Jonas Myrin

Jonas Myrin  0:00  
I think fear is one of the biggest mountains we face in our life. And I think it's one of the biggest weapons that the enemy throws at us as well on our journeys, because fear can, can be so crippling and fear it can those the chains of fear can hold us back so much the fear of man, the fear of, of the future, the fear of the unknown. There are so many, there are so many moments with fear can be the biggest mountain and I wanted to kind of take these words and, and then flip them because what's so powerful about when gossips into the room is that hate changes the story, you know, like fear turns into faith. And doubt turns into love.

Trevor Tyson  0:52  
Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for tuning in for this week's episode of Trevor talks. I'm your host, Trevor Tyson. And I'm so excited that each and every single one of you have joined us today for what I believe is going to be an inspiring, hopeful conversation unless we butcher it, which I don't think we will. But you know what we're not going to so we're just going to leave it there. But I'm so excited to have this week's guest. He is a two time Grammy Award winning singer songwriter who has worked alongside the likes of Lauren Daigle, Matt Redman, Chris Tomlin, Barbra Streisand, Natasha Bedingfield, Edina, MN Zell, and so many amazing artists. It's insane. But today, we have the opportunity to hear from the man himself, which is such a unique thing. This guy doesn't do very many interviews. I don't know how we got on the list, but I'm grateful we did. Please help me welcome Mr. Jonas. Myron Jonas, welcome to the show.

Jonas Myrin  1:48  
Hey, Trevor, thanks so much for having me on today. Dude, of

Trevor Tyson  1:52  
course, I'm like, you've got the hat in the cozy background. And I'm just doing something like you're more professional at this than I am at this point. Well, you

Jonas Myrin  2:01  
know what, I think you're awesome. And thanks so much for having me on.

Trevor Tyson  2:07  
Thank you. Thank you so much for the kind words. Yeah. And you've been a part of so many amazing songs. And it feels like I'd be doing a disservice to you, myself and the audience. If we didn't start off with just getting a brief introduction about you, like, not only as a writer and a singer, songwriter, but you as a person.

Jonas Myrin  2:25  
Yeah, man. Where do you start? Like, I feel like my journey has been as been a wild one, you know, like, it's just amazing what God has done throughout this. You know, yeah, this journey has been amazing. I started growing up. In Sweden, it's kind of where my parents are from, but we, when I was three, we moved to Africa. And did mission work out there. And my parents are just amazing, where they would just kind of take me, my sister with them on a lot of these adventures, so we were traveling with them when they did ministry everywhere from Lapland to Iceland, to Russia, around the world. So I grew up with this real kind of understanding of God is is not just this religious thing and go to church is an everyday life thing, you know, and seeing the power of God in my life very, like real, always praying for people and seeing healings and miracles happen from when I was a little boy. So I had this, this very, I guess, authentic, real upbringing. That was kind of crazy at times, too. You know, like, I remember as I was driving through the desert of Africa, a cargo stuck

Trevor Tyson  3:48  
in the desert in the desert of Africa. Yeah, definitely. We were going

Jonas Myrin  3:51  
to Zimbabwe for a wedding. And I remember, I was four years old, and the car stopped because we had no gas, and mom devil, okay. What we got to do? Well, we have to go out and play for the engine. We literally only had some of the engine, I will never forget this. I was four. And we went back into the car and the car started and we drove for hours with a gas meter on zero. I mean, how do you explain this stuff? Only God, right? And being a kid growing up like that in this in this kind of wild, supernatural, but very authentic way. was life changing. And I look back on my life and the amazing things have happened. I think those moments were just has anchored me and really made me who I am today. You know,

Trevor Tyson  4:42  
I'm on well, like, number one in What world do you grew up in Sweden, then moved to South Africa and then like, pray over a motor on the way to Zimbabwe like all of these things are just crazy to hear, especially from someone who was born and raised in Georgia. I'm like, I've never been to South Africa or anything like that, so like, it's already such a unique story, and, and what world like for you being a little Swedish boy at the time, like Grammy Awards writing with some of the biggest names in music itself, not just Christian music, music, it had to be a dream that at some point in time, you're like, Well, this is a dream, I don't know if it'll ever happen. But when it starts to transform into that, it's like, you see the power of God working through it. And it's not about the awards and everything, but it's like, at what point did this go from a dream to a reality for you?

Jonas Myrin  5:38  
Oh, good question. I think being this kind of mission kid, music was always something I did, like, I remember when I was 12, or 11, I asked my parents before they would go on, you know, I do their sermon, I was saying, like, Hey, do you want a song for the altar call, I can write you an altar call song. And I would like take, I would take their like message, and I would like to turn it into a song. And I would go off and sing it, you know, and it would be the most simple songs, but it would they were always from the heart. So songwriting for me was something that I always did. And I never really even thought that this Swedish kid was going to, you know, write for this incredible legends and, and influential people that around the world, what God has taken the songs, you know, like, I was just in Italy last month working with Andrea Bocelli for his new album. Wow. And it was just like one of those moments when you realize, music is such a powerful way to not just get into the room with someone but to connect with someone's heart. And that was always when I grew up, that was always how I saw songwriting as a songwriting as a way of service. It was a way of this is how I can be a blessing. This is how I can serve and use the gift that God has given me. And to this day is the same, same thing, nothing's changed, it's all is still that thing, like, hey, here I am, use me in whatever capacity of way that is. Let me be be a blessing today, using my gift with whoever I am, if it's writing a worship song, or if it's writing a pop song, or is it just mentioning to someone in the room, the engineer in the session or the artist or, you know, wherever, wherever I am, yeah.

Trevor Tyson  7:33  
And from 10,000 reasons with Matt Redman to our God with Chris Tomlin. There's so many songs that you've been a part of. And one thing that really just goes to my mind when I think of 10,000 reasons, is the clip that has gone viral several times of Matt leading it in New York City with just this flood of people, when you see things pop up, whether it's on Tik Tok, or Instagram, and it's your song, how does that make you feel especially like you're in the background of writing and crafting this thing together and seeing it makes such a global imprint? It has to feel pretty humbling.

Jonas Myrin  8:09  
Oh, Trevor, it's it's actually like, unbelievable. Like, I remember I was in Brazil, because I always tried to go to church on a Sunday, wherever I am in the world. And even if that is just a little local church in a different language, I will still try to go. And I was in Copacabana. And I remember stepping into the back of in my flip flops, and Rio de Janeiro. And this little smaller local church and a walk in the back. And suddenly I hear 10,000 reasons in Portuguese. And they're singing my song. And I'm standing there in the back and no one else that I COVID With this, you know, they were just I was just a tourist for them. And I stood there in the back worshiping. And I just felt like this is this is the power of music where suddenly the song you write, it's not even your own anymore. And no one even knows that you wrote it. But actually, it's become their song. And as I looked at the crowd, in the congregation that Sunday morning, and these beautiful Brazilian people singing the song, in their language, to their God, and and I just felt so grateful, you know, this is, this is something that is a greatest honor, I think as a songwriter and as an artist to be part of this to see God breathed on something that we put out there, you know, because it's only by his anointing that the song can go you know, that it's not the worst of talent that is there's so many great songwriters out there in the world. But I think what is the difference between you know, just a song and maybe an anthem is when God decides to breathe on it and that's just by His grace that he's done that with the songs that I've been a part of and feel Yeah, you know, that's still my prayer every day when I'm when I'm in the studio God, you would read on this and you will you will bless it. Because that is when when it's going to be To live able to make a difference in this world.

Trevor Tyson  10:03  
Wow, that's so good. And when it comes down to it, whether you're co writing for another person's music or writing for your singles that you put out, is there a difference in the songwriting process for you? Or is this something that you've found, like what works with you? The gift that God's given you to build almost a formula for yourself to be able to write no matter what capacity the same way? Yeah, that's

Jonas Myrin  10:27  
a good question, Trevor. I think, for me, one, it's all from a heart of worship, like everything I do, if it's, if it's a song that is serving a congregation, or if it's a song to minister out in the world, or if it's a song that is to encourage Christians, or if it's a song that is an instrumental piece, or for a movie, it's all from, from that. David Hart, Masha, I've been just so inspired reading the Psalms, you know, because I think David was, you know, he's called in, in Hebrew, actually, in the original text, they called him the singer of songs. And, and David was a worship Aryan, you know, and he was someone who, who lived one life. And this is what I loved about David, like he, he was the same person, wherever he was, if he was on the field, if it was a shepherd, or if when he was on the battlefield, when he was a warrior, or when he was in the palace, when he was king. God was always number one in his life. And I think that is something with my songs. And in my music, I always been trying to do remember, it's not really about the genre, it's not really about the style. It's not really about like, the chorus or the concept, really, it's all about the heart. And, and to me, if I'm writing for myself, or for another artist, or for a ministry, he doesn't, to me, I just want to be obedient to to the moment and serve, who I'm writing for, and serve the moment.

Trevor Tyson  12:06  
I love that you bring that up. One thing that's always funny to me with, I do a lot of interviews and a lot of work within the rock genre. And people hear like somebody's screaming out these lyrics. And they're like, that's satanic. And it's like, actually, that's just aggressive worship. Like, one of the guests that we previously had on his name is Michael Felker. And he sings or screams for this band called convictions. And it's like, that's worship music, it doesn't matter if it's pop, it doesn't matter if it's EDM, metal core. All of this can glorify God. And that's the beautiful thing about being unique. Because if we weren't unique life would be pretty boring. And exactly one thing that I can really appreciate about your songwriting is that you have found this way and God's given you this ability to communicate emotion and vulnerability in such a way that you it's artistic number one, but you're able to pull in imagery that I couldn't even think of. So like, especially your new single mountains, when I first heard it, I was like, Okay, this is gonna be soft, and then everything just drops and you blast off into the, I guess you'd call it the chorus. Yeah, that's right. Yeah. Oh, my God, it, it got, it gets explosive. And then you go back down. And it's unpredictable, which Yeah, and country music and a lot of pop. It's very predictable. So how are you able to use all of these different elements of the song whether it's the highs or the lows, and just make it work so well together and stay on track with the story because you don't get lost? Like a confusing lost, you get lost in the emotion of the song. And that is a craft on its own. So I'm curious to hear ESPECIALLY THE STORY BEHIND THE SONG mountains and then just going into your songwriting abilities, because it definitely is unique, and it's powerful. And I've grown to appreciate it so much

Jonas Myrin  14:01  
Hall thanks, man, I move the world. I mean, that's always been something I've been pursuing with my craft is, is to be excellent, you know, and to really, you know, give my best, give my finest give that last bit of the jar of oil and pour that out, you know, to always do more than what's expected in my songwriting to not just be generic or to just die will do but to really like, you know, speak in, in the language of also our culture, I think that is so important, and I love to push the boundaries as well, musically and creatively, you know, and I don't really speak a language of storytelling, which I think Jesus was the best storyteller ever. I mean, he spoke in parables he spoke, his sermons were stories. And sometimes we forget that you know, that we we have been given These gifts of art and creativity to communicate his heart. You know, that is that is why we've been given them, you know, to take people by their hand and point them to heaven. And say there was there is more there is a hope there is a light on the wrist faith, and that is the message amount is a saying, if you have like from Matthew says Like if you have faith, just the size of the seed of a mustard seed, you can speak to that mountain and say move NHL move. And that was the that was the first actually a heartbeat of this song I was in Israel working on on a movie that I'm doing actually about David, which is another story, but we can talk about some of that. It's it's been an incredible journey. But I was holding a mustard seed in my head injuries when someone put it in my hand. Look, Josie, here's a mustard seed. And they put in my hand and Trevor it was so tiny. Like it wasn't those tiny little cedar. I don't know if you've ever seen one. But it's like, they're so small. And, and I've thought of that scripture, Matthew, where it says like, that's how much faith we need. Just that tiny little faith is all we need. And God can take that little faith and he can bless it, and he can multiply it. And he can take that and he can move circumstances around. He can change the story, you can change the trajectory, you can move that mountain we're facing that that doctor report or that circumstance or whatever it is that we're we're faced with and, and create a miracle. And that was what I wanted in the music of of the song too. I wanted it to feel like you said explosive, like dynamic where it's like a chorus just comes in and goes. And it just injects you with faith and injects you with this like feeling of Yes, I can do this. It's not impossible. It's it's, it is possible. Yeah. And, and I felt taking a lyric and taking the music and kind of combining these two worlds was really important for me, and the creating of this song. So I actually got the Stockholm Symphony Orchestra. My friend works with them. So I got them to play on the song. So those epic strings here is the Stockholm symphony. And then I had my friend Alaska power, he is one of the top producers right now in the world. He's just incredible at what he does, we CO produced the song together. And we had a mix in Stockholm and mastered in New York. So I did the vocals in LA. So it was this incredible kind of global collaboration. And it's been so well to finally see, you know, come out and seeing being out there now and like speaking to people and I'm getting messages every day from people saying thank you for this song because it's, I needed this song, I'm going through this or that. And the song has given me life in what I'm going through and giving me faith. So I'm really excited about it.

Trevor Tyson  18:06  
And it's insane. Like when you look through the people that had their hand in it, you see not only yourself, but you've got people that worked with Paramore, and Hayley Williams and excetera like on the songs and it's like, dang, like, that is a huge collaboration to even be able to piece together into a single and people don't realize like when they see a Lauren Daigle song or Chris Tomlin or Jonas Miran that there are dozens of people that had their hands on these sessions. And it's like, it's such a collaborative effort. And they're like, Man, this person is so talented. And for me like having a little bit more insight like over the past few years, and it's like, Man, I'm curious to know the team behind it. Yeah, and getting to hear you give like the Stockholm Symphony Orchestra and all these people credit for what they did in the song to make it what it is, is so humbling and tells a lot about your character. And one beautiful thing about the song is the video because aside from the song being such a bold anthem of hope, the video really helps bring the message home for us. And you had quite a few locations for this video that really just bring it to life. So what was the creative mindset behind the video? What did you want to portray? And what do you want people to get from walking away from seeing it? Yeah, I really, first of all, thank you for liking the video because there was a lot of work. We spent it wasn't hard to like the video. It's great.

Jonas Myrin  19:37  
Thank you. Well, it was it was truly like a sacrifice of praise that one because it was it was not a easy process to make that video we we, you know could have shot it, you know, in Los Angeles, in a little studio with some mountains green screen, but of course not. Of course I picked the most remote location in the world and went to the mountains of Chihuahua, which is in the north part of Mexico, where you can only get there by first two, you have to take two flights. And then you have to drive for hours and then come to this spot and Chihuahua, whether you have to jump on a train, and you take a train through the mountains, to get to this place called Divisadero, which we actually shot the cover for the single, and who shot a lot of the video there. And, and it was lakes, it was trains, it was buses, it was hours of hiking, endless hours. So hiking through these incredible landscapes. And the reason why I chose to make it so hard for myself is because I felt like this song needs to have a real, authentic video behind it. Like I didn't want it to feel artificial. I want the meat to stand on that mountaintop looking out. And one of the biggest monitor wages in the world. The Copper Canyon, actually in this part of Mexico is bigger than the Grand Canyon. Even it's more more vast, and more high and more deep. And when I heard about this location, and when the bid director said, Jonas, this is one of the most epic landscapes in the world. He said, But it's going to be hard work. And it's going to be like waking up at five every morning the holy to catch the sun. He was like, it's going to be hard work. But if you're up for it, I am an acid. Okay, dude, let's do it. I want to get my best for this song. Because I believe in this message of the song and, and I wanted to store the video to, to just really take people there, you know, and take people on that journey where they, they just will feel so inspired. And and they feel a mountain in their life can also be made. So we did it. And it's it was, you know, a tough week, but it was worth every little moment and every early morning to capture it.

Trevor Tyson  22:04  
That's awesome. And one of the other things that I could tell was very intentional was having the word fear on the TV screen behind you. Yeah, what was the thought process behind putting things that people hopefully are going to overcome while hearing the song? Or even just start them on that journey? What was the reference point there?

Jonas Myrin  22:25  
Yeah, like, they're the words doubt and fear, kind of just understanding behind this, this massive screen, this words are flashing behind me. And, and then when the chorus comes, the word changes to love and faith, which is the opposite. You know, faith is the opposite of fear. And I think fear is one of the biggest mountains we face in our life. And I think it's one of the biggest weapons that the enemy throws at us, as well on our journeys, because fear can, can be so crippling fear it can those chains of fear can hold us back so much the fear of man, the fear of, of the future, the fear of the unknown. There are so many, there's so many moments with fear, can be the biggest mountain and I wanted to kind of take these words and, and then flip them because what's so powerful about when God steps into the room, is that he changes the story. You know, like fear turns into faith. And doubt turns into love. And with a song that's was really my prayer was that the song would do that for people that they, when they hear it, they they would just the circumstances will flip and the perspective would flip, you know, and they will go Oh, actually, I'm gonna see from this way, even though it looks, this situation looks really like a step back. It's actually a step forward. Or even though this circumstance might be really hard. Romans 828 Both things started to get good, you know, that we're, we just can take a step and we can look at things from a different perspective. Because I think that is actually what faith is. Faith is having the capacity of looking at, at a situation through God's eyes. And through his perspective. And and then we realized what was a mountain is suddenly an opportunity. Suddenly a beautiful, beautiful perspective and a beautiful view.

Trevor Tyson  24:40  
Yeah, and for a lot of listeners and even things that we've experienced ourselves in life, there's so much fear and anxiousness. Depression. All of these obstacles are mountains in this sense that we have all struggled to just climb over or ask God to move them. Can you recall All the time along this journey where you were like, This mountain is too big. I don't think I can do it. I need to step back and how to God intervene and help you overcome that obstacle.

Jonas Myrin  25:10  
Yeah, I think I mean, I've had a few my life has been full of those moments where, where I'm being like, wow, okay, God, I need you. You know, like I, I have had so many moments where I've also made because I say yes, to a lot of crazy challenges in life. I didn't take the easy path like I, you know, I moved to LA, which is one of the, I think one of the toughest cities in the world to live in, for example. Exactly. And it's, it's not an easy place is a dark, it's a Dark Town, with a lot of craziness around us, but But I remember someone said, the darker the night, the stronger the light. And I've never really seen that. But I think, you know, for me, the last few years have been very challenging actually, in the beginning of this pandemic, my dad actually passed. And to COVID. In Sweden, it was an incredibly hard time as you can imagine. And probably one of the toughest mountains to face in your life is to lose a parent. And it was extremely quick and very unexpected. And I remember, my sister called me and she said, Joan is like, my dad was already in a home. And in a care home because he had Alzheimer's and season. My sister called me, she said, John's dad has high fever today. So they called us in, just to come in to sit with him. And we thought I just would just pray for him. And I said, Absolutely, I'll be on FaceTime with the guy. So I was in LA and FaceTime. And we were just talking to dad. And then my sister said, Jonas, why don't you sing Dad's favorite song? That'd be so cool. If you can just sing him a song on the piano. So absolutely. I said, Dad, you know what, I'm gonna sing your favorite song. And I'm gonna lead you in worship today, this morning. And I sang 10,000 reasons for him. And, and it was, it was amazing, Trevor, because it was such such a piece that came in that moment, I remember sitting at the piano, and I just close my eyes. And I just sang the song that I wrote, you know, all the all these years ago, on the piano and middle of the night in LA, for my dad in Sweden, in his care home. And when the second chorus came, I remember I, I started shaking, my hands started shaking. And I was wondering what was happening in the room, I felt something was happening. So I actually finished the song after the second chorus, and, and my sisters takes the phone, she goes, Jonas, I think Dad has gone to the other side. I think he just he continued singing that song and heaven. And the nurse can manage this. Yeah. He's, he's not here anymore. And it was one of the most beautiful and it was a challenging moments, but but the most precious time where I felt like, I was able to give my dad that moment of his favorite song and being led in worship, and he gave him the peace, to close his eyes and just to let go. And I mean, was so precious, because it was such a holy moment, you know, and we know that third verse, In 10,000 reasons and, and I never got even to that third verse, you know, and on that day, when my strength is failing, the Angelus near my time has come, still, my soul will sing your praise unending, 10,000 years and then forevermore. So bless the Lord and myself. And my dad got to continue that third verse and have it and his last breath on Earth became his first breath and heaven. And and it's, it's just been incredible to, to see God's kindness in these moments where you write something, to be a blessing to others. And then it got to be a blessing to my family and to, to my dad, and to my own life, the song that this prayer that is reminding us of the hope of heaven, because even though he's not on this earth anymore with us, and we've all lost, loved ones there. We're all going to meet again

Jonas Myrin  30:00  
And he is healed now he's well, and he's, he's worshipping. And in, in the place where there was no sickness, there was no fear. There are no tears and, and coming back to mountains, you know, like, that's why this song feels so important because me myself, I walked through this, this dark valley of shadows, you know, which David talks about of losing a loved one. And that journey of grief, which was super hard, obviously, for the next few weeks not been able to travel to Sweden because of the lockdown and because of the airspace being closed. I couldn't be with my family, I had to, I had to grieve on my own. And you can imagine that was one of the hardest thing to do is you just want to be with your family, right. And I was alone in my house, in LA, but in the middle of my you know, toughest nights, and lonely nights I, there was a psalm or says that God is close to the brokenhearted that he's near to the one who's crushed in spirit. And I've read that scripture many times in our follow. That's beautiful. And that's wonderful. I have never encountered it like I did, after losing my dad. And after being crushed and spirit myself literally felt like just a blank at some nights of just God's presence being close to me, and being near and having this sense of like, all is good. All is well, my soul. Like, even though I'm broken, I'm held. Even in my loneliness, I'm not alone. Because he is with me. And, and I got to actually experience you know, what I write a lot. In the songs I've got Minister back to me about the song called Cornerstone many years ago, and there is this line says through the storm, he is Lord, Lord of woollen. And I really felt that the Indus in the storm, that I was not alone, in the storm, that he was with me and, and he was Lord in this time, and, and I think that's maybe why mount is is powerful, because, and why speaking to people because it's, it's sung from a place of, of, of a heart who's, who's been broken, but not defeated. You know, this is a thing you know, like, and, you know, we are, we are broken vessels. But we're made a choice of clay but but he put us together and an end him. And I think in faith, we have something which you know, even the angels are jealous of us because we can sin from from a place of, of saying, like, God, even though I'm broken, I trust you. Even though I don't understand the circumstance. I will worship I will bless the Lord, I will trust you, I will try it out today. Even though maybe, you know, the circumstances says I just want to be home and watch Netflix. But But this journey the last two years, for me, just come back to your question has been, has really been been a tough, a tough one. But, but it's been a beautiful one. Because I felt I've got to experience the reality of, of what it is to be a Christian actually, what it is to, to, to have faith when when the circumstances tell you that. You know, you feel like a mess, you know, and you feel and you feel lost. Some mornings, you know, and you go, why did this happen to me? Or why did this happen to my dad? Why? You know, we all have these moments. That don't make sense. But there is a piece that's promised to us in Philippians. And it's a peace that passes all understanding.

Jonas Myrin  34:36  
And it's a piece that says it guards our hearts and it guards our minds and our thoughts. And, and this, this is the gift of faith. You know, this is actually the gift of what it is to be a Christian so we get to encounter this in a real way. Not just on the good days but on the hard days and on their. On the stormy days. Get to encounter this, this gifts. Wow,

Trevor Tyson  35:06  
I can't even begin to grasp what just happened. Hearing the story of him leading his dad and worship. And before the third chorus of the song, he went up shot up to heaven with Jesus. And that's a hard story to share. And apparently, this is the first time that's been shared on a public level. So just to be able to help be a part of stewarding that message is beyond encouraging to me. And I hope that you've all gotten something out of this interview. It's not your typical quote, unquote, interview. In fact, I want to backtrack and take away that I said, interview because I'm always like this in an interview. I'm not a journalist. This is a conversation. And just, man, like, it's fascinating. It's fascinating the stories that we get to hear in Stuart and I hope that you all go out and stream mountains. And all of the songs that Jonas has been able to be a part of, because they're beautiful. And we've all heard his music without knowing it. Dang, if you're speechless as I am, let me know in the comments below. I love you guys so much. I'm so thankful that you're here with us for this. Be sure to stream mountains, and all the links for Jonas's social media and everything will be in the description below. And I hope that you know that your wife has so much purpose and that none of the stories and voices that come through the show have any more power than your students. You have a voice, you have a purpose, you have a life to live, and God's got so many amazing plans for you. And I'm not just saying that as a cliche way to close out. I'm serious. God has a reason for you to be here and he loves you so much. And I just want to remind you that in the description below, there's going to be resources available to you. And the first one being heart support and the second being death, the wife and I stand by them so much because there's so many people out there struggle, mental health, sometimes the strongest people in your life are the ones that are suffering the worst. So just remember that you are above Do you have a purpose and that God has such an amazing purpose for your life guys, never forget that. And we'll talk to you guys next week. Bye now.

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