Singer-songwriter Jonathan Heynen — also known by his stage name Johnny Prizm — fell in love with making synth-wave music around 2014 after watching the movie “Drive” with Ryan Gosling. The film’s soundtrack pulled him in, he says, and since then, Heynen has been locked into making music that makes people move.
“I was like, ‘Hell yeah, dude.’ It was huge,” Heynen said. “Music has become the thing for me that I just have to do.”
Born in Canada, Heynen moved to Juneau in 2007 where he discovered the Alaska Folk Festival. He lived in Southeast for three years, building the foundation for singing and playing guitar at a local church before he eventually moved to attend the University of Alaska Anchorage, where he received his bachelor’s degree in music and studied classical guitar.
“I left church, it wasn’t for me, then I started trying to build my own style — my own moniker, to be the personality that is Johnny Prizm,” he said. “I have definitely veered from the classical route into my own kind of thing.”
In 2022, he became really invested in his music setup, featuring backing tracks, synths, and more of a “full sound,” the musician said. He will find a chord progression or lyrics that he will really vibe with and jam with “until something sticks.” That year, Heynen released “Analog Love,” and “Hydrogen” the year after.
“I finally got some songs out there and it really gave me the bug,” Heynen said.
He builds the drums, the bass, the synths, and incorporates them into a live performance with electric guitar or synth pads and plug-ins, he says.
“My dream is to ultimately have a full band and create a really cool environment with lights and smoke and create a vibe where people come and be transported to the 80s basically. A dark, sad 80s,” Heynen said.
Heynen recently performed at Sugarfest at the Creekbend Company in Hope, and the most recent season of Parlor in the Round alongside Kat Moore and Field Guide.
On Friday, June 21, he will be sharing the Williwaw Rooftop with fellow local musician dreamcat; he says he is eager to share the stage with them.
“We have very similar synthpop stuff, so it’s going to be a great mashup,” Heynen said.
Sam Davenport is a writer residing in Anchorage. She's a leo and a plant-person, and loves spending quality time with her dog, Aspen. She is a Real Housewives fan and has been called a Bravo historian.
