Jason Mraz's first summer job? Sweaty, hard work

Don't we all remember the days when we used to work tirelessly for 10, 11, maybe even 12 hours a day for pay that would disappear three days after you received it.

Even one of the most cool, calm and collected people we know has come up the hard way.

Grammy Award winner Jason Mraz didn't start out singing and writing songs.

His first summer job was building fences. A far cry from what he does now.

Photo: AFP

"My dad was a fence contractor in Mechanicsville, Virginia, so my first paying gig was building fences. It involved a lot of digging holes, cleaning up construction sites and distributing lumber. It was for $5 an hour, which, at the time, was more than minimum wage."

"It was hard manual labour, and I certainly would rather have been at the pool with my friends rather than driving an hour to some muggy, mosquito-infested area to build a fence around a horse field. But I was getting paid, so I didn't mind," said the two-time Grammy winner.

"My dad was happy to have me working for him. We would just blast the stereo all day, and I would sing along to the radio or some mixtape I made.

"He would turn to me and say, 'I hope you pursue that, and live your dream. I would rather you do that, than this,' " recounted Mraz of the inspiration his dad gave him.

"That stuck with me, big time. That could have been my future, and I could have easily taken over the family business. I still build fences sometimes - but now it's around my garden, and I do it with great pride."

His dad must be one proud man.

Source: Reuters, AFP