Frank Jorge Lopes Jr. (born December 22, 1994), known professionally as Hobo Johnson, is an American vocalist and frontman of the band Hobo Johnson & the LoveMakers.[3] Hobo Johnson also delivers lyrics in the form of rap and spoken word to create his raw, often self-released music.
Lopes is a Mexican/Portuguese American from California.[4] When he was 19, he was kicked out of his house by his father and subsequently lived in his car.[5] For a stretch of time, Lopes worked at a pizza restaurant in Sacramento, but he soon quit to pursue his passion for music.[6] He is a fan of the Sacramento Kings[7] and has referenced them in the lyrics to his song "Sacramento Kings Anthem (We're Not That Bad)", written about the struggles the Kings have in the NBA.[8]
Music career
Early work and The Rise of Hobo Johnson (2015–2017)
At age 15, Lopes began performing music and hip-hop.[9][3] He came up with his stage name "Homeless Johnson" but soon made it "Hobo Johnson" while living in his car, a 1994 Toyota Corolla, and named his 2015 debut album in honor of his car.[10][11] Starting in December 2016, he released a series of live recordings on YouTube subtitled "Live from Oak Park".[12] In 2018, Lopes drew criticism from the Sacramento chapter of Black Lives Matter, who accused him of using Oak Park's name without consent and of cultural appropriation.[12] On May 12, they staged a small protest that delayed the beginning of his sold-out show at Sacramento's Ace of Spades nightclub.[13]
A 24-second sample of a live rendition of the single "Peach Scone." Hobo Johnson & the LoveMakers performed the song for the 2018 NPRTiny Desk Contest. The video clip of the performance was filmed in a backyard and went viral.
In 2016, he released the album The Rise of Hobo Johnson independently, but later created a new version of the album in 2017 which had changes to the production and a different tracklist. After the release of the second version of The Rise of Hobo Johnson, Lopes signed to Reprise Records. That year, he won four Sacramento Area Music Awards: Artist of the Year, Best Hip-Hop/Rap, Best Emcee and Best New Artist.[3]
Tiny Desk Concert, "Peach Scone", and The Fall of Hobo Johnson (2018–2019)
Hobo Johnson and the LoveMakers released a music video on Facebook as part of NPR's Tiny Desk Contest on March 7, 2018.[14][15] The song "Peach Scone" collected millions of views in just a few weeks.[16] Following the attention of the "Peach Scone" video, their album The Rise of Hobo Johnson charted at #11 on the Billboard Heatseekers Chart for the week ending March 31, 2018.[17]
While not winning the Tiny Desk Contest, Hobo Johnson & the LoveMakers appeared on Tiny Desk on an episode released on September 12, 2018.[18]
In 2019 he released the singles "Typical Story" and "UglyKid" from the album The Fall of Hobo Johnson, which was released by Warner Records on September 13, 2019.[20] That same day, EA Sports released the video game NHL 20,[21] which featured the single "Typical Story" on its soundtrack.[22]
The Revenge of Hobo Johnson, Hobo Johnson Alienates His Fanbase, and hiatus (2021–2024)
Lopes released the single "I Want to See the World" in June, 2021. He announced that the album The Revenge of Hobo Johnson would follow later that month.[23]The Revenge of Hobo Johnson was subsequently released on June 23, 2021.[24] On August 1, 2021 he released the album Hobo Johnson Alienates His Fanbase.[25]
In 2022, Lopes canceled several upcoming tours and broke up the LoveMakers band, citing a focus on school over music.[26][27][unreliable source?]
In 2023, Lopes began performing shows again and released a new song on Instagram and YouTube, titled Sacramento 12 Step.[28]
Hobo Johnson Drinks, Untitled Hobo Johnson Project (2024)
In March of 2024, Hobo Johnson released a double single titled 'Hobo Johnson Drinks', featuring the songs Dad's Bed and Metaverse (stylized in all caps).[29][30] The album hasn't been formally announced, but the band has since released another two songs simultaneously on the 3rd of May titled 'Flood The Earth Again' and 'Jansports'.[31][32] Hobo Johnson has announced an extensive US tour, which begins in June and ends in August.[33]
The sound of the new songs hues a bit closer to the band's second studio LP 'The Fall of Hobo Johnson' compared to the acoustic and satiric detours of his 2021 releases.[34][35] The songs feature more emotionally affecting and less abstract or unserious lyrics than 'Hobo Johnson Alienates his Fanbase'.[36]
↑ WEIDENBAUM, MARC (June–July 2019). "The Fall & Rise of Hobo Johnson". Sactown Magazine. Sacramento, CA: Metropolis Publishing. Retrieved July 29, 2019.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
