Jack Johnson, the nostalgic artist is back in the game with a new documentary and accompanying soundtrack album both entitled “Surflimusic.” After a long break away from the music industry, Johnson returns with never heard before hits as well as re-recorded favorites such as “Bubble Toes” and “Flake.” Along with the release of these new songs, Johnson will be touring at 46 different stops through the summer of 2026. This tour is looking to draw a large crowd, as he hasn’t toured since 2022 with the release of his album, “Meet the Moonlight.”
Johnson is most known through this recent generation for his song “Upside Down” featured in the 2006 movie Curious George. However he had a longstanding career before that point. With a total of eight studio albums, and two soundtrack albums, Johnson has had a widespread influence in the music industry. Through this time he has engaged in many genres from pop to acoustic to surf rock.
Starting his career Johnson released the hit debut album Brushfire Fairytales in 2001, with hits such as “Posters” and “Flake.” Following that he went onto release the album On and On in 2003, and then his most notable album In Between Dreams in 2005. This album contained hits like “Banana Pancakes” and “Better Together,” that still make appearances on nostalgic summer playlists to this day. From there his career took off. He released seven more albums from the years of 2006-2026 that brought surf rock to the forefront.
Surfilmusic is a culmination of the many lives of Jack Johnson, with the project highlighting his balance of surfer to musician to filmmaker. The documentary features never before seen clips of his early years before his claim to fame. The film is directed by Emmet Malloy, a close friend of Johnson, who has much experience in biographical filmography. It will be released in theaters on Friday June 5th, 2026.
For the new song releases, Johnson collabed with Hermanos Gutierrez. They are a two piece latin band featuring brothers Alejandro and Estevan Gutierrez. They contribute to the new songs entitled: “Journals,” “Drink The Water,” “Tahiti,” “Green Board,” and “Hold onto the Light (Instrumental.)” It was their first time collaborating with Johnson, and their unique sound provides a crisp sound making the album feel very polished and clean.
The initiative behind the tour that is accompanying the album is to promote green touring practices, meaning a more eco friendly tour, minimizing waste and impacts of travel. The practices will include promoting sustainable local food systems and supporting plastic free initiatives. In 2008, Johnson co-founded the “All at Once” social network with the Surfrider Foundation, which will be used to help the environmental impacts of the tour. “All at Once” Is a group movement with the leading slogan “An individual action multiplied by millions, creates global change.” The goal is to connect with other nonprofits and capture commitments. Johnson has had many great moments throughout his profession, and the documentary and soundtrack Surfilmusic is a perfect culmination of his career so far.
