Done With The Jester’s Abuse
Jason Korn, an Emerson freshman and aspiring musician, released his third single “Jester” on February 24th, 2022. Korn had previously released two songs, “Voices in My Head” and “Fairytales,” but “Jester” marks a new and exciting era for the musician. Korn says that “Jester” is a really special song to him that speaks to his mental health and helped him get through a lot, and he is feeling a weight lifted off his chest with its release. We talked about his writing process, and he told me how uses songwriting as a form of therapy, to work through and understand his emotions and experiences. He emphasized the importance of writing from a place that feels genuine to him. Otherwise “it does feel right to sing it.” He told me that “every single song I’ve ever written is very personal in some way. And no matter if I cover it with metaphors…when I write a song, it’s basically like a diary entry.”
All musicians find inspiration in unique places, and Korn gets a lot of his inspiration from jazz musicians, especially Miles Davis, Luiz Bonfa, and Duke Ellington. He also draws inspiration from more modern musicians, including Rex Orange County, FINNEAS, Phoebe Bridgers, Frank Ocean, Jacob Collier, and Matilda Mann. In addition to creating music, Korn is almost always listening to music. He’s been listening to a lot of Grady, especially “The Love Umbrella.” Some of his other favorites are “Apricot Princess” and “Pony” by Rex Orange County. Korn’s own music falls into an indie-pop category, with soft melodies and poetic lyrics. “Jester” is a slower and sadder song about dealing with one’s own mental health struggles.
Korn has been creating music for as long as he can remember, and his earliest memories of creating music involve using a wooden spoon to bang on a bunch of pots and pans. Music has always been a big part of his life stemming back to his parents playing lullabies and singing to him as a child. Describing growing up in a musical Latino family, Korn said, “There's always some kind of dancing…We just love moving.” He also told me, “When I listen to music, it just feels like home.”
Photographed by Eitan Ehrlich
Last fall, Korn moved from California to Boston to begin his first year at Emerson. His inspiration for writing and creativity has grown since his move because new experiences are so important for his writing process. He has also enjoyed the new connections he has made with performers and musicians in a community that values creativity and creation so much. Unlike many of his peers, he hasn’t felt homesick since moving across the country: “I personally wasn’t [feeling homesick], I was just writing a lot of music. Because it’s the only thing that I knew.”
Since moving, he has missed being able to share his music directly with his family, especially his uncle, whose brutally honest critiques he values. On the other hand, he has gained a network of friends and peers with whom he can work and bounce ideas off. “Obviously I’m trying to better my own songwriting, and people are trying to help as much as they can…Like, it’s just a great place to keep growing as an artist, because everybody is so supportive.” Korn also described his new favorite place to write: “It’s the dock in the [Public] garden. Yeah, like I would sit there for hours. And I just cranked out like two or three songs just chilling there.”
Getting into the mindset for writing a song may seem like a challenge, but it comes naturally for Korn. He explained, “I never know I want to write a song until it already starts happening. Because obviously, it comes from a very real place. And songwriting for me helps me through a lot. So usually, when I'm like, battling a lot of turmoil…lyrics just start popping in my head.”
As an musical theater major at Emerson, Korn has been learning music theory. He feels that it has opened his eyes to understanding the methods of creating melodies, which his mind does automatically. The multi-talented musician told me that he plays three instruments well, those being piano, guitar, and ukulele, but he has some knowledge of a number of other instruments. He is hoping to purchase a trumpet soon and to teach himself to play that as well.
“Jester” was Korn’s first release in over six months, and there are many new opportunities on the horizon during this exciting time in his career. In the last two semesters alone, he has been featured in several Emerson-based podcasts and magazines. Korn feels that he has grown so much from “Jester” and he is very grateful for where the new song has put him in his life. When we discussed his future in music, he revealed that he plans to spend his spring break in a studio recording the rest of his upcoming album. Hopefully, the next single off of that album will be released at the end of March or beginning of April.
His debut album’s title is still in the works, but for now, he is leaning towards “Plans For Us,” and the last single he releases before the album drop will have the same name. He described his upcoming album as a concept album based on the five stages of grief. Many of the songs on the album are about the relationships and experiences that Korn used songwriting to understand and move on from. Up until this point in his music career, he has focused on writing songs as individual experiences instead of a bigger picture, so he is exploring new methods of writing and creating with his upcoming album.
You can find Jason on all streaming platforms at “Jason Korn,” as well as on Instagram and TikTok @Jason_Korn1204