Daily Inspiration: Meet John Gold

Today we’d like to introduce you to John Gold

Hi John, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I think the easiest way to approach my story as an individual and artist is through the lens the concept of suffering provides.

At crucial junctures in my life—formative moments—I was tried. Like the metal of a building is tried under pressure, force comes down on it, and it is tried. Sometimes, the greatest force arrives because the blueprints are awry.

I find solace in a quote on the subject: “The trying of what you believe in and trust is an experience which strengthens patience. Allow patience to have her way! Do it so you can be perfected and completed—wanting nothing.”

I think experiences where you are bent, even where you are broken, can be the building blocks to a new type of success. I was very ill for a very long time as a child. Going through that experience built a framework for looking at the world a different way. Along that way, I suffered many changes of plan and had to start over more times than I can count.

I used to think these experiences, which reduced my aims to survival only, would rob me of a future I felt I deserved. Now, I believe they are strong stones in a beautiful foundation.

I am an artist and a mentor today because I experienced both joy and suffering and walked through both with my eyes fixed on something greater.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Well, like I said, I was sick for a very long time as a child.

Because my immune system was so fragile, I was forced to be isolated from other children my age.

When I finally went into remission for the disease I had, I remember walking into a classroom and being shocked by the diversity of the people around me.

I had never met so many different kinds of people—people who spoke different languages than me, dressed differently than me, and experienced biases I was oblivious to.

I floated by in a dreamy haze for a lot of that first year, overwhelmed by the rainbow of different personalities, tastes, and cultures.

So, I guess with each challenge, there are sweet and bitter elements.

It was bitter that I was isolated, but that experience has heightened my love for all people and my desire for compassion and justice on behalf of all.

Later in life, I became very mentally ill for the span of a couple of years. I found that my greatest enemy was living inside my own head. I had to strive constantly just to maintain any semblance of balance.

Living that way was hell on earth. I could go into detail about the horrors I experienced. I could even tell you about the last few years—there were times of tremendous turmoil. But right now, I’m in a good place, and it’s serving me well to keep my mind on the positive and my eyes on the One I’m following.

Circling back—because of that dark time in my early twenties, I became convinced that service to others was of monumental importance. You never know what someone around you is going through. We need people who will take their talents and abilities out into the world on a mission to soothe those who are hurting and have no one else to help.

So many times, people are focused on TikTok numbers or riding the next wave of whatever’s trending. When they do a righteous thing, they make sure the cameras are rolling. They want the almighty buck—or the fame.

It’s better medicine to be a light in the dark to those who are searching.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Well, I’m an experimental music artist, which means I like to try new things. A lot of my records have concepts behind them, and I like to work with different production styles and genres—trying whatever unusual things cross my mind and seem significant.

I’ve released seven solo albums (three of them are re-releasing this year) and formed a band with my wife, GR8FRT, under which we’ve released two EPs.

I think what sets me apart is my motivation. I’m not creating art or making music to gain fans, make money, or even influence culture.

I am creating art because of an agreement, a promise, a covenant between myself and God.

When I write, produce, and record music, my main collaborator is my Heavenly Father. In fact, I think He’s doing the majority of the work.

As long as He keeps giving me songs, I’m going to keep recording them and putting them on records. I’m also a writer—editing and publishing my first novel is something I’m deep in the midst of right now. As long as He keeps giving me stories, I’m going to do my best to tell them.

So why create art? What’s the motivation? Why do it if it’s not for money, fame, or influence?

Maybe I’m doing it because God likes art.

Maybe I’m doing it because art is a portal—bringing the one who interacts with it into contact with something beyond themselves.

Maybe I’m doing it because it’s the least I could do. I feel I was rescued from mental illness so severe I would have been institutionalized. So, this is the least I can do for the One who rescued me.

And for those who have a vein of contention—I’m not telling you what to think. I value honesty. Honesty makes for great stories—stories worth telling. Why would I fictionalize my reasoning and motivation?

Maybe they are not yours, but perhaps you can learn something from mine. I feel like no matter who you examine, there are lessons to be learned.

Perhaps I will learn something from you as well. I look forward to that day.

Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
Well, this last decade has been difficult for me because I have had more and more crippling depression. It recently got so severe that I enjoyed almost nothing I did and was almost always in pain. I was constantly looking for something to help me cope, but even falling into a good book, spending time with family, or making art was lackluster. I felt disconnected from everything I love.

In contrast, yesterday I was driving home from a doctor’s appointment, and it was golden hour—sunset. I feel like I saw every color. I couldn’t believe the shades of purple, hot pink, and tangerine. I was almost breathless.

I don’t think I’ve stared at a sunset like that in a long time—maybe as long as a decade.

This world is so antagonistic. There are so many ways to get sick. So many ways to lose the point.

It’s easy to care more about people on the internet than your family. To care more about capturing the moment on video than fully living in it. To care so much about what people think of you that you forget who you are.

Last year, It got so bad I had to get help. I went into an intensive group therapy program and began one-on-one counseling. It all helped, but I was still miserable. I tried exercise, medicine, vitamins. It all helped, but it wasn’t enough. The breakthrough I was looking for—the one I had been begging for a decade—didn’t happen until I prioritized my walk with God. I made becoming more connected with him my highest priority and took action on that by praying, reading the bible, and practicing the good things written about in it.

Happiness is an emotion. Emotions are good, but fleeting. I want to find my happiness and joy in something that doesn’t bend, shift, or change. I want to find it in something that isn’t transactional. I want to seek it in something deeper than the well of my own soul.

I think if you seek it, you will find it.

Pricing:

• You can stream “Cadillac” or any of my albums on Spotify, Apple Music, or any other service of your choosing. Just search “John Gold Cadillac”
• You can buy my albums on Bandcamp. Just google “John Gold Cadillac Bandcamp”
• I will mix, record, master, produce, or write a song for you. I have no standard pricing and will work with you to fit your budget.
• I have made beats for several hip hop artists and can do the same for you. I have no standard rate and will work with you to fit your budget.
• I can lecture on creativity, the arts, music, and Christian faith. I have no standard rate and will work with you to fit your budget.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.johngold.org
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/johngoldflorida/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Johngoldflorida/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/JohnGoldFlorida
• Soundcloud: https://johngoldflorida.bandcamp.com/
• Other: https://theantidoteradio.com/episodes/episode-674-john-gold

Image Credits
Abigail Gold