Biographical

John Britton is a singer/songwriter living in the suburbs of Washington, D.C. For decades, he has worked as a writer in D.C.’s policy and regulatory arenas, with songwriting serving as his creative outlet. In April 2020, he launched Four Mile Run Productions as a means of pursuing dreams and releasing his music.

Britton noted that, in all of life’s pursuits—and certainly in the pursuit of dreams and artistic endeavors—we encounter critics and obstacles. The inevitable “brick walls.” John had the joy of knowing Randy Pausch at CMU before Randy wrote his NYT best-selling book, “The Last Lecture,” about achieving dreams. As he boldly battled pancreatic cancer, Randy wrote these interesting words that reflect his optimistic, can-do spirit: "The brick walls are not there to keep us out. The brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something. The brick walls are there to stop the people who don't want it badly enough."

John Britton is thankful to Randy for the encouragement to overcome the seemingly endless series of brick walls that have delayed his musical ventures. He also gives a huge shout out to Drs. Curt Thompson and Brené Brown for exposing and helping disarm the ubiquitous, debilitating mental obstacles of shame ("You'll never measure up!") and scarcity ("You don’t have enough amid this highly talented, saturated scene!”). Many of Britton’s lyrics reflect this struggle—along with his pursuit of what is good, true, just, beautiful, and fun.

In 2020—amid months of self-quarantining—John Britton entered a focused “carpe diem phase” of his work as a singer/songwriter and is working to develop and enjoy as much original music as he can in the time he is given. Inspired by President Teddy Roosevelt’s “Man in the Arena” speech (Paris, April 23, 1910), Britton cites Brené Brown’s related encouragement to creatives: While it is risky to “show up and be seen,” the potential fear and embarrassment is nothing compared to the tragic state of getting to the end of one’s life and wondering, “What if I had taken more risks and pursued more dreams? What could have been different?”

Carpe diem! Soli Deo gloria!