In celebration of Earth Day and the Kōkua Hawaiʻi Foundation’s 20th Anniversary. The song “Home” is originally from Johnson’s 2012 album, From Here To Now To You, but has been reincarnated with Stick Figure, a reggae band based around tropical vibes and culture.

   The Kōkua Hawaiʻi Foundation supports environmental education in Hawaiʻian schools and communities. The foundation was founded in 2003 by Jack and his now wife, Kim Johnson. The foundation raises concerns for healthy food awareness, production, and consumption. It also promotes proper, viable waste reduction and recycling.

   Home was originally on the soundtrack from the movie A Brokedown Melody, a surfing documentary. Johnson, a former surfer himself, found that “Home” could be more than just a song for the movie and decided it fit perfectly for the end of his From Here To Now To You album. The song provides the path to finding home, and mentions gardening and tending to the where you call home, representing what The Kōkua Hawaiʻi Foundation aims to do.

   “I went in and wrote that song pretty quick, but it came really easy and as I was writing it I almost didn’t use it for the movie’s soundtrack because I liked it alot and thought I’d just hold onto it,” Johnson explained in his commentary track on the song. Johnson isn’t fond of thinking too much about whether or not he should use a song for an album and decided to use it for both the soundtrack and an album.

   The reincarnation of the song, released on April 26th, 2024, shifts the baseline of the song to a more tropical vibe, similar to other Stick Figure songs. Either artist takes turns singing each verse, starting and ending the song both with Johnson’s vocals.

   The original release of the song was more well-put together and rhythmic. I’m not a huge fan of the tropical vibes- only because I know the original song so well. The basis of the song is to support Johnson’s Hawaii based foundation, so it fits the theme.

   The song is very calm, and feels open. It explains that home is wherever you are if love is involved. Thinking about home as a feeling versus a place makes much more sense to me, the idea of home in general is safe and secure. The song creates an emotional bond with the listener and allows them to connect what they hear in the lyrics to what they see in their home.

   Proceeds from the song are all allocated to The Kōkua Hawaiʻi Foundation, as announced on Johnson’s website.