John Mayer

Born in Connecticut on October 16th, 1977, John Mayer was always one to do things his way. He discovered the blues at age 13 when he started listening to Stevie Ray Vaughan (who Mayer cites as his biggest influence) and picked up his first guitar. By high school, he was somewhat of an outcast, preferring to practice Jimi Hendrix riffs on his guitar than hang out with friends.

a blues start

To ensure that he got formal training, Mayer's parents hired a guitar teacher. However, they soon discovered that lessons had become more like informal jam sessions. Disappointed, they discontinued the lessons and Mayer had to revert to playing guitar by ear. This turned out to be a good thing though, as his love for music only grew. By age 15, he was playing at local blues bars and fine-tuning his talent.

Following his high school graduation, Mayer continued performing in blues hotspots, playing both covers and original material. When he was 19, he was accepted to the Berklee College of Music in Massachusetts. Proud to be part of this exclusive school, Mayer approached his first semester on a positive note, but soon realized he'd rather play music than study it. After only a few months, he dropped out and decided to move to Atlanta, where his friends claimed the music scene was perfect for him.

john mayer heads south

Once he settled in the South, Mayer refined his musical style, making it mellower and removing some of its raw blues elements. He also began frequenting a popular songwriters' haunt called Eddie's Attic and received songwriting tips from locals. Following several small gigs in Atlanta, Mayer released an independent album called Inside Wants Out in 1999, which featured both acoustic tracks and others backed by a band.

As Mayer began to shop around his album, he got a boost from the Atlanta press, who loved his fresh sound. Encouraged by these words, he traveled to Austin, Texas to perform in the South By Southwest Music Festival. With several talent scouts on hand, he lit up the stage and soon after, several offers for record deals were on the table. Finally, Mayer signed with Aware/Columbia Records in 2000.

mayer's room for squares is a hit

John Mayer was nicely set up at Columbia -- he was offered the services of expert producer John Alagia, who previously worked with the Dave Matthews Band and Ben Folds Five. In one year, Mayer put together Room For Squares, which was immediately given four stars by Rolling Stone upon its release. The praise continued as tracks like "No Such Thing" and "Your Body is a Wonderland" invaded the airwaves, and helped Mayer's debut album go triple platinum and stay on the Billboard Top 200 for 80 consecutive weeks.

your body is a wonderland at the grammys

When the 2003 Grammys came along, Mayer received two nominations and, to the delight of his new fans, did not go home empty-handed. He won the award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for "Your Body is a Wonderland," and the hype did not slow down after his win. Mayer began touring throughout North America, Europe and Japan, and continued making tracks whenever he found downtime.

on to heavier things

After releasing a double live album called Any Given Thursday in February 2003, Mayer compiled the work he had completed on the road and recorded his second album, Heavier Things. Amid rumors that he was dating the sexy Jennifer Love Hewitt, he began marketing the album before it was released in September 2003, with the track "Bigger Than My Body." Though the phenomenal success of the first album makes it harder to meet such high standards, Mayer has still received widespread acclaim for his second effort.

With more tours on the way, Mayer has shown that he is a man on a mission. This fresh face in music has grown right before our eyes and has become one of the biggest names in the biz. Let's hope it's only uphill from here on in.