Story by Jane Johnston, Reporter
Photo courtesy of  Milwaukee Wisconsin Journal Sentinel

Jon Bellion’s race to stardom is only speeding up. He’s sold out two headlining tours and is almost finished with his third. His radio single “All Time Low” peaked at 35 on “Billboard Top 100.” Overall he is worth over 4 million dollars. Yet this 24-year-old doesn’t seem to care about becoming rich and famous. When he signed with Capitol Records in 2013, he fought to make sure his first three albums were free for his fans.

The loyal fanbase Bellion has amassed reflects his true self.

“I just want the people around me to be happy and to succeed. There’s nothing else,” Bellion told Elite Daily.

Bellion’s people include his parents whom he still lives with in Long Island, NY where he was raised. When he was a junior in high school, he began writing songs on his brother’s keyboard and after he graduated, spent some time studying music at Long Island’s Five Towns College before dropping out.

It was in college that he met nine friends who made a promise to each other that if one of them became popular, they would bring the others along for the ride. So when Bellion started touring around the United States, his friends were right there by his side in a band called Beautiful Mind. Many of these men have gone onto have successful careers of their own, like Travis Mendes, who recently released his newest single featuring Bellion “Dead Presidents.”

Mendes was also featured on Bellion’s song “Guillotine,” one of the 14 tracks off his newest album “The Human Condition.” This was the first album I have ever completely delved into by Bellion (Bandwagon fan, I know…I’m sorry), and after listening to it on repeat for three weeks, I kicked myself for not jumping on the fan bus years ago when my friends did.

The album features favorites like “Weight of the World” and the outro, “Hand of God.” Both of these soothing melodies highlight a side of Bellion that makes him stand out among his colleagues in music: His faith.

Jon is definitely not shy about his Christianity, telling Elite Daily, “God is in control and that’s the only way I can survive. I’m just going to focus on the music and performance.”

And boy oh boy, Jon Bellion can perform. I had the chance to see him in concert in October and it was what my friends and I have come to describe as “a spiritual experience.” His voice sounds exactly how it did playing over the speakers in my best friend’s Trailblazer on the way to Detroit. He sang remixes to his own songs with reggae style beats, jumped around on stage with his friends and just had fun. It was a show I’ll never forget. (And I’m turning on his Twitter notifications to ensure I get tickets to his next tour.)

Overall, Jon Bellion is genuine, unique, and a true artist; a rare find in today’s music industry. Keep an eye out for this one. His career is only going in one direction: Up.