Jon Whyte Potter-Mal 2003 and the message of MPL

His medium is music, but his message is hope.

At age 21, Jonathan Whyte Potter-Mal 2003 has recorded and released CDs on his own record label, Mind Peace Love, and is expanding his business to include not only music composition and talent management, but also film production and a line of clothing.

Not bad for a young man who, four years ago, was given only a slim chance of surviving a rare form of cancer. He underwent three surgeries and intensive radiation and chemotherapy treatments. Now in remission, Jon is filled with hope for the future of the planet, the future of music, and his own future.

Classmates who saw Jon perform when he was still a student at Selwyn House knew even then that he had talent, but no one knew the obstacles that would rise up in his path, or the positive determination that he would draw upon to overcome them.

During his two years of exhausting chemotherapy, Jon kept the music flowing and maintained his positive outlook. “The treatment made me examine what was really important,” he says. “I realized I didn’t have all the time in the world.”

“The illness put my philosophy to the test, and it has endured.”

Working under the stage name Jonathan Emile, or simply Jon E., he has now released several recordings of his own original hip hop music and remixes of songs by other artists.

In 2005 he founded Mind Peace Love Enterprises, whose name expresses the intellectual, spiritual and emotional pillars of Jon’s personal philosophy. The business has grown into a “conscious art company” involving not only music, but also film production and a line of “fair-trade” clothing that doesn’t use sweatshop labour. “As westerners, we should pay more attention to the effects of our system,” he says.

In 2006 Ile City, a duo made up of Jon and his partner J-Remy, released their first CD, Agenda Reciprocity, and have other recordings ready for release soon. Ile City has performed in Canada, the U.S. and Europe, and played for 900 spectators at the annual ball for the Montreal Children’s Hospital Fund.

Île City recorded their 13th track album at Studio Piccolo in Montréal, where artists such as Madonna, Céline Dion, Smashing Pumpkins, Sum 41, Simple Plan, and Isabelle Boulay have recorded.

Meanwhile, Jon is also at work on a solo album to be out soon, and is also looking to manage, produce and write music for other local artists.

Jon’s parents and two sisters are very involved in MPL. He says he is grateful to his parents, not only for “sending me to the right school,” but for instilled in him the beginnings of his philosophy of life.

Selwyn House classmate Nick Tsoukas 2003 is an artist and repertoire man for MPL.

Jon sees his music as being very different from that of most commercial hip hop, which, he says, is “saturated with ‘gangsta’ [images] and misogyny. People associate hip hop with negativity.”

The MPL approach is to make music that is “reverent and relevant.” The aim is to foster revolution based on re-examination, one that is “more open, less conflicting,” and that looks at everything from three perspectives expressed in the company’s name.

“I’m not consciously trying to go against the grain,” he says. “I’m just doing what I like and making good music.”

Jon says he sees “a movement of hope” springing up around the world, pointing to the mobilization for change that has emerged in the U.S. presidential race. “I see a trend coming back for the first time since the 60s,” he says.

On June 13 Jon will be performing at Cafe Campus, and may make an appearance at this summer’s reggae and jazz festivals, as well as a chamber music festival where he will remix classical and Hip-Hop. He recently performed in a benefit concert by Africa is Real, an organization fighting AIDS, genocide and poverty in Africa.

In his spare time, Jon has appeared on a calendar for Black History Month, scored the music for the award-winning documentary Breakthrough 2004, and became the youngest person ever to receive the Gloria Mitchell-Aleong Award from the Black Theatre Workshop.

He has been involved with young people through programs such as Jeunesse 2000 and ArtSmart, and often speaks to youth groups about his life and work. His message: “Eliminate negativity in your life.”

Words Jon lives by. “Success, for me, is only beginning,” he says with a smile.