Jessica Perez - Featuring Elan "Step Into Sunshine"

Like a true L.A. native, Elan Atias is driving in
his car when I talk to him. It is mid-December and the temperature is hovering around 70. As Atias’ s car curls around the Staples Center, it runs into a snarl of tail lights. So we spend the first part of our chat talking about the Lakers, and debating the NBA’s recently axed trade of Chris Paul to the purple and gold. Atias is relieved the trade fell through, partly because he is the rare Lakers fan who wants to see the smaller teams compete, but mostly because he doesn’t trust Paul’s rickety knees. Atias lives not far from the arena, in the Fairfax District, where he was raised by his American mom and his dad, who grew up in Morocco and Israel. The family has held season tickets for ages. We also talk about the Niners, for whom his grandfather Billy Wilson played throughout the 1950s, revolutionizing the wide receiver position. Knowing he has the Sports Illustrated audience, Atias campaigns a bit for Wilson to get into the Hall of Fame.

But eventually the Jewish reggae singer circumvents the traffic via some now-unconscious shortcut, and the conversation moves to music, and Atias’s unlikely career in it. The first reggae song Atias can recall hearing is Roots, Rock, Reggae, off Bob Marley & The Wailers’ Rastaman Vibration. His older sister played it for him as a child. By the time he was 19, Atias would be singing the tune with the same Wailers.

Fresh out of high school, Atias was recording demos with some friends in a studio in the Valley. One night, they went to a club, and his buddy pointed out Wailers guitarist Al Anderson. Turns out, Anderson lived blocks from the studio and agreed to lay down some guitar for the rookie singer. Shortly thereafter, Junior Marvin, Marley’s replacement, left the Wailers to follow a solo career. The Wailers invited Atias to take over. “The first eight shows, there was no rehearsal, no soundcheck, no anything. I’d never been in a band before. I’d never been on stage in front of people,” Atias recalls. “I got up and sang off the memories of singing the records as a kid.”

In 2006, Atias stepped away to record his solo debut with Tony Kanal of No Doubt. Five years later he released We Are, a sunny and stripped-down second effort. “I’m just trying to send a positive vibe,” he says. And he has positive vibes to spare. Not even the gridlock of the West Coast can raise his blood pressure.

Q & A with Elan

The first record you owned?

I want to say it was a Depeche Mode album. Maybe, U2, War. I was six or seven years old. Either U2 or Depeche Mode or Duran Duran. I love new-wave. I love all kinds of music. I’m getting really into dubstep.

Your worst experience on the road?

I flew down to South Africa from Dubai. It was like a 15-plus hour flight. More like 20 hours. My passport was jammed with stamps. But I had a couple of spots open. The customs people wouldn’t let me in because I didn’t have enough room for their visa. Their visa stamp was like the size of a credit card. I’m like, You can just put that right there. And they were like, “No, no. We need our own page.” They stuck me on a plane right back to Dubai. The Wailers ended up getting a local singer to do the shows, a guy from a cover band.

Your favorite beach?

I love Israel. Best nightlife, best beaches. The Indian Ocean has a lot of great beaches, too. Mauritius. Tahiti is amazing. Bora Bora. Then you have Vancouver Island, that’s beautiful. There’s a lot of beaches, man! Even Dubai has a lot of great beaches.