Presence

Presence is the stage name of Southern California recording artist Jonathon Martinez. Presence’s musical catalog of nearly two dozen singles is an intimate dive into his struggles with anxiety, depression, grief, and love. Combined with a unique blend of singing and rapping, this vulnerability creates a fluidity of emotions across every project. In 2019, Presence gave a TEDTalk titled "The Power of Authenticity and the Internet." During the presentation, he states, "we all are unique, which makes our stories important, but more importantly, we all are connected, which makes our stories necessary. You never know who’s paying attention to yours." This conviction to be open and honest has made Presence stand out since uploading his first video to YouTube at the age of 14. The Ventura-born musician was able to amass over 60 million views on YouTube with more than a million followers across social platforms by the age of 19. "I’ve struggled with depression for as long as I can remember, and it always informed my songwriting. When writing these songs, I never intended to ‘make an EP about my journey with mental health issues,’ but I think that’s what it became. All I wanted to do was be honest, and the result is this."