Up-and-coming musician encourages youth to pursue ‘natural high’

Carlsbad singer-songwriter Cody Lovaas is stepping up his involvement as an ambassador for Natural High, a nonprofit that inspires youth to resist drugs and alcohol.

Lovaas will help honor skateboard icon Tony Hawk for his longtime support of Natural High during the Natural High Gala Sept. 12 at the Omni La Costa Report and Spa in Carlsbad.

Hawk will be recognized at the event for changing the drug prevention landscape and inspiring youth like Lovaas.

Lovaas, 17, hopes to have the same kind of impact with his music.

“With my songwriting and lyrics and the way I live, hopefully that can inspire people to find their passion,” Lovaas said. He continued: “If you have a passion, that’s all that matters. You don’t need drugs or alcohol.”

To that end, Lovaas said he recently penned a song, which doesn’t have a name yet, that more directly addresses these themes.

“It’s about living for today,” he said.

Lovaas, who opened for Jason Mraz on his 2015 North American tour, said he got involved with Natural High after hearing the story of Jon Sundt, who founded the nonprofit in 1994 after losing two younger brothers to drugs. Sundt wanted to save other families from the same heartbreak, so he formed Natural High to focus on drug prevention.

The Sept. 12 event will include special performances by Lovaas and others, live and silent auctions and showcase Natural High’s work with 13-17 year olds over more than two decades.

Tickets for the cocktail reception, silent auction and dinner are $250 per person. Guests can purchase VIP tickets for $350, or reserve a table of eight for $1,800 and $2,600, respectively. To purchase tickets or make a gift, visit www.naturalhigh.org/gala.

Natural High reaches an estimated 8 million youth a year through a video series, social media, events and free-of-charge curriculum provided to educators. Visit naturalhigh.org for more information. More about Lovaas, along with his music, can be found at www.codylovaas.com.