John Mayer – Nicely Done!

Filed under: Celebs Do Good,Gomez TV,John Mayer

Everyone knows that John Mayer has recently been in a shit storm of problems since his Playboy Interview hit the streets.

I’ve also never been a fan of Mayer or his music but I have to give props when due. He did a good thing here probably giving this young boy one of his best lifetime memories not to mention the perks.

The following is a story from a local paper out of Southern Jersey, The Courier Post.

Austin Christy stood next to his favorite performer before a crowd of roughly 25,000 people Sunday, and felt completely calm. The 11-year-old stayed cool as he lived out a dream most people will never realize.

Austin persuaded rock sensation John Mayer to invite him on stage at the Wachovia Center to play lead guitar on the musician’s hit song “Belief.”

Mayer brought Austin on stage after he read a sign the St. Mary’s Regional School sixth-grader held high over his head: “Can I play “Belief’ with you?”

“I was really excited. I was thinking that it wasn’t real,” Austin said.

He can play a number of Mayer’s tunes, but “Belief” is a special song he learned for his mother, who was in the front row with him. It’s her favorite song and he practiced it secretly to play in front of her when he was ready.

Not only did Austin get to play the song with Mayer, but he also got to keep the singer’s red Squier guitar and picks he used during the concert. Austin plans to frame the guitar and picks.

Mayer signed the base of the guitar: “To Austin, You rock. Keep playing. See you at your show.”

Then he signed it and noted the concert was in Philadelphia. (The note actually contains a slight error: Mayer mistakenly wrote Feb. 21, 2009.) That same sentiment was repeated to Austin on his way out of the venue as fans gathered around him hoping to get their picture with boy. A bodyguard even escorted him out, he said.

Austin has been playing guitar for two years. Sometimes when he practices, he watches or listens to Mayer play and tries to learn and mimic the artist.

Austin said he likes playing guitar because “it’s another way to express my feelings.” And he really likes Mayer’s music. Sunday was Austin’s second Mayer concert.

“His music is different than all the other artists,” Austin said. “A lot of them are R&B and hip-hop. He’s like a combination of pop and blues.”

As far as he and his family knew, that was the first time Mayer pulled someone on stage to play along with him.

After Austin finished the song, the boy and the musician exchanged thumbs ups.

“I said I was a big fan, and he said back to me he could tell,” Austin said. “I thought it was pretty cool because a lot of other artists wanted to play with him and he picked an 11-year-old out of a lot better artists.”

Austin’s mother, JoAnna Christy said Mayer said, “That’s all I wanted when I was a kid,” as her son walked off the stage.

“John Mayer, from the first time he came out, I feel Austin had definitely caught his eye,” she said.

Austin’s father and brother, both named Blake, also like Mayer and got to see him play at Sunday’s concert.

“I was more nervous than he was,” his 14-year-old brother Blake said.

Austin had hoped, but wasn’t sure if Mayer would respond to his sign, though he knew the singer tends to talk to his audience. But he knew if Mayer called on him, he wouldn’t have a problem playing that song.

“I believed in him that he would pull me up on stage and he believed in me that I would do a good job,” Austin said.

Posted in: February 26, 2010 at 1:30 pm