Dear John

Amsterdam

Dear John is the musical alter-ego of Dirk-Jan Smit, DJ to his friends. A 31 year old singer-songwriter living in Amsterdam. At the age of 21, after a jam with two friends, he discovered his musical talents and they started a cover-band called Rosewood. The inspiration from surfer-dudes such as Jack Johnson, Matt Costa and G.Love, led DJ to teach himself how to play the guitar half a year later. Later on Jason Mraz and Amos Lee were of great influence on his own songwriting. The Amsterdam Songwriters Guild therefor provided the stage to make his first steps as a solo artist. His catchy pop and thought-through acoustic rock build a repertoire of songs about hope, traveling, light-heartedness, love and vibes of the good life. These are beautiful stories which, in combination with fine rhythms and feel-good melodies, lead to lovely and personal songs, with the beauty of a city that awakens on a warm spring day and the pleasantness of a deep-pile carpet under your bare feet. At the end of 2013 Dear John reaches the semi finals of the Grote Prijs van Nederland. Two weeks later, on November the 15th, he self-releases his debut EP ’When the Morning Comes’. A colorful record which took almost a year to be completed. In total, more than 25 highly diverging background musicians and vocalists contributed: from different drummers and percussionists to multiple bas-players, to a handful of guitarists and even a cellist. The complete production was done by Dear John. The recordings took place in small and even smaller studios, bedrooms, cozy living rooms and dingy, underground basements. Resulting in sincere and positive songs that are catchy and cheerful in a way that is rarely seen today.