by Charlsie Dewey
Singer-songwriter and pianist Jonathan Zeng and his partner, Edward Wagner, moved to Chicago in January.
Previously the pair was living in Cincinnati, where Zeng had recently had a teaching job offer rescinded when the school found out he is gay.
"I was offered a job and then they asked if I was gay and they told me I couldn't have the job," he said.
Zeng, who has a background in musical theater and operatic performance and who has performed throughout the country, said the incident was the catalyst for his first foray into songwriting, and led to him producing an EP of original material that was released April 1.
The album was funded through a successful Kickstarter campaign.
"It was a great outlet for me to express my feelings and to hopefully do something positive out of that situation," he said.
The title track, "Through These Doors," was the first song Zeng wrote and he said it was specifically inspired by his experience with the school.
He said the entire album is related to the experience either directly or indirectly.
"Most of the songs have to do with some sort of cultural awareness or making the world a more accepting, better place," Zeng said.
"A lot of my music and a lot of the messaging is about how we as a society are more similar than we are different and that religion and other mentalities, though intended to make our lives better and be a good thing, often cloud our vision and make us judge others. I really am hoping my music will speak to a more inclusive society."
The incident gained national media attention and Zeng received an outpouring of support, which also inspired the album.
"I'm hoping just by speaking out about it. ... Young people in that school environment or in similar environments will realize that it is not the only way to think in the world," he said.
"I grew up in a very conservative, not LGBT-friendly environment, and it took me a long time to come to terms with who I was," he said. "Finally I did and it was such a wonderful thing for me to have my eyes open, so to speak, and then to be thrown sort of back into that mindset when I was refused that job was really hard for me."
Zeng said that his musical-theater background definitely comes through in the album.
"It's more of a popular, modern singer-songwriter style, but with definite musical theater influences," he said. "You might compare it to other singer-songwriters with piano as their main instrument."
He also said that he doesn't want to shy away from being a gay performer and thinks its important that people know that he is gay and many of the songs are about two men even though his lyrics allow for a universal interpretation.
"For instance, the song 'I Found You,' is a love song from me to Edward," he said. "I don't specifically mention his name, its not specifically male-male … its about love, but it's important to me that others know that this is between me and Edward, and that it is as beautiful as any straight relationship."
The album is performing well, reaching number one on the Reverbnation Chicago Singer-Songwriter chart.
Since he is just getting acclimated to his new life in Chicago, Zeng does not have any plans for a release party currently, but hopes to do something to promote the album in the coming months. He is also searching for a new band to perform with since his band mates are back in Cincinnati.
Zeng's album is available under Jonathan Z on iTunes and Amazon; hard copies are available through his website at www.jonathanzeng.com .
