Martin Johnson (musician)
Martin Bennett Johnson is an American musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. He is the lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the bands Boys Like Girls and the Night Game.
He has written and produced for various artists, including Avril Lavigne, Daughtry, Jason Derulo, Christina Perri, Gavin Degraw, and Hot Chelle Rae. Johnson is credited with having several RIAA-certified multi-platinum songs. Songs he has written have sold over 10 million copies and he has had nine top 40 charting singles.
Personal life
Martin Johnson was born in Andover, Massachusetts, on September 9, 1985, and raised in Amherst, Massachusetts. He is of English descent. He is married to singer-songwriter Naomi Cooke, formerly of the American country music group Runaway June.They have a baby girl together.
Johnson has lived in Hollywood Hills, California.
Career
Boys Like Girls
Johnson is the lead singer and plays guitar for the band Boys Like Girls. The band, which consists of Johnson, Paul DiGiovanni, John Keefe, and Morgan Dorr was formed in Boston, Massachusetts in 2005. Since releasing their debut album in 2006, the band has sold over a million albums and has accumulated over one hundred twenty million plays for their music on MySpace.Johnson produced the band's 2012 record, Crazy World. The group then went on hiatus with Johnson saying the band hasn't broken up and may continue writing and recording. The band has since resumed recording and are expecting to release their fourth studio album in the fall of 2023.
The Night Game
Johnson currently helms the new wave band The Night Game. The band released two singles in 2017, "The Outfield" and "Once In A Lifetime", and toured as an opening act with John Mayer. They also collaborated with Kygo on the song "Kids In Love". On February 1, 2018, The Night Game released a version of "Kids In Love" without Kygo and announced plans for a tour.Songwriting
Johnson co-wrote, with Taylor Swift, the song "You'll Always Find Your Way Back Home" from the Hannah Montana Movie soundtrack. Most recently, Johnson produced and co-wrote Avril Lavigne's "Here's to Never Growing Up", Jason Derulo's "The Other Side", Karmin's "Acapella", Mike Posner's "The Way It Used To Be", Gavin Degraw's "Best I Ever Had", and Christina Perri's "Human". In 2015 he collaborated with a cappella group, Pentatonix.Selected discography
Credits primarily adapted from AllMusic.| Year | Artist | Title | Album | Label | Role | Notes |
| 2006 | Boys Like Girls | "Hero/Heroine" | Boys Like Girls | Columbia | Writer | Debut single, No. 21 at Top 40, sole writer |
| 2006 | Boys Like Girls | "The Great Escape" | Boys Like Girls | Columbia | Writer | Single, No. 8 at Top 40, RIAA-certified Platinum |
| 2006 | Boys Like Girls | "Thunder" | Boys Like Girls | Columbia | Writer | Single, No. 22 at Top 40, sole writer |
| 2009 | Boys Like Girls | "Love Drunk" | Love Drunk | Columbia | Writer | Lead single, No. 7 at Top 40, RIAA-certified Platinum |
| 2009 | Boys Like Girls | "Two Is Better Than One" | Love Drunk | Columbia | Writer | Single, No. 4 at Top 40, RIAA-certified Platinum, sole writer |
| 2009 | Boys Like Girls | "Heart Heart Heartbreak" | Love Drunk | Columbia | Writer | No. 32 at Top 40 |
| 2009 | Hannah Montana | "You'll Always Find Your Way Back Home" | Hannah Montana: The Movie | Walt Disney | Writer | RIAA-certified Platinum |
| 2010 | Taylor Swift | "If This Was A Movie" | Speak Now (Deluxe Package) | Big Machine | Writer | |
| 2011 | Ariana Grande | "Put Your Hearts Up" | Republic | Writer | Debut single | |
| 2011 | Hot Chelle Rae | "Why Don't You Love Me" | Whatever | RCA | Writer | |
| 2011 | The Cab | "Bad" | Symphony Soldier | Z Entertainment, Universal Republic | Producer, writer | Lead Single |
| 2012 | Megan and Liz | "Bad for Me" | Bad for Me | Collective Sounds | Producer, writer | Debut single, Top 30 Mediabase |
| 2012 | Papa Roach | "9th Life" | The Connection | Eleven Seven | Writer | Deluxe edition bonus track |
| 2012 | Allstar Weekend | "Life As We Know It" | The American Dream | Diggit | Writer | Single |
| 2012 | Boys Like Girls | "Be Your Everything" | Crazy World | Columbia | Producer, writer | Lead single |
| 2012 | Victoria Justice | "Make It in America" | Victorious 2.0 | Nickelodeon / Sony / Columbia | Producer, writer | Single |
| 2012 | The Used | "Getting Over You" | Vulnerable | Hopeless | Writer | |
| 2013 | Christina Perri | "Human" | Head or Heart | Atlantic | Producer, writer | Lead single, RIAA-certified Platinum |
| 2013 | Daughtry | "Baptized" | Baptized | RCA | Producer, writer | |
| 2013 | Daughtry | "Waiting for Superman" | Baptized | RCA | Producer, writer | Lead single, RIAA-certified Platinum |
| 2013 | Daughtry | "Battleships" | Baptized | RCA | Producer, writer | Single |
| 2013 | Daughtry | "Wild Heart" | Baptized | RCA | Producer, writer | |
| 2013 | Daughtry | "Long Live Rock & Roll" | Baptized | RCA | Producer, writer | Promotional single |
| 2013 | Daughtry | "18 Years" | Baptized | RCA | Producer, writer | |
| 2013 | Gavin DeGraw | "Best I Ever Had" | Make a Move | RCA | Producer, writer | Lead single |
| 2013 | Gavin DeGraw | "Everything Will Change" | Make a Move | RCA | Producer, writer | |
| 2013 | Avril Lavigne | "Rock n Roll" | Avril Lavigne | Epic, Sony | Producer | Single |
| 2013 | Avril Lavigne | "Here's to Never Growing Up" | Avril Lavigne | Epic, Sony | Producer, writer | Lead single, RIAA-certified Platinum |
| 2013 | Avril Lavigne | "17" | Avril Lavigne | Epic, Sony | Producer, writer | |
| 2013 | Avril Lavigne | "Hello Kitty" | Avril Lavigne | Epic, Sony | Producer, writer | Single |
| 2013 | Avril Lavigne | "Sippin' on Sunshine" | Avril Lavigne | Epic, Sony | Producer, writer | |
| 2013 | Emblem 3 | "Just for One Day" | Nothing to Lose | Columbia/SYCO | Producer, writer | |
| 2013 | Emblem 3 | "I Love LA" | Nothing to Lose | Columbia/SYCO | Producer, writer | |
| 2013 | Mike Posner | "The Way It Used to Be" | RCA | Producer, writer | Single | |
| 2013 | Karmin | "Acapella" | Pulses | Epic/Sony | Producer, writer | Lead single, RIAA-certified Gold |
| 2013 | Karmin | "Neon Love" | Pulses | Epic/Sony | Producer, writer | |
| 2013 | Jason Derulo | "The Other Side" | Tattoos and Talk Dirty | Warner Bros. | Lead single, RIAA-certified Platinum | |
| 2013 | Escape The Fate | "Forget About Me" | Ungrateful | Eleven Seven | Writer | |
| 2013 | Escape The Fate | "One for the Money" | Ungrateful | Eleven Seven | Writer | |
| 2013 | Heaven's Basement | "Lights Out in London" | Filthy Empire | Red Bull | Writer | |
| 2013 | Heaven's Basement | "Welcome Home" | Filthy Empire | Red Bull | Writer | |
| 2014 | Mat Kearney | "One Black Sheep" | Just Kids | Columbia, Republic | Writer | |
| 2014 | Mat Kearney | "Billion" | Just Kids | Columbia, Republic | Writer | Single |
| 2014 | Olly Murs | "Beautiful to Me" | Never Been Better | Syco, Epic | Producer, writer | Single |
| 2014 | Betty Who | "Glory Days" | Take Me When You Go | RCA | Producer, writer | |
| 2014 | Betty Who | "A Night to Remember" | Take Me When You Go | RCA | Producer, writer | |
| 2014 | Betty Who | "Dreaming About You" | Take Me When You Go | RCA | Producer, writer | |
| 2014 | Gavin DeGraw | "You Got Me" | Finest Hour: The Best of Gavin DeGraw | RCA | Producer | Lead single |
| 2014 | Jacob Latimore | "Heartbreak Heard Around the World" | RCA | Producer, writer | Single | |
| 2014 | Timeflies | "All We Got is Time" | After Hours | Island | Producer, writer | |
| 2014 | Alex and Sierra | "Scarecrow" | It's About Us | Columbia | Producer, writer | Debut single |
| 2015 | Pentatonix | "Sing" | Pentatonix | RCA | Producer, writer | |
| 2015 | Pentatonix | "New Year's Day" | Pentatonix | RCA | Producer, writer | |
| 2015 | Elle King | "America's Sweetheart" | Love Stuff | RCA | Producer, writer | Single |
| 2015 | Flo Rida | "Once in a Lifetime" | My House | Atlantic | Writer | |
| 2016 | Hunter Hayes | "Yesterday's Song" | Atlantic, Warner Music Nashville | Writer | Lead single | |
| 2016 | Delta Goodrem | "Heavy" | Wings of the Wild | Sony Music Australia, HouseOfOZ | Producer, writer | Single |
| 2017 | Kygo | "Kids in Love" | Kids in Love | Sony Music, Ultra Records | Writer | Single |
| 2021 | Lady A | "Like a Lady" | What a Song Can Do | Big Machine | Writer | Single |
| 2021 | Elle King & Miranda Lambert | "Drunk (And I Don't Wanna Go Home)" | RCA | Producer, writer | Single | |
| 2023 | Taylor Swift | "If This Was A Movie " | Republic | Writer | Re-recorded song |
In addition to the above-listed, Johnson wrote every track on the following Boys Like Girls albums: Boys Like Girls, Love Drunk, and Crazy World.