CONTRA COSTA, CA — Firefighter and musician John Preston built the song "Fantasy" around the idea of pushing forward when hope runs out.
Now the song is under GRAMMY consideration in the one category he and his collaborators chose not to pursue: Christian music.
The Martinez musician and Palo Alto firefighter said he learned about the unexpected placement when the voter sent him a message praising the collaboration with Austin Corini and Gunny H.
Preston said the song originally had been submitted and confirmed in Best Melodic Rap Performance. Instead, "Fantasy" is under consideration for Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song.
This marks Preston's second consecutive year in the first round of GRAMMY voting and the first for Corini and Gunny H. The trio will find out the results Monday.
"The hope is this will be our first nomination," Preston said.
He said his previous experience in a rock category generated little response from voters. "Last year was crickets," he said.
This time, he said, messages from Academy members have given him more reason for optimism. The category also brought him back to a conversation the artists had with their label before releasing the song.
Preston described "Fantasy" as a meeting of rock, hip-hop, and pop, with faith running through its lyrics. The artists considered presenting it as a Christian release, then chose to let listeners approach the song without that designation.
"I've never wanted to use my faith as promotion," he said in an interview.
The night before he learned about the category, Preston said, he and Gunny H had discussed the years they had spent pursuing music.
"Gunny said, 'What man can't do, God will,'" Preston recalled in the statement. "We talked about faith, gave God the praise and left it there."
The next morning's message gave that conversation new significance, he said.
Produced by Shane "5ilas" Roberts, "Fantasy" urges listeners to keep going when hope feels out of reach.
Preston traces that theme through combat, an early recording deal, years of firefighting, and his brother's death.
He served in Iraq in 2004 as a Marine infantry squad leader. Back home, a music video made during his deployment drew newspaper coverage and hundreds of thousands of downloads. After returning home, he signed with a record label and performed in Los Angeles.
"I believed in a dream and the dream was happening in real time," he said.
That run did not last. About a year after returning from Iraq, Preston said, he moved to the Bay Area and began pursuing the fire service.
He described struggling after throwing himself into music without confronting his combat experiences, to which were added new sorrows.
His brother, Michael, died by suicide, in 2016.
Michael, a Marine veteran and longtime police officer, also changed how Preston understood the people he wanted to reach. His concern about veteran suicide expanded to include first responders.
In January 2020, Preston set out from Palo Alto on a planned 625-mile hike to the USS Midway in San Diego to raise awareness about mental health among both groups.
The effort, called 22 And You, included plans to stop in coastal communities and connect with veterans and first responders. Palo Alto firefighters gave him a send-off.
Firefighters supported him daily during the California journey. When injuries prevented him from carrying his pack, others carried it. "I never looked over my shoulder and felt alone," he said.
On a later journey in his brother's memory, Preston walked 700 miles from Parris Island, South Carolina, to Cincinnati in 32 days. He recalled navigating narrow roads and passing trucks before reaching Northern Kentucky, where firefighters, police officers, and residents joined the walkers.
Those encounters continue to shape his music. Preston said he wants people who hear his songs to recognize their own struggles and find a reason to keep moving.
He has now spent 15 years as a full-time Palo Alto firefighter. He said the work puts him alongside people on their worst days, sometimes allowing him to see them recover and return to thank the crews who helped them.
His children have joined his music projects, too. His daughter played a younger version of him in the "Rise" video, and his son played him as a teenager.
Asked about his musical influences, Preston named the Beatles, Tupac, and artists who used their work to draw attention to causes. He described his own ambition in similar terms.
"I really just hope that we can inspire other people to want to do great things," he said.
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