How Jack Johnson found the love of his life at 18

Jack Johnson is a musician best known for being a roots and folk performer. The 47-year-old opens up about being a mamma’s boy, his college sweetheart Kim, and working with Hawaiian singer-songwriter Paula Fuga.

My maternal grandma, June, moved next door to us in Hawaii when I was a teenager, after my grandpa died. She was a big influence, nurturing and supportive, similar to my mom [Patti].

“Kim and I are best friends and still find each other interesting.”Credit: Morgan Maassen

My grandma was the first person I ever shared a cassette demo of my music with. It was nerve-racking to share those songs, but I remember her saying to me in my early 20s that it was brave of me to share personal thoughts and ideas with people. She would come for dinner and sit with us on the porch and listen to me sing Bob Marley and Beatles songs. Subconsciously, every song I’ve ever written since has been in honour of her encouragement.

I could always trust Mom with my songs. She was the first person I sang to. I am one of three: my brother Pete is 10 years older and Trent is seven years older. We all grew up as mamma’s boys.

My dad, Jeff, was an eccentric guy, and while he was sweet and present when he was around, sometimes he would leave for a month. He sometimes worked as a sailor and would get hired by friends to sail across the Pacific or to Fiji, Tahiti or California. Mom became very independent – I think she enjoyed some quiet, too, when he was away.

I’ve collaborated with the amazing Hawaiian singer-songwriter Paula Fuga. She is the only female singer I have co-written with in my career. Her voice is so powerful. My dad, who died in 2009, said I should record with her. He told me to sing more with Paula because she makes me sound better. Paula has sung with Ben Harper and Ziggy Marley. We met in the early 2000s and became good friends.

My wife, Kim, and I have been together since we were teenagers. We met at the University of California in Santa Barbara. I was 18, she was 17. She is the first love of my life and the only long-term relationship I have had.

Kim’s CD collection was cooler than mine at uni – I discovered Nina Simone, Otis Redding and the Pixies. She became my editor, in a way, when it came to my own music. She gave me feedback and helped shape the songs on my debut album, Brushfire Fairytales (2001). She is now my co-manager, alongside Kizzy O’Neal, another female force in my life.

Kim used to help me with my maths major at college. She started tutoring me because as the maths got harder, my grades went from a B to a D. She suggested I switch my major. She took me to an event called Real Loud, a silent-film festival, and that was when I realised I wanted to be a film major and make surf documentaries.

Kim and I are best friends and still find each other interesting. We have shared dreams and ambitions and, between us, always figure out what’s possible. We lived in California for eight years before moving back to Hawaii after college. She worked as a high school teacher and now runs Kokua Learning Farm. Our goal is for elementary kids to come on field trips to our eight-acre [three- hectare] farm with its outdoor classroom.

I have written many songs about my wife, but one that I worked on while in Australia is from my 2017 album, All the Light Above It Too. It’s called Love Song #16. The title is tongue-in-cheek because I’ve written so many songs about her.

I never had a big plan to find my life partner so young, but I guess I saw my parents happily married and figured it would happen to me one day. My parents would always watch the sunset, have a glass of wine and laugh a lot.

Kim and I have two sons and a daughter. Our daughter is the youngest and the only one in the family who knows how to read music. She’s very loved by her brothers.

Jack Johnson’s new album, Meet the Moonlight, is out now.

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