Disco. While Harvie carries many punk rock influences into his work, it is quite clear that his unique artistry is never going to be boxed in or neatly packaged with a bow.
Harvie is excited to be creating music during a collective time of resurgence in rock music. On top of ‘OG’, die-hard punk rock fans who have always frequented Warped Tour and other heavy-rock shows over the years, there is now a new wave of listeners being introduced to the genre. Not only does this give rock musicians an exciting opportunity to engage with new audiences, it also gives rising rock artists a chance to reshape the sound we have loved and listened to for several years.
“It’s not all butterflies and rainbows in the world, but rock is a release. Maybe a few years ago in the genre it was a collective release of anger, but now there’s such a focus on the release of happiness and wanting to have a good time. I think that’s what separates rock now from 10 years ago. It needed to be fun again. Rock got so boring. We’re giving it a nice facelift in this new era of music.”
Following the release of “Bleach (On The Rocks)” in April, Harvie grabbed the attention of impressive industry artists including emo rap/pop guru lil aaron. In fact, lil aaron liked Harvie’s new single so much that he remixed “Bleach (On The Rocks)” and dropped a verse on the song a few weeks later. The new version of “Bleach (On The Rocks)” led to even more positive feedback and now both versions of the track have nearly 3 million streams on Spotify alone. If there was ever any doubt that John Harvie’s explosive, head-thrashing track was a standout single to kickoff the rocker’s career, the “Bleach (On The Rocks)” music video is all the visual evidence needed to see just how extraordinary Harvie is as an artist and performer. Don’t believe me? I’ll just let his debut music video do the talking.
After the impressive success of “Bleach (On The Rocks)”, Harvie has returned with his latest single “Alaina” which dropped earlier in June. “Alaina” brings us edgy guitar tracks, killer drums, and as Harvie confirms in our chat... inspiration from a very real story.
Bouncing back from the closure of a long-term relationship, John did what any guy in their 20s might do, turned to Tinder. He says he met a girl named Alaina online and after one long, deep conversation, there was not much talk beyond daily Snapchat selfies. After an abrupt end to their Snapchat communication, the chorus melody for “Alaina” popped into Harvie’s head while he was working at UPS one night. Once he brought the melody to the studio the next day, they built off of it and thus, “Alaina” was born.
“Everybody and their mother has been asking me if Alaina is real. Yes, yes she is! Alaina is real and that song is a very real story that happened. After writing it, I called her a week later and said ‘Hey, I don’t want you to think I’m a psychopath, but I wrote a song about you’. Luckily she loved the track and now we’re really good friends!”
The music world’s overwhelmingly positive reaction to Harvie’s first singles “Bleach (On The Rocks)” and “Alaina” already solidify his place as a standout act who is thunderously leading the new generation of rock artists. Rest assured, fans of the singer-songwriter don’t have to wait long for new tracks to jam out to with their friends. Harvie says his next project is coming in the next few weeks, as well as some kickass live shows! Don’t blink, or else you might miss Harvie’s instantaneous rise to stardom.
Be sure to check out John Harvie’s latest track “Alaina” on Spotify and Apple Music. You can follow his skyrocketing success on his Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, Youtube, and TikTok and keep up with new record release/live show updates on his website.
Interview by Kelly Carrazzone
