John Oszajca has found his groove after getting involved in the Kerikeri creative arts scene. Photo / Jenny Ling
John Oszajca has found his groove after getting involved in the Kerikeri creative arts scene. Photo / Jenny Ling
When musician John Oszajca moved from the United States to the Far North over a decade ago he "didn't click" with the country at all.
The internationally renowned artist had long become disillusioned with the Los Angeles music scene, having been "chewed up and spat out" by the ficklemusic industry.
It was a newfound passion for theatre, combined with a recent tour with Kiwi bluegrass band T-Bone, which has reinspired him.
So, after a music career spanning more than 30 years with many ups and downs, and rubbing shoulders with the likes of Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder and the guys from Alice in Chains and Soundgarden, Oszajca is releasing his fourth album.
He is "still chewing on the name" but it's an "alternative bluegrass album with fiddles, banjos and guitars, distorted guitar and other contemporary elements in the mix", which he plans to release later this year.
"And people liked it... I had awesome experiences there for three years.
"By the time I left Seattle I was firmly entrenched as a solo artist."
Inspired and influenced by Bob Dylan, Tom Waits and Cowboy Junkies, Oszajca describes his music as "lyrics-driven, alternative Americana".
"If you mix Bob Dylan and Neil Young with a punkier influence, you'd land somewhere pretty close".
Over the years he's hung out with music and film royalty, including filmmaker Quentin Tarantino, and has performed with Jewel, Brian Setzer, Eve 6, the Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Hillary Duff and Beth Hart.
Elton John once dubbed his music "a cross between T-Rex and Beck".
He was briefly engaged to Lisa Marie Presley, and has also met Madonna, and Sam Phillips from Sun Records who signed Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis and Johnny Cash.
It was 1999, after moving from Seattle to Los Angeles, when Oszajca got his first record deal, which media touted as the highest paying deal for a new artist.
The debut album, From There to Here, was released the following year.
Oszajca puts its success down to Bisexual Chic, one of the songs on the album, which was picked up by KROQ-FM and played on heavy rotation.
John Oszajca playing at the Turner Centre in Kerikeri at a recent gig with T-Bone. Photo / Claire Gordon
That sparked other stations around the country to pick up the song.
"It led to a crazy bidding war, and quite an awesome deal... I was on an amazing high," Oszajca said.
"I was a broke 24-year-old who had holes in his shoes and needed thousands of dollars of dental work... but I worked hard and I hustled.
"When I got signed, the newspapers said it was the biggest new artist signing in record history.
"I did look like I was going to be the next big thing."
But with the highs came the lows.
When the record came out, it didn't sell enough copies.
"I got dropped, re-signed, then dropped again," Oszajca said.
"When I didn't sell enough, they just moved on and that's what happens in the record industry.
"I eventually got re-signed by an independent label, but it was a frustrating experience."
After that Oszajca spent a lot of time chasing a deal he had with a publishing company to put out a second album with a major label.
Having secured it, he released First Sign of Anything through Warner Brothers.
"Instead of going back and being a hustling kid in Hollywood, I spent a number of years playing record industry politics just chasing the deal," Oszajca said.
"But that set everything off course... Had I spent those five years just performing I would have been far healthier as an artist."
Oszajca's third album, Elephant Graveyard, was "alternative Americana with punk influence" that "didn't really pan out".
"That was where I pumped the brakes on things and moved to New Zealand.
"To be chewed up and spit out by the music industry - it's tough.
"That's why I haven't had an album out for a long time."
John Oszajca (centre) played the lead in the controversial play The Mother****** with the Hat. Photo / Peter de Graaf
Oszajca met his Kiwi wife Keshama Jane in LA, and when the couple moved to New Zealand, they initially lived in Peria.
They now have three children aged two, nine and 12 and have been living in Kerikeri for the last seven years.
As well as building online business sites, including Music Marketing Manifesto, he's also been a beer writer for Hospitality Business Magazine and was the founder of the New Zealand Brewer Online Magazine and Podcast.
He has become actively involved in the Kerikeri Theatre Company, and has acted in numerous plays including Romeo and Juliet, Black Comedy and Twelfth Night.
He played the lead in the controversial play The M*********** with the Hat which was directed by Keshama.
"Coming here was a huge thing for me, I really found my people," Oszajca said.
"The last few years I've got more involved in the creative scene and with the Kerikeri Theatre Company, which has transformed my relationship with New Zealand."
Though he doesn't know what the future holds, Oszajca now feels more at home.
"There's no more wanderlust," he said.
"One doesn't move to the Far North and think they're going to kickstart their career in the arts.
"It's been really refreshing to have had my own little renaissance here... it's a testament to how cool this town is."
